Seattle’s PBS station will cease production of its local long-form journalism, leadership announced on Monday.
Manuel Valdes / AP
Seattle’s PBS station will cease production of its local long-form journalism, leadership announced on Monday.
The move, attributed to the loss of federal funding for public media, marks the layoffs of 17 staffers and the creation of three new positions, station President and CEO Rob Dunlop told KUOW.
RELATED: Congress rolls back $9 billion in public media funding and foreign aid
“With the loss of federal funding for public media, we have been forced to make some hard choices about where we will invest our reduced resources for a sustainable future,” Dunlop wrote to staff on Monday in an email shared with KUOW. “Sadly, we are joining public radio and television stations around the country who are making similarly difficult choices.”
Dunlop said the organization would continue production of its local video series, including Mossback’s Northwest, The Newsfeed, The Nosh, Nick on the Rocks, Out & Back, and Art by Northwest.
RELATED: NPR to trim $5 million this year as public radio stations struggle to pay bills
“These are painful decisions to make and none of the impacted team members did anything to bring this about,” Dunlop wrote to staff. “They have served Cascade PBS and this region with passion and distinction. To the journalists affected, their work has earned much well-deserved recognition that has elevated our mission.”
A spokesperson for the Pacific Northwest Newspaper Guild, which represents journalists at Cascade PBS, said in a written statement that the union was “deeply disappointed that Cascade PBS is choosing to eliminate its newsroom and lay off of its reporters at a time when we need good, thoughtful journalism more than ever.”
The statement continues, “Cascade PBS executives and management in the coming days to discuss the impact on our union members and the reasoning behind these decisions.”
This is a developing story. Check back for updates.
This KUOW story comes to you from the Northwest News Network, a collaboration between public media organizations in Oregon and Washington.
It is part of OPB’s broader effort to ensure that everyone in our region has access to quality journalism that informs, entertains and enriches their lives. To learn more, visit our journalism partnerships page.
