For the first time in over a half century, NPR, PBS and member stations like GBH are operating now without federal support.
GBH President and CEO Susan Goldberg joined GBH’s Morning Edition guest host Henry Santoro to talk about the foundation’s new capital campaign and her views on the way forward. What follows is a lightly edited transcript.
Henry Santoro: Susan, always a pleasure to see you.
Susan Goldberg: Thank you, Henry. I’m so glad to be here.
Santoro: Susan, I feel like our parents kicked us out of the house.
Goldberg: Well, kind of, yeah. It’s too bad. It really has been almost 60 years that we have received federal funding from the Corporation for Public Broadcasting. And as you say, that officially ends today.
But GBH is still here. We will find a way forward, and I believe that will also be true for many, many public media stations around the country.
Santoro: Your job as CEO of GBH is mind-bending at best on a good day. But, why is your head not spinning?
Goldberg: Well, it is spinning a little bit. But I’ll tell you, I find October 1, 2025, not a day to mourn and to fret, but to really take action — which is why we are launching a brand new three-year comprehensive campaign to raise $225 million.
Santoro: And I’m sure we could do it.
Goldberg: Oh, I’m 100% convinced that we can do it. And, you know, we have incredibly generous supporters who believe in our mission. And I know that they will support us during this time. And in fact, from the moment that people started talking about cutting federal funding, our donations have increased. Now we just have to secure that support for the future.
Santoro: It’s called “Funding the Future.” And there’s also an eyebrow-raising slogan that can be seen right now on our digital mural outside the building. What does that say?
Goldberg: It says, “Go Fund Yourself.” Because, this is, in fact, what Congress told us...
Santoro: That’s what they told us!
Goldberg: That is really what they told us to do. And you know what? I think it’s fine that that’s an eyebrow-raising slogan, because there’s a lot of noise. There’s a lot going on. We are living in a really complicated time in this country, but we need to focus people’s attention on what’s important. And what’s important is making sure that we can continue fact-based, independent journalism at GBH and around the country. And we need to do that.
Santoro: And continue just being laser-focused on what we do and how we do it best.
Goldberg: That’s exactly right. So, you know, our fact-based journalism from everything from right here in the studios here at GBH News, to our documentary investigations on FRONTLINE, to science-based content on NOVA and so much more.
Santoro: This building is so damn creative. I mean, every floor there’s something immensely creative going on, whether it’s PBS Kids, whether its FRONTLINE, NOVA, American Experience. It’s just, it’s loaded with creativity. And we should add that GBH is an educational foundation.
Goldberg: I was just going to say that, and I’m glad you mentioned kids, because we do so much kids programming as well as work with millions of teachers all over the country creating lesson plans around history, civics and science. And this campaign is to make sure that we can not only continue to do that work, but provide free access to it for people, no matter their zip code or tax bracket.
Santoro: So, $225 million, three years to raise. How long will that money carry us?
Goldberg: Well, look, we’re going to need that extra money beyond what we already normally raise. And we normally, you know, we’ll raise about $70 million a year. So we need that extra money to help us create the business transition to the digital future, where we know everyone is going.
Right now, you now, we are on broadcast, and proudly so. But now and into the future, more and more of our listeners, viewers and readers will be on digital platforms.
Santoro: That’s right. They’re listening or following us on the app, they’re on social media, and that, like you said, is the future of what we do. And we know it, and we will embrace it.
Goldberg: And, you know, the business opportunity on a digital platform and the business challenge on a digital platform is quite different from how it works on broadcast. So that’s the transition that we make.
And, in media, you know, people have been making this transition for the better part of 30 years. And it doesn’t matter whether you started out in newsprint or in magazine print or on television or radio, you are now a digital company if you’re going to be successful.
Santoro: And you come to us from National Geographic.
Goldberg: I did.
Santoro: Are they feeling the pinch?
Goldberg: I think any legacy media company has felt the pinch. Some have made an incredibly successful pivot. I always look at the New York Times, which has become, you know, a digital company involving not just news, but lifestyle products that help fund the news coverage. And I think there’s all kinds of things that we can do at GBH to help make sure that we can continue on with the important news and education and inspirational content that we create.
Santoro: Well, GBH has been creating shows that have been shared nationally and internationally for decades.
Goldberg: People do relate to them — and people do have this nostalgic, wonderful affection for GBH. And I love it that they do. But what I also hope this campaign makes clear is the relevance and importance of the work that we are doing right now and going forward.
Santoro: That’s true. How is GBH thinking of its role as a leader in public media?
Goldberg: Oh, GBH has been a leader in public media… and we will continue to be so. I don’t think that changes at all. Look, we have been innovative.
We create more content for PBS than any other station. We are partnered with NPR. We have PRX, the podcast distribution company. We work with radio stations all over this state to bring stories that matter to seven million residents of Massachusetts. So, none of that is going to change. But I do think public media is going to change following Oct. 1, 2025.
Santoro: The Corporation for Public Broadcasting is no longer an entity. It’s out of business. How does that affect us?
Goldberg: Well, the CPB was the distribution mechanism for all of that federal funding. And when Congress, on July 18th, clawed back $1.1 billion it had already appropriated, that effectively puts the CPB out of business. Though, I believe they, technically, will be winding down operations through the end of the year. But as of today, there is no more funding.
Santoro: Another moment when they basically just said, “Go fund yourself.”
Goldberg: They did actually say that.
“We work with sponsors. We work with foundations. But most of our funding comes from individuals, as we like to say, ‘People like you.’”Susan Goldberg, president and CEO of GBH
Santoro: We’ve been hearing a lot of comments from lifelong viewers and listeners since the announcement of that clawback you just mentioned. Have there been any that have been particularly moving to you?
Goldberg: Well, I’ve been really moved by just the incredible increase that we’ve seen in donations since then — several million dollars above what we would have normally expected — following the clawback. And that has continued.
And I think people have realized everything that we do and that it matters to them. And if they want to see it continue, they need to help fund. And what has been very moving is the number of people who have signed up to be sustainers, not just one-time givers, but sustainers. And that bakes in their long-term commitment to GBH and public media.
Santoro: And whether it’s $5, $10 or $20 a month, whatever their budget allows, that adds up big time.
Goldberg: Oh, it does. And look, we work with sponsors. We work with foundations. But most of our funding comes from individuals, as we like to say, “People like you.” And that makes a huge difference.
Santoro: What matters to you.
Goldberg: And what we do, what matters to you.
Santoro: And our pals across the hall at our CRB — WCRB — they’re in their pledge right now and they are doing extremely well. Our friends down at CAI, our sister station on the Cape, doing extremely well. We’ve got a pledge drive coming up this month, later this month. And we will do very well, as well.
Goldberg: We will do extremely well. And, also, our colleagues at NEPM in Springfield, Massachusetts, our station there, have done incredibly well. And I think what all this reflects is just people’s care and concern about public media. And they say it does matter to them.
Santoro: What does GBH and public media look like in five years from now?
Goldberg: We’ll be a much, much more digital company. I think we will have more partners than we have now.
Right now our biggest partner is PBS. Our second biggest partner is NPR. But I think, we will have many more partners, including, I hope, streaming companies and other nonprofits.
Santoro: And the big shows for GBH — Antiques Roadshow — leading the game, right?
Goldberg: Masterpiece, Antiques Roadshow, FRONTLINE, NOVA, American Experience — we’re incredibly proud of all those shows. And part of the reason to launch this campaign is to make sure we can keep doing those shows and even more.
Santoro: And those shows are multi-award-winning shows. I mean, right down to the Hollywood Oscar.
Goldberg: Two years ago, FRONTLINE won an Oscar for “20 Days in Mariupol,” an incredibly moving film about the Russian invasion of Ukraine.
Santoro: So we’re not going anywhere.
Goldberg: We are definitely not going anywhere.
