Funding for PBS children's shows killed by Trump administration citing 'woke propaganda'

USA Today

08-05-2025

Funding for PBS children's shows killed by Trump administration citing 'woke propaganda'
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President Donald Trump signs order to cut PBS and NPR funding
President Donald Trump signed an executive order to stop directly funding PBS and NPR.
As the Trump administration continues to try to defund NPR and PBS, the Corporation for Public Broadcasting said this week that the Department of Education has ended a federal grant that helped fund children's shows.
In a press release on May 6, the Corporation for Public Broadcasting said the canceled grant was called Ready To Learn. The cutting will result in a loss of $23 million that the CPB said would have gone to children's games and educational shows.
"Nearly every parent has raised their kids on public broadcasting's children's content. For the past 30 years, Ready To Learn-funded PBS KIDS content has produced measurable, real-world impacts on children's learning," Patricia Harrison, President and CEO of CPB, said in the press release. "Ready To Learn has received strong bipartisan support from Congress for the last 30 years because of the programs' proven educational value in advancing early learning skills for all children. We will work with Congress and the Administration to preserve funding for this essential program."
The 2020-2025 cycle, which expires Sept. 30, was approved by the first Trump administration.
Programs funded by the Ready To Learn Grant have included the iconic shows "Sesame Street," "Reading Rainbow" and "Clifford the Big Red Dog." Now, popular shows like "Molly of Denali," "Work It Out Wombats!" and "Lyla in the Loop" are being funded by the grant, the CPB said.
In a statement sent to USA TODAY, Madi Biedermann, a spokesperson for the Department of Education, said the cuts were to funding "racial justice educational programming."
"This is not aligned with Administration priorities. The Trump Department of Education will prioritize funding that supports meaningful learning and improving student outcomes, not divisive ideologies and woke propaganda," Biedermann said.
PBS Kids: 'We will continue to fight'
Sara DeWitt, Senior Vice President and General Manager of PBS KIDS, said in a statement to USA TODAY they would continue to fight to keep providing shows for children in the U.S.
"This decision removes a critical resource public television has used to enable us to create high-quality, educational PBS KIDS content while opening up worlds of possibilities for millions of kids across the country. We will continue to fight in order to maintain our essential service," DeWitt said.
Cuts to PBS, NPR an ongoing fight
The cuts to the Corporation for Public Broadcasting come as the Trump administration continues to try and defund PBS and NPR.
Trump signed an executive order instructing the CPB to "cease direct funding" to NPR and PBS, according to the text released by the White House on May 1. It labeled the news outlets as partisan and biased.
"The CPB Board shall cancel existing direct funding to the maximum extent allowed by law and shall decline to provide future funding," the order added.
Both NPR and PBS have previously said that Trump's effort to cut their funding would disrupt essential media services and have a "devastating impact" on Americans who rely on them for credible local and national news, including during emergencies.
Contributing: Reuters
Fernando Cervantes Jr. is a trending news reporter for USA TODAY. Reach him at [e-mail] and follow him on X @fern_cerv_.