Prairie Public eliminates 12 staff positions due to federal, state funding cuts

FARGO (North Dakota Monitor) – Fargo-based Prairie Public announced Wednesday it has cut 12 staff positions in response to the elimination of federal funds for public broadcasting and a reduction in state spending from North Dakota.

Prairie Public laid off seven employees and eliminated five positions that were open, reducing staff by 18%, Prairie Public President and CEO John Harris said in a statement.

“The loss of federal and state funding has resulted in approximately a 25% reduction in our revenue,” Harris said. “Like most every public media organization in the country, we were forced to make hard choices – that included the difficult decision to part with valued members of our staff.”

Prairie Public estimates a loss of about $2.5 million per year in government funding, primarily due the federal cuts, Harris said in an interview. The positions eliminated were spread across all departments, he said.

In July, federal lawmakers rescinded about $1.1 billion in previously approved congressional spending that was to be distributed to the Corporation for Public Broadcasting and its affiliate stations across the country. The Corporation for Public Broadcasting announced Aug. 1 its plans to close in response to the federal cuts, with a majority of staff positions ending Sept. 30.

Harris said some of Prairie Public’s programs and services could be reduced or eliminated. Prairie Public will continue to air “The Lawrence Welk Show” featuring the North Dakota native.

“We think that it’s important and it still resonates with a good number of our citizens in North Dakota,” Harris said.

Some impacts to national programming won’t be noticed until later because fall and winter shows had already been produced, he said. However, Prairie Public has held off on buying some new British comedies to broadcast.

Prairie Public plans to continue providing educational programming, national content from PBS and NPR and maintain its transmitters in North Dakota, Minnesota, Canada and eastern Montana, according to the statement.

“Amid the hardship, we remain committed to serving our communities as best as we can,” Harris said.

During debate on funding, Republicans criticized Public Broadcasting Service and National Public Radio as having bias toward liberal points of view.

All three members of North Dakota’s congressional delegation voted in favor of cutting federal funds for public broadcasting.

On Monday, U.S. Rep. Julie Fedorchak, R-N.D., said during a virtual forum she considers herself a lifelong public radio listener, but she supported the budget cuts to NPR and the Corporation for Public Broadcasting because she thinks they can be sustained by their supporters.

There is more media competition than ever before in the marketplace and the government should not be “investing” in any specific media entity, she said.

“I thought it was an appropriate time to start pushing away from that and allowing public radio and television to stand on their own two feet,” Fedorchak said. “I’ve heard the fundraising calls that they are making and I’m pretty optimistic that they are going to have their supporters step up and help them fill those gaps that the federal government is leaving behind.”

Sens. John Hoeven and Kevin Cramer also previously said public broadcasting should be privately funded.

In addition to federal cuts, Prairie Public saw a reduction in funding this year from the North Dakota Legislature.

During the 2025 legislative session, Gov. Kelly Armstrong proposed $2.9 million for Prairie Public for the 2025-27 budget cycle, including $1.7 million in one-time funding for transmitter replacement and maintenance. Lawmakers reduced the overall state funding to $400,000, providing money for tower improvements. Some lawmakers had advocated for cutting off funding to Prairie Public completely.

Harris said continued support from viewers and listeners will be critical to the organization.

On Thursday, Prairie Public will host an event in Fargo with Paula Kerger, president and CEO of PBS, titled “State of the Station: The Road Ahead for Prairie Public.” People wanting to attend the event at the Sanctuary Events Center must register for tickets.

A fundraising goal of $25,000 was set ahead of the event. As of Wednesday afternoon, Prairie Public was within $1,000 of meeting that goal.

By Michael Achterling.