Arkansas becoming 1st state to sever ties with PBS, effective July 1

Arkansas drops PBS, citing costs and loss of federal funding

The fallout from the Trump administration’s dramatic cuts to American public media is only just beginning. The governing group that oversees public educational TV in Arkansas voted on Thursday to split with PBS, the national public broadcast network best known for Sesame Street. The network formerly known as Arkansas PBS will rebrand as Arkansas TV, making it the first state public broadcast network to part with the national network synonymous w…

Arkansas will become first state to end PBS affiliation

The state's educational television commission cited a $2.5 million reduction in annual federal funding from the Corporation for Public Broadcasting as a factor.

Arkansas public TV network to end partnership with PBS

The former headquarters of program distributor PBS in Arlington, Virginia, as it appeared in 2020. (Photo by Thomson M. via Wikimedia Commons) Arkansas’ statewide public television network will sever its long-standing affiliation with PBS next year, becoming the first state system to break from the national service after Congress voted this summer to eliminate $500 million in annual funding for the Corporation for Public Broadcasting. The move w…

Arkansas Ends PBS Affiliation, Adopts New Name for Public TV Network

Five years after a splashy rebranding to Arkansas PBS, the statewide public television network is scrapping the name and dropping its membership in the national Public Broadcasting Service. The reasons are financial, said the network’s new executive director and CEO, Carlton Wing. The network, formerly known as the Arkansas Educational Television network, will now be known simply as Arkansas TV. The network lost $2.5 million in annual funding fr…

Arkansas becomes first state to drop partnership with PBS

Arkansas has become the first state to cut ties with PBS after a state commission voted to end the public television partnership on Thursday. The Arkansas Educational Television Commission said it plans to disaffiliate from the public broadcaster because its annual membership dues were simply “not feasible.” The dues cost around $2.5 million per year. The commission also pointed to the loss of federal funding from the Corporation for Public Broa…

Arkansans to lose over-the-air access to 'Daniel Tiger,' 'NOVA,' and other PBS shows

The channel known as Arkansas PBS will no longer be able to broadcast PBS programs starting July 1, 2026, thanks to federal budget cuts signed into law earlier this year.