Press Forward Minnesota, a collaborative initiative supporting local news and information across the state, has awarded more than half a million dollars in emergency grants to five public media stations through its Save the Signal Minnesota Fund.

The grants provide immediate relief as local stations face the loss of Corporation for Public Broadcasting (CPB) funding, which has created an estimated annual shortfall of more than $17 million for 16 public media stations in Minnesota. 

For many stations, the CPB cuts account for between 5% and 50% of their operating budgets, putting local reporting, emergency communications, and essential services at risk.

In response to this funding crisis, Press Forward Minnesota launched the Save the Signal Minnesota Fund, a pooled philanthropic effort designed to stabilize public media, protect core services, and support stations as they plan for long-term sustainability.

The application for Save the Signal was an invitation-only process. Grant amounts were distributed based on the scale of federal funding loss, with priority given to stations facing the greatest impact and those serving communities with limited access to other local media. Rural and tribal stations, which are disproportionately affected by the federal cuts, received particular focus. Sustainability and transformation efforts of stations were also taken into consideration for funding. 

Save the Signal Grantees

• KKWE Niijii Radio on the White Earth Reservation – an Indigenous-led public radio station serving the White Earth Nation and neighboring communities, Niijii Radio provides culturally grounded news, educational programs, Ojibwe language segments, music, and community discussions that reflect and uplift Native perspectives often absent from mainstream media. “This support from Press Forward represents a meaningful investment in our young people and in the future of community-centered journalism,” said Margaret E. Rousu, General Manager of KKWE Niijii Radio. “By training emerging journalists to contribute to KKWE, we are strengthening public media as a trusted voice while ensuring our community’s stories are told with integrity, cultural understanding, and lived experience.”
• Lakeland PBS in Bemidji and Brainerd (KAWE) – the only locally produced and broadcast televised news serving the north central region of Minnesota reaching over reach approximately 445,000 people across 7,500 square miles reaching south to Little Falls, north to the Canadian border, west to Fosston, and east to Bovey. Within this coverage area are the Red Lake and Leech Lake Tribal Communities and significant portions of the White Earth and Mille Lacs Tribal Communities. “This support from Save the Signal Minnesota will help Lakeland PBS continue core services and steady our path forward during a critical transition in the year ahead,” said Jeff Hanks, President and CEO of Lakeland PBS. “It will allow us to continue delivering trusted local news reporting and community engagement that reflects the unique needs of north central Minnesota, while working towards long term sustainability.”
• KOJB The Eagle on the Leech Lake Reservation – an Indigenous-led public radio station working to enhance the history, language, and traditional way of the Anishinabe; providing local native media and noncommercial programming; while providing media access for the Leech Lake Reservation.  “This additional revenue will allow the station to continue to prepare and produce future content for the Leech Lake area and surrounding communities,” said Chris Bedeau, General Manager of KOJB. “Without this opportunity, it would have been very difficult to keep some of KOJB’s programming available for our listeners.”
• PBS North in Duluth (WDSE) – PBS North serves one of the largest and most diverse public media regions in Minnesota, spanning 6 northern Minnesota counties, and parts of Wisconsin, Michigan, and Canada. The service footprint includes rural communities, urban neighborhoods, and 8 tribal nations, representing nearly 19,000 Indigenous residents. “This support from Press Forward Minnesota is a vital investment in our ability to keep our community informed and connected,” said Patricia Mester, President and General Manager of the Duluth Superior Area Educational Television Corporation.
• Pioneer PBS in Granite Falls (KWCM) – Pioneer PBS covers 45 counties across western and southern Minnesota, eastern South Dakota and northern Iowa serving primarily rural/agricultural and small towns. The coverage area also includes 3 Dakota and Ojibwe reservations. Pioneer PBS offers 6 channels including: First Nations Network, Create, World and PBS Kids. “In a fiscal year in which we saw the loss of a third of our annual budget to the sudden rescission of already appropriated federal funding, these funds are a lifeline,” said Shari Lamke, President and General Manager of Pioneer PBS. “As the only television station serving this region, we are able to continue to bring the world to our region and lift the voices of this region to the world. It also buys us breathing room to work through long term plans for sustainability into the future.”

A Special Thank You to our Funders
A coalition of funders committed to civic infrastructure made the Save the Signal Minnesota Fund possible. Press Forward Minnesota thanks these partners for their support in response to this funding crisis:

• The McKnight Foundation
• The John Larsen Foundation
• The Ordean Foundation
• The Minneapolis Foundation
• The Saint Paul & Minnesota Foundation
• The Margaret A. Cargill Foundation Fund at the Saint Paul & Minnesota Foundation
• The Bhatt Family Fund at The Minneapolis Foundation
• The Mortenson Family Foundation
• Schwab Charitable

“Local news fosters community connection, provides essential information, and plays a critical role in our democracy,” said Patrice Relerford, Vice President of Collective Impact and Giving at The Minneapolis Foundation. “It’s important for all Minnesotans to work together to ensure our news ecosystem continues to thrive.” 

Terri Thao, Program Director of Local Initiatives at Margaret A. Cargill Philanthropies, noted that for many residents, these signals are the only reliable source of local news. “Preserving access to trusted information and fostering vibrant, informed communities is so important — especially in rural and tribal areas that may not have access to as many media options,” Thao said. “We deeply value the collaborative efforts behind this work in sustaining essential public media services at such a critical moment.”

How Funders Can Help

Press Forward Minnesota continues to raise additional funds, with the goal of making a future round of grants available to support public media as stations adapt, strengthen their operations, and plan for long-term sustainability.

• Donate to the pooled fund via Press Forward Minnesota
• Support local stations directly
• Act quickly—stations in Minnesota have already been forced to make staffing and service cuts which directly impacts community access to news and information.

Contact

• May Yang (Minnesota Council on Foundations)  myang@mcf.org