Federal Judge Blocks Trump Order Cutting NPR and PBS Funding

A federal judge on Tuesday ruled that President Trump's executive order barring federal funding for NPR (Lean Left bias) and PBS (Lean Left) violated the First Amendment.

The Details: US District Judge Randolph Moss blocked Trump's order directing federal agencies to cut public funding for NPR and PBS. In his decision, Moss wrote that the directive was unconstitutional as "the First Amendment draws a line…at efforts to use government power 'to punish or suppress disfavored expression' by others." He also said the order was "unlawful and unenforceable."

Executive Order: On May 1, 2025, Trump signed an executive order instructing the Corporation for Public Broadcasting (CPB) and all executive departments and agencies to stop funding for NPR and PBS calling the funding "outdated," "unnecessary," and "corrosive to the appearance of journalistic independence." The order maintained that what viewpoints NPR and PBS promoted didn't matter, but that "neither entity presents a fair, accurate or unbiased portrayal of current events to taxpaying citizens." In July, Congress approved the plan to rescind $1.1 billion from CPB that had been budgeted for the next two fiscal years, according to Wall Street Journal (Center).

The History of Public Funding: CPB was created by Congress in 1967 as part of the Public Broadcasting Act to help provide federal funding for public media. It supported over 1,500 local television and radio stations, with some of that funding being directed by local outlets to NPR and PBS. In 2025, the CPB's federal appropriation was $535 million–or roughly $1.60 per person–, according to The Conversation (Lean Left). It also reported that US public media also relies on $1.3 billion in annual charitable donations from viewers, listeners, corporations and foundations. Many people against Trump's order warned the lack of funding could negatively impact rural communities with less access to public media outlets.

How the Media Covered It: Several outlets across the political spectrum said the ruling could be appealed by the White House. They also quoted a White House spokesperson calling the decision "a ridiculous ruling by an activist judge." Outlets on the left generally emphasized the impact of Trump's order on public media. They also focused on Moss' ruling that the executive order suppressed viewpoints Trump "dislikes." Outlets on the right and The Wall Street Journal mentioned Moss was an Obama-appointed judge, which was generally omitted by left leaning outlets. Washington Times (Lean Right) emphasized the funding aspect of the case and detailed other places NPR and PBS received funding, including the National Endowment for the Arts and the Federal Emergency Management Agency. The Daily Signal (Right) noted claims that NPR provided inaccurate coverage of the Hunter Biden laptop story, the origins of the COVID-19 pandemic and Trump's reported collusion with the Russian government.

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