Press Releases

Congressman Thompson Opposes Republican Cuts to Public Radio

For Immediate Release                  Contact: Stephanie Booker
March 17, 2011                                  601-866-9003

Washington, DC – Today, Representative Bennie G. Thompson (D-MS) released the following statement regarding his vote against H.R.1076, a bill prohibiting federal funding of National Public Radio (NPR) and the use of federal funds to acquire radio content.

“Today I stood up for locally-owned public broadcasting stations and the nearly 28 million Americans who benefit from the significant content National Public Radio provides its listeners across this country." Since 1965, the Corporation for Public Broadcasting (CBP) has promoted public television and radio stations and their radio programming.  

These broadcasting programs are run primarily by universities, non-profit community associations, state government agencies and local school boards and reach practically every household in the United States.  

“In 2005, when Hurricane Katrina devastated the Gulf Coast region, NPR was one of the only broadcasting systems that remained diligent in their effort to convey the disturbing images of Katrina to the world and the significant impact this disaster had on communities across the region.  There are three public broadcasting stations in my congressional district that rely heavily on federal funds to operate and deliver hard-hitting, cutting edge news to Mississippians.  

Defunding public broadcasting will result in national news coverage and programming as the only option for listeners around this country.
 
“WJSU-FM and WMPN-FM in Jackson, MS and WPRL-FM in Lorman, MS stand to lose more than $500,000 in CBP funding as a result of the passage of H.R. 1076. Hopefully, sanity will prevail and funding for these programs will not be impacted.”