Dear John,

Donald Trump just massively escalated his war on NPR and PBS.

Trump has spent months calling for NPR and PBS to be defunded. And now Trump’s FCC Chair, Brendan Carr, is launching a phony investigation into NPR and PBS, falsely accusing them of running illegal advertisements on public broadcasting stations.

It’s all a coordinated effort to convince Congress to strip NPR and PBS of their federal funding. In fact, Republicans have wanted to defund NPR and PBS for decades, but we’ve never seen an attack like this.

Will you make a monthly donation to help alert the public, get out the truth, and stop Elon Musk’s plan to defund NPR and PBS?

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Donald Trump tried to defund NPR and PBS during his first presidency, and last April, he wrote on Truth Social, “NO MORE FUNDING FOR NPR, A TOTAL SCAM! THEY ARE A LIBERAL DISINFORMATION MACHINE. NOT ONE DOLLAR!!!”

Elon Musk has also joined the attack, listing NPR and PBS among the priorities for cuts by his so-called Department of Government Efficiency.

Why are they so hell-bent on defunding the networks that bring us beloved programs like Sesame Street, This American Life, and All Things Considered?

Because if NPR and PBS go away, then the only free sources of local news and information in many areas will be social media platforms like Elon Musk-owned X/Twitter. That’s especially true in rural areas, where daily newspapers have become an endangered species and public radio is often the only reliable source of local news.

Research shows a clear connection between investment in public media and higher levels of civic engagement and voter turnout. Further, studies show that communities with less local news coverage have seen increased public corruption.

No wonder Donald Trump and Elon Musk want to destroy public broadcasting.

And now, with this FCC investigation underway, it’s clear that Trump and his allies intend to use every weapon at their disposal to smear and discredit public broadcasting.

We’re sounding the alarm to help save NPR and PBS, but with Trump escalating his assault on public media, we must act fast. So I’m asking you today: Will you make a monthly donation to help alert the public and stop Donald Trump’s plan to defund NPR and PBS?