meta_pixel
Tapesearch Logo
Log in
To The Contrary with Charlie Sykes

Paula Kerger: PBS is Not Going Anywhere

To The Contrary with Charlie Sykes

Charlie Sykes

Politics, News, News Commentary

4.9718 Ratings

🗓️ 7 September 2025

⏱️ 46 minutes

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

Charlie Sykes sits down with Paula Kerger, the longest-serving president and CEO of PBS, to discuss the unprecedented defunding of public broadcasting. Kerger explains how the loss of federal support threatens hundreds of local stations, particularly in rural communities, and why this moment is a critical test for the future of public media. They also discuss the stakes for children’s programming, emergency alerts, and cultural projects as PBS seeks to survive on viewer and foundation support.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Transcript

Click on a timestamp to play from that location

0:00.0

No one likes experiencing hairfall, so why not try the award-winning range Genesis by Kerasdars.

0:05.7

Their serum provides up to 84% less hairfall due to breakage. It's lightweight and non-greasy,

0:11.2

so doesn't weigh hair down. Ideal for post and pre-styling. Try Kerasastas fortifying anti-hairful

0:17.3

serum. Find it at kerastas.co.uk or in a a kerastar salon near you. 84% based on brushing test. Ban Nutri-fortifiant and Mask Reconstituent and serum anti-shoot fortifiant versus classical shampoo. Sanjeeves just received a decent bonus. Nice work, Sanjeeve. He knows he could invest all of the money, but he's seen a new watch he likes. He's not worried. With his HSBC Premier bank account and access to their financial advice service, he can get a personalised plan for the future and know how much you can spend a day. Everything's Premier when your bank account is. Search HSBC Premier. HSBC UK, opening up a world of opportunity. For financial advice, you need minimum £100,000. Other

0:55.9

criteria and fees apply. Financial and other eligibility criteria apply for HSBC Premier.

1:02.1

Here's the New Citruson C-3 Aircross, the perfect SUV for bears and lovers of the great outdoors.

1:09.2

Sure, and comfort too.

1:13.4

Inside, it easily goes from five to seven seats,

1:16.6

and for you cubs, look, it's got Apple CarPlay and your favourite apps.

1:20.3

Yes, Mr. Grizzly, available in petrol, full electric or hybrid.

1:22.7

So ready for a family adventure?

1:27.7

The new Citron C3 Aircross, for lovers of the wilderness and everyday comfort.

1:30.2

Now with a 1,500 pound electric car grant.

1:46.0

Welcome to The Two of the Contrary Podcast. I'm Charlie Sykes. All of you remember this summer when Congress voted to pull $1.1 billion from public broadcasting, raising alarms not just for PBS and for NPR, but for the 330 PBS affiliates and the 249 NPR affiliates.

2:05.4

And then, of course, came the news that the Corporation for Public Broadcasting was disbanding.

2:10.9

So what's going on? Where do we go? How did this happen?

2:14.1

We are very fortunate to be joined by Pollack Kerger, who is the president and CEO of PBS,

2:20.6

has been there for 19 years, the longest serving CEO that PBS has ever had. So welcome to the

2:27.8

podcast, Paula. I really appreciate your time. So I guess the first question I have to ask you,

2:32.3

is do you ever think that you'd be in this position right now heading public broadcasting at a time when the president and the Congress has stripped you of all public funding?

2:42.9

No, I actually never thought we would get to this place. I've been in public broadcasting for a long time. So I've been in this job, as you pointed out, 19 years,

2:52.1

but I spent 13 years before that at WNET. So I was around, and that's our public station in New York.

...

Please login to see the full transcript.

Disclaimer: The podcast and artwork embedded on this page are from Charlie Sykes, and are the property of its owner and not affiliated with or endorsed by Tapesearch.

Generated transcripts are the property of Charlie Sykes and are distributed freely under the Fair Use doctrine. Transcripts generated by Tapesearch are not guaranteed to be accurate.

Copyright © Tapesearch 2026.