NPR has laid off 10 employees as it looks to save money following Congress’ vote to eliminate federal subsidies for public media last year.
The layoffs represent about 4% of its content division, which includes its newsroom and podcasts. No staff members of news programs or podcasts were affected. Additionally, at least 18 news staffers have voluntarily accepted buyouts to depart the company, with eight empty positions expected to be left unfilled.
“Today has been incredibly heavy, and I want to acknowledge how difficult it is to say goodbye to our colleagues,” NPR Editor-in-Chief Thomas Evans told staff in a memo.
The plans for layoffs and buyouts were first announced by Evan and NPR President and CEO Katherine Maher last week. NPR directly relied on federal funds for about 1% of its budget, though the pair noted the company was looking to save $8 million and expected a drop of $15 million in member station fees.
Today is a really hard day here at NPR. We’re losing some good people, including people I’m very close to. The reasons for the layoffs are complicated. We lost a lot of federal money, gained a lot of donations, but NPR isn’t sure how sustainable those donations will be. pic.twitter.com/BmZISCIlG5
— Geoff Brumfiel (@gbrumfiel) May 27, 2026
Despite the cuts to federal funding, NPR has received a lifeline from a pair of charitable donations that totaled $113 million. Former NPR Foundation board member Connie Ballmer has donated $80 million in order to improve the org’s technological needs, while a second donor chose to remain anonymous after contributing $33 million.
In addition to NPR, PBS slashed 15% of its staff, or about 100 positions, in September as it grappled with the fallout of the cuts to federal funding.
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