Tribal Media Alliances Come Together to Protect the Future of Tribal Public Media at the National Congress of American Indians Annual Convention

Pictured: Staff from Koahnic Broadcasting Staff, Bigfire Law, and Native Public Media at the National

Congress of American Indians 82^nd Annual Convention and Marketplace

Seattle, WA—November 25, 2025—Hundreds of Tribal Leaders and organizations gathered at the National Congress of American Indians (NCAI) 82^nd Annual Convention and Marketplace in Seattle, Washington. NCAI has been a longtime proponent of Tribal radio, television, and media. At the 2025 Mid-Year Convention of the NCAI, Resolution #CT-25-019 titled, “Urging Congress to Reject Proposals to Rescind, Eliminate, or Reduce Federal Funding for the Corporation for Public Broadcasting” was passed. During this past summer, Congress passed the “Rescission Act of 2025,” which defunded the Corporation for Public Broadcasting (CPB) and left 36 Tribally-licensed radio stations and one television station, and other critical Tribal public media entities with the uncertainty of how to stay on the air. With the loss of future funding, NPM and other public media entities kept their heads held high and continued their work in Indian Country. NPM Chief Operating Officer Brian Wadsworth, stated, “Even with the loss of CPB funding, our work with the Tribal radio stations did not stop. Keeping our stations on the air is and always will be our priority.”  

In the aftermath of the Rescission Act, Congress appropriated one-time funds from the Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA) for the 36 Tribally-licensed radio stations and one television station for FY2026. This funding will provide those radio and television stations with funding for one more year to provide the necessary and lifesaving services for their communities. Tribal radio and television provide news from within their communities and across the nation, provide emergency information, and allow communities to learn their language and culture. But the questions are what happens at the end of FY2026 for these stations, and what about the other Tribal entities apart from the media ecosystem that lost out on funding from the CPB?

At the NCAI 82^nd Annual Convention and Marketplace, public media groups Native Public Media (NPM), Vision Makers Media (VMM), and Koahnic Broadcasting Corporation (KBC) once again joined forces to request support from NCAI. The public media groups submitted a Resolution urging Congress to establish continued funding for Tribal radio and television stations and the Tribal public media ecosystem by appropriating funds to the BIA to carry out this function. It is the goal of Congress to appropriate continuous funding for our Tribal media ecosystem.

As Mr. Wadsworth stated, with the loss of CPB funding, the work NPM does will not stop. To assist its network of Tribal radio and television stations with uncertainties of future funding, NPM has launched its own funding for stations. NPM has created a Tribal Media Endowment Fund. This fund is set up as a long-term funding mechanism for our Tribal radio and television stations. NPM has also created a Tribal Station Fund. This fund is set up to provide immediate and emergency funding for our stations.   

If you like to contribute to the Tribal Media Endowment or Tribal Station Fund, please click here.