In a workplace already feeling the burn from yearly budget reductions across the board, even tougher times for WKAR lie ahead, said Zeko, who will not discount possibly losing his job should funding keep drying up.

“I think it’s a shame, really,” the media arts and technology junior said of the potential impact on the more than 55-year-old station. “Not because I work here, but just as someone who lives in the community.”

The proposal would eliminate the $430 million from the 2011 appropriation for the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, or CPB. The move could cost WKAR upward of $1.3 million.

In President Barack Obama’s 2012 budget recommendation, he proposed to restore some funding to CPB.

The station’s TV component — which offers a variety of local and educational programs — would face a $1.09 million cut from its $7 million budget. The radio component would be out almost $300,000 from its $3.5 million budget, said DeAnne Hamilton, WKAR’s general manager.

Although those amounts, at face value, might not indicate problems, Hamilton argued the contrary.

“A million dollars is hard to not have an impact; even $300,000, it’s hard not to have an impact,” Hamilton said. “We’d have to sit down and take a look at our entire operation, and look at what our priorities are and those things we might have to let go.”

Deep impact

The threat of decreased funding stems from a move by the Republican-led House to trim $100 billion in federal spending for the current fiscal year. For WKAR, the cuts carry a multiple-year cut potential because of the way the CPB is funded.

Hence, WKAR is looking at cuts that extend into 2013, Hamilton said.

The station’s situation illustrates one part of a much larger budgetary issue born of a nearly $1.7 trillion federal deficit.

U.S. Rep. Mike Rogers, R-Brighton, said that figure alone necessitates painful cuts.

“The only responsible course of action is to review every taxpayer dollar Washington, D.C., spends regardless of how important the program,” Rogers said in a statement.

Although some reports have said the Senate and Obama likely will try to restore funding for the CPB, those at WKAR said they are planning for multiple scenarios.

The Senate could vote to restore funding. If this is disputed by the House, lawmakers from each likely would have to go into conference to compromise on funding. Another scenario shows the Senate conceding funding or agreeing to deep cuts for the CPB in favor of maintaining funding for other areas.

In any case, funding through the CPB is just one fiscal woe WKAR has needed to deal with in recent years, said Kent Wieland, manager of WKAR-TV.

“Reduction in funding has a significant impact on our budgetary situation because of reduced membership,” Wieland said, referencing community members who make financial contributions to the station. “In this economy, there are a lot of people who might otherwise support public broadcasting who simply are no longer in a position to do so.”

For WKAR-TV, funding through the CPB typically has represented about 14 percent of its total budget. In addition to that and community support, other funding areas include corporate underwriting and support from MSU.

The radio component’s percentages of support from each differ slightly from that of WKAR-TV, but the plight is shared.

“This is changing the nature of things,” Wieland said, noting this is not the first time CPB funding has been up for cuts. “We’re not certain what will happen this time. We don’t take anything for granted, and we may very well have to deal with the consequences.”

Ripple effect

Equally as complex as WKAR’s budget issues is the possible effect decreased CPB funding would have across the country, Wieland said.

The corporation provides funding for a number of public stations in the U.S. in the form of what is called a community service grant. Stations similar to WKAR use that money to pay programming dues to large public stations such as the Public Broadcasting Service, or PBS.

PBS is an association that provides various educational programs to public stations in the U.S. Reduced funds for the CPB for individual stations could amount to some stations’ closing. That, coupled with less money in general, could amount to decreasing dues for PBS.

And that, Wieland said, would put more strain on programming for WKAR and stations like it.

Those at WKAR will be paying close attention to the matter next week, when the Democratic Senate is expected to take up the House’s proposal. The matter is somewhat more urgent because a resolution authorizing federal spending is set to expire March 4. Should it expire with no action on federal spending, the government could shut down.

Up to that point, though, WKAR has launched a campaign to encourage community members to speak out against decreased funding. Because WKAR is limited in its own lobbying efforts, Hamilton said patience is part of the battle.

“We’re going to give this community as much as we possibly can,” she said. “The plug has not yet been pulled.”