Defunding Big Bird: The Politics and History of Public Broadcasting. A Conversation with Josh Shepperd.

In this episode of then & now, guest host Dr. Ben Zdencanovic welcomes Professor Josh Shepperd, Associate Professor of Media Studies at the University of Colorado Boulder and Director of the Library of Congress Radio Preservation Task Force (RPTF). Josh, acclaimed author of Shadow of the New Deal: The Victory of Public Broadcasting (University of Illinois Press, 2023), discusses the complex historical development of NPR and PBS—two cornerstones of American public broadcasting. The conversation contextualizes how these public broadcasters, designed initially to provide non-commercial, equitable programming for all Americans, became politically contentious entities. The recent decision by the Trump administration to withdraw funding already allocated for public broadcasting stations like NPR and PBS is situated within a longer pattern of political challenges. By connecting past and present, Josh illuminates the enduring historical significance of public broadcasting and its precarious position within contemporary American society, offering a nuanced foundation for understanding current debates over the future of public media. 

Josh Shepperd is an Associate Professor of Media Studies at the University of Colorado Boulder and the Director of the Library of Congress Radio Preservation Task Force (RPTF). Pulling from political economic, Birmingham, and Foucauldian traditions, Josh researches institutional genealogies of 20th-century U.S. media culture. He is author of Shadow of the New Deal: The Victory of Public Broadcasting (University of Illinois Press, 2023), which received the 2024 BEA Book Award. Josh is currently co-writing the "History of Public Media for the Corporation for Public Broadcasting (CPB)" and "Current."