CPB Awards $200,000 Grant to PMJA Editor Corps

KANSAS CITY, MO (June 26, 2025) — The Corporation for Public Broadcasting (CPB) announced a $200,000 grant to the Public Media Journalists Association (PMJA) to support its Editor Corps program, which provides critical short-term editing help to local public media newsrooms across the country. The funding was announced today at the PMJA 2025 conference in Kansas City, Mo.

The two-year grant will enable PMJA to provide 2,000 hours of editorial support to public media stations, particularly those in small and rural communities. The Editor Corps program offers editing assistance for planned staffing shortages, breaking news coverage, and special projects. The program operates on a sliding scale fee model, ensuring affordability for stations of all sizes, with CPB funding subsidizing the full cost of the program.

“The PMJA Editor Corps helps ensure the fair, balanced fact-based reporting produced by local public radio stations,” said Kathy Merritt, CPB executive vice president and chief operating officer. “This grant continues CPB’s investments in local capacity-building that helps stations respond effectively to the demands of news gathering in their communities.”

Since the PMJA Editor Corps launched in 2020, CPB has provided more than $340,000 to support the program, enabling over 4,700 hours of editing assistance across more than 60 stations in 29 states and Washington, D.C.

In addition to direct editorial support, the grant will fund the development of a specialized editor training curriculum. This training will help early- and mid-career journalists transition from reporters to editors, addressing a crucial need identified in a recent PMJA systemwide assessment. By reducing upfront development costs, CPB’s support will allow PMJA to offer this training at a lower cost, making it more accessible to stations with limited professional development budgets.

“PMJA values its continued partnership with CPB to meet the critical editorial needs in public media,” said Christine Paige Diers, PMJA executive director. “Since its inception, the PMJA Editor Corps has enabled organizations across the system to provide quality journalism to their local communities. We are also excited about CPB's investment in training future editors, recognizing that a strong editorial culture is essential for the future of great journalism.”  

About PMJA
Founded in 1985, PMJA empowers and advocates for public media journalists. With over 135 member newsrooms across all 50 states and Guam, representing over 2,000 journalists, PMJA works to cultivate news leaders and elevate quality journalism in local and regional public media. The organization strengthens local newsrooms, provides vital professional development, and fosters collaboration, ensuring communities nationwide have access to high-quality, impactful journalism.

About CPB
The Corporation for Public Broadcasting (CPB), a private, nonprofit corporation authorized by Congress in 1967, is the steward of the federal government's investment in public broadcasting. It helps support the operations of more than 1,500 locally managed and operated public television and radio stations nationwide. CPB is also the largest single source of funding for research, technology, and program development for public radio, television, and related online services. For more information, visit www.cpb.org and follow us on Facebook, LinkedIn, and subscribe for email updates.