As WABE prepared to fundraise for its second year without federal funding, the Atlanta public media station knew it had to get creative.
The station initially bridged the sudden budget gap last year by reaching out to donors directly and reducing costs to bring down overhead. They had to make up for $1.9 million lost after Congress cut support for the Corporation for Public Broadcasting.
This year, the station was afforded a new luxury: time. So it tried something different. Leadership spent five months planning a live benefit event, the first of its kind in WABE’s 78-year history. It didn’t promote it to the public, focusing instead on selling tickets through relationships with major donors.
The event sold out quickly. By the end of the night, WABE raised about $1.1 million, filling more than half its need heading into the next year. The turnout and amount raised blew CEO Jennifer Dorian away, she said.
“It was a banner night for us and for Atlanta,” Dorian said. “I don’t know if we’ll replicate it every year, but I know one thing: At this moment, people wanted to show up and be together in support of facts.”
Dubbed “WABE Live: Acts for Facts,” the March 25 event marked a new milestone in WABE’s efforts to shift to an entirely community-supported funding model. The decision followed Congress rescinding more than $1 billion in federal funding already allocated for the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, which is the federal financial backbone to public media operators across the country.
Federal funding was not the sole revenue stream for many public broadcasters, but it was a key lifeline and also supported national programming. WABE received about $1.9 million annually from CPB, which represented about 13% of its annual budget.
About a month after the funding was rescinded last summer, WABE raised $1.6 million through donors, stabilizing it through June 30, 2026. It also unexpectedly received a $3 million donation, the largest one-time individual gift in its 78-year history, after a longtime Atlanta resident earmarked the money in his will.
WABE also saved money by renegotiating its affiliation and licensing agreements with NPR and PBS. The station also trimmed its staff over the past year and a half from a peak of 99 to 79 today, and nixed its longtime arts show “City Lights.”
An example from afar
The idea for the gala came from Kansas City station KCUR, which is led by general manager Sarah Morris. Dorian got to know Morris through the Station Resource Group, a national association of NPR stations.
Public media has a collegial spirit, Dorian said. Stations typically don’t directly compete with each other, so they’ll share insights, resources, processes and ideas to benefit one another.
When Morris told her about their annual evening benefit, Dorian felt inspired. WABE always felt a little hesitant to hold a similar event because Atlanta is a town of many galas, Dorian said.
“I guess every community has so many galas,” Dorian said. “Are people tired of the gala model? And Sarah (said), ‘No. You make it lively and fun and public media style.’”
KCUR provided the station’s programming strategy for the benefit and helped train the WABE team to replicate the model, an effort Dorian called generous.
“It’s a big, friendly ecosystem,” Dorian said. “We’re all in the (same) boat of: How do we survive? And how do we transform and get where we’re going?”
The event counted David Brancaccio of “Marketplace” and Meghna Chakrabarti of NPR’s “On Point” as guests, as well as on-air personalities Rose Scott, Bill Nigut, Lisa Rayam and Jim Burress. Atlanta folk rock group Indigo Girls performed pro bono.
Credit: WABE
Credit: WABE
The amount raised shocked Dorian. She and her team forecast about $400,000. Before the event began, the station raised $800,000 through sponsorships and tables. The remaining was raised during the event.
The work isn’t over yet. WABE still has to fill a gap of about $800,000, which it intends to do through outreach events such as “Cinema Social,” a screening series it holds at the Plaza and Tara theaters. A date has already been selected for another live benefit in 2027.
When Dorian was initially discussing plans to make up for the shortfall months after the federal funding was revoked, she expressed concerns over donor fatigue. It wasn’t a fear she held in isolation — other station leaders across the country had the same thought. Would the station’s supporters grow tired of repeated outreach?
“We braced for it in October, it didn’t happen,” Dorian said. “We braced for it in December, it didn’t happen. I was braced for it in January and February, and it didn’t happen. The environment keeps making the case for the vital nature of our work. People are worried about facts and independent, free press and creative expression.”
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