According to the 2005 financial statement, NPR makes just over half of its money from the fees and dues it charges member stations to receive programming, although some of this money originated at the CPB itself, in the form of pass-through grants to member stations.
[12] About 2% of NPR's funding comes from bidding on government grants and programs, chiefly the
Corporation for Public Broadcasting; the remainder comes from member station dues, foundation grants, and corporate underwriting. Typically, NPR member stations raise funds through on-air
pledge drives, corporate underwriting, and grants from state governments, universities, and the CPB itself.
Over the years, the portion of the total NPR
budget that comes from government has been decreasing. During the 1970s and early 1980s, the majority of NPR funding came from the federal government. Steps were being taken during the 1980s to completely wean NPR from government support, but
the 1983 funding crisis forced the network to make immediate changes. More money to fund the NPR network was raised from listeners, charitable
foundations and
corporations, and less from the federal government. Major donors are listed on the NPR web site.
[13]
National Public Radio - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
