RI PBS, The Public’s Radio avoid layoffs despite federal defunding
By Nancy Lavin, Rhode Island Current
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A copy of the internal email was obtained by Rhode Island Current.
“While the built-in waiting period included in the Voluntary Separation Program offered to staff is still open, we can now confirm that the program has achieved the savings necessary to close the $1.1 million budget gap caused by the elimination of federal funding,” Johnston wrote. “This means we will not have to move to layoffs at this time.”
The update comes almost a month after Johnston put employees on notice of potential staffing cuts, estimating a $1.1 million hole for the newly merged public media organizations due to congressional defunding.
The loss of longstanding federal funding for public broadcasting, approved by Congress as part of the federal rescission package, came on the heels of renaming the new Rhode Island entity as Ocean State Media.
The merger process began two years earlier, securing approval from state and federal regulators in the spring of 2024. Johnston, a Massachusetts broadcast veteran, was brought on as CEO in July 2024. At the time of the merger application, the company said it would have roughly 100 employees.
A spokesperson for Ocean State Media did not immediately respond to questions Thursday, including the total number of employees who took buyouts.
The Boston Globe Rhode Island reported that at least 19 workers across both outlets took the deal to leave, which offered three weeks of pay for every year with the company. Most employees who chose to leave were unnamed, though a few have been publicly identified. Michelle San Miguel, Rhode Island PBS Weekly anchor, announced her decision in a Facebook post, while Ian Donnis, The Public’s Radio political reporter, wrote in his weekly column that Sally Eisele, chief content officer, afternoon radio host Dave Fallon and health reporter Lynn Arditi took buyouts.
Johnston was scheduled to hold a staff meeting with company employees at 10 a.m. Thursday, according to her email.
“Transitions like this are never easy, but we move forward with clarity and purpose,” she wrote. “We have the creativity and vision it takes to not only fulfill our mission, but to reimagine how we serve our community in bold, innovative, and deeply local ways.”
Nationwide, public media outlets have been grappling with the fallout of federal funding cuts, which have provided a key source of money to public radio and broadcasting stations for nearly 60 years. The Corporation for Public Broadcasting announced it would be closing its doors by the end of the year due to eliminated federal funding.
Back in Rhode Island, at least two veteran TV journalists with ABC6 (WLNE) have lost their jobs as a result of its new service-sharing agreement with rival station NBC10 (WJAR). The deal lets Sinclair, the WJAR parent company, take over the equipment, operations and broadcasting for ABC6 but not the license — avoiding federal guardrails that prevent monopolies in local broadcast markets. Two ABC6 employees, meteorologist Kelly Bates and sports reporter Nick Coit, posted on social media that they were let go as part of the detail.
Sinclair has declined to comment on other layoffs or operational changes as a result of the agreement.
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Rhode Island Current is part of States Newsroom, a nonprofit news network supported by grants and a coalition of donors as a 501c(3) public charity. Rhode Island Current maintains editorial independence. Contact Editor Janine L. Weisman for questions: info@rhodeislandcurrent.com.