Florida governor eliminates public radio and television funding

Florida public broadcasters are reeling after Republican Gov. Rick Scott vetoed all public radio and television Community Service Grants today (May 26). That's a loss of nearly $4.8 million in the next fiscal year, WMNF in Tampa reports. The governor kept funding for the Florida Channel, gavel-to-gavel coverage of the legislative sessions and Supreme Court hearings, Janyth Righter, executive director of Florida Public Broadcasting Service, tells Current. "Elimination of state funding will inevitably lead to the loss of programs, services, and jobs in communities across Florida," the pubcasting group said in a statement, adding that "supporters of local public broadcasting stations across the state are deeply dismayed" at the governor's decision.