Last week, we announced the lineup of POV’s Season 38, featuring an incredible slate of films that reflect the complex realities Americans everywhere face daily– of identity, of hardship, but always of hope. Our organization was founded in 1988 with one mission in mind: to bring to the American public these stories that deserve to be told in hopes of entertaining, educating and bettering our communities through the impact these films demand. On Tuesday night, the White House sent a request to Congress that threatens this mission—to which we, and so many others, have dedicated our lives and our craft.
If granted, this request would rescind federal funding for organizations that's already been promised for the next two fiscal years, 2026 and 2027. This poses an immediate threat not just to AmDoc, but to every organization across the nation that chooses to champion public media.
As a non-profit organization, we rely on this funding to enable us to bring programs and films to the American people through our work with PBS and with local stations.. Not only is this an attack on public media, but it’s ultimately an attack on the freedoms of the American people. It is an attempt to usher in an age of disinformation where the general public has limited access to new ideas and the new forms of thinking which publicly available art and film fosters. If this vote passes, the American people will suffer the loss of a resource essential to our freedom.
