After KET’s Fancy Farm reversal, will KY lawmakers fund public media in the next budget?

After Congress slashed more than $1 billion in federal funding from public media last week, threatening programming and jobs at stations across the country, leaders at Kentucky Educational Television made what turned out to be a controversial choice.

Instead of paying for a team of journalists and crew members to travel nearly 300 miles away to far West Kentucky, KET would instead forgo its coverage of the 145th Annual St. Jerome Fancy Farm Picnic, a church fundraiser that’s become known for the roasting of mutton, pork and politicians.

State Sen. Robby Mills, R-Henderson, called the choice “unfortunate.”

“The cutting of coverage by KET of KY’s primier (sic) annual political event in WKY (Fancy Farm) will certainly be remembered by many members of the Republican Super Majority in the Legislature!” Mills tweeted Monday.

Though a “generous” donation of an unknown amount announced Tuesday from the Kentucky Chamber of Commerce revived the station’s Fancy Farm coverage, there is still the question of how state lawmakers will approach KET’s funding in the 2026 General Assembly when lawmakers craft a budget for the next two years.

Mills, the Senate Republican caucus chair, declined to elaborate on his comment’s meaning to the Herald-Leader.

With about 80% of legislative seats in Frankfort held by GOP lawmakers, the majority party will have near-complete control over the budget process next year.

KET made its decision to skip Fancy Farm coverage hours after the Trump administration and the GOP-controlled Congress clawed back more than $1 billion from the Corporation of Public Broadcasting, which funds 13% of KET’s programming and about 25% of KET’s workforce.

Last year, KET received $3.9 million from CPB.

In the same news release as the Fancy Farm announcement, the station also said it would cancel a planned project to take the “Kentucky Edition” and “Kentucky Tonight” programs to Murray for a week in September.

“It was a direct result of our federal funding being cut,” said Todd Piccirilli, a spokesperson for KET.

The loss of CPB funding was a blow to the station, but the state is KET’s single largest source of income.

The legislature gave KET $16.8 million from the general fund for the 2024 fiscal year — 59% of its total budget. Whether they’ll retain that level of funding, see an increase to fill the gap left by the federal dollars, or lose even more money remains to be seen.

Another 14% came from donations, and the rest was from grants or other sources.

KET airs everything from scripted dramas and food shows to wildlife explorations and municipal news. It also streams and archives every day of the General Assembly each year and many legislative committee meetings, too.

But some worry the decision not to prioritize the political event reflected a partisan decision-making process.

“I’m afraid that it looks like retribution for Republicans cutting funding in Washington,” said Damon Thayer, the former Senate Majority floor leader, of KET’s decision. “Heading into a budget cycle, that’s probably not the best timing.”

Thayer added that Republicans were upset to lose Fancy Farm coverage at a time when they have become dominant and Democrats have lost interest in attending. The majority of its invited and confirmed speakers are from the GOP.

Still, Thayer praised KET Director of Public Affairs Renee Shaw’s leadership and track record of asking tough but fair questions to members of both parties, noting its contrast to further “left” leanings among public media nationally.

In that vein, others are hopeful that KET’s long history of balanced coverage will keep the station in high regard during the upcoming budgetary session.

State Rep. Anne Gay Donworth, D-Lexington, called the station “universally loved.”

“Obviously we’re coming up on a budget cycle,” Donworth said. “Whether there’s the political appetite to allocate funding remains to be seen. But public broadcasting is one of those things that everyone benefits from.”

State Sen. Keturah Herron, D-Louisville, said that the station has benefited her constituents, from daily news coverage, highlighting issues that matter to the state like tourism and offering an educational venue for families with young children.

She called the federal cuts of millions of dollars to the station “unfair” and “dangerous.”

“This is an opportunity where we can’t depend on the federal government so it’s our time to step up to ensure that the state has the funding it needs to keep our public media going,” Herron said.

In neighboring Indiana, lawmakers voted to cut nearly $3.7 million in annual funding for Indiana Public Broadcasting Stations earlier this year, defunding the consortium of 17 public radio and television stations.

Amancai Biraben

Lexington Herald-Leader

Amancai Biraben joined the Lexington Herald-Leader as the Kentucky government and politics reporter in July 2025. She is from California and has written for the Associated Press, The New York Times and the Southern California News Group.