After I shared my disappointment about the loss of the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, I was asked by several neighbors why tax dollars should support public broadcasting at all. The most common argument I heard was that if the content were truly valuable, the market would sustain it on its own.

This is a familiar critique—and one worth addressing.

I believe there are fundamental public interests that should not be left solely to market demand. Healthcare is a clear example. If access to healthcare were determined only by profitability, rural regions like the North Country would have even fewer options than they already do. Without public support, grants and incentives, clinics, hospitals, and providers would abandon sparsely populated areas because they aren’t profitable—an outcome that would be devastating for those communities.

Public broadcasting serves a similar public purpose.

From a news perspective, public broadcasting provides local coverage in rural areas—across the country and here in Northern New York—that commercial outlets often cannot or will not fully serve. Beyond news, arts, educational, and cultural programming are essential to a healthy society, even if they are not the most profitable forms of content. Reality TV, sitcoms, and crime dramas may generate higher returns, but that doesn’t diminish the value of educational and cultural programming being widely accessible. If decisions are driven purely by the market, this kind of content simply wouldn’t exist at scale.

Another core strength of public broadcasting is its ability to reflect diverse voices rather than prioritizing those most attractive to advertisers or a narrow audience segment. Commercial media, by its nature, is shaped by ratings, advertising revenue, and sponsor influence. Relying solely on private funding increases the risk of commercial pressure, political influence, and homogenized content. Stable public funding, by contrast, helps protect editorial independence, universal access, and long-term investment in programming that supports informed citizenship and social cohesion.

None of us will agree with—or enjoy—every program public broadcasting airs. But that is precisely the point. In a democracy, diversity of perspectives isn’t a byproduct; it’s a necessity. Providing a platform where a wide range of ideas and voices can be heard is not a luxury—it’s integral to a healthy American democracy.