The KEET studio on Humboldt Hill. | File photo by Andrew Goff.

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Humboldt County’s PBS member station, KEET-TV, continues to reel from the Trump administration’s cuts in funding for public broadcasting. Today, the station issued a press release announcing that it will be outsourcing major components of its broadcast and transmission services.

Reached by phone, General Manager Amy Stem-Faulk, who took over the position back in January, said KEET’s staff has been slashed by more than half over the past year, going from 13 to just six employees.

Meanwhile, the equipment that the station has long used to capture and save broadcast signals and then rebroadcast programming to local audiences is getting old.

“Because [that infrastructure] is aging and becoming obsolete, it either needs to be replaced or we had to find a workaround,” Stem-Faulk explained. After investigating the options, KEET’s board of directors realized that it would be less costly in the long run to partner with a pair of companies for those services: Public Media Management (PMM) and Transmission Services Group (TSG).

Stem-Faulk said the station will retain its tower atop the hill in Kneeland, so this transition won’t impact viewers, even those who still get their signal through rabbit-ear antennas. Station management has been communicating with its member base about this possibility for weeks. Now the contracts have been signed and the transition is moving forward.

“This is in response to staff reduction and ridiculously high cost of replacing our infrastructure,” Stern Faulk said.

Here’s a press release with more info:

KEET PBS is undertaking a major transition in how it delivers television service to the North Coast, following the loss of critical Corporation for Public Broadcasting (CPB) funding and rising costs associated with maintaining broadcast infrastructure and PBS programming.

To ensure long-term sustainability, KEET is moving to a new, cloud-based broadcast and transmission model in partnership with Public Media Management (PMM) and Transmission Services Group (TSG). This shift will modernize operations and reduce the burden of maintaining aging, costly equipment.

“This was not a change we made lightly,” said Amy Stem-Faulk, General Manager of KEET PBS. “The loss of federal funding, combined with increasing costs to deliver PBS programming and maintain our technical systems, made it clear that we had to adapt in order to continue serving our community.”

The transition allows KEET PBS to move away from a traditional, equipment-heavy broadcast model to a streamlined system managed by specialized partners. This reduces long-term costs and operational risk while helping ensure reliable service for viewers across the region.

For more than 50 years, KEET PBS has provided trusted educational programming, local content, and emergency information to the North Coast. However, the financial structure supporting public television has changed significantly, placing increased pressure on small, rural stations like KEET.

“Public television has always depended on community support, but that need is more critical now than ever,” Stem-Faulk said. “The reality is that producing and delivering PBS programming is expensive, and recent funding losses have made local support essential to maintaining the service people rely on.”

KEET is encouraging viewers who value PBS programming—from children’s educational shows to documentaries and local productions—to consider making a contribution.

Community members can support KEET PBS by visiting www.keet.org and clicking the “Donate” button.

“This transition is necessary, but it is not without cost,” Stem-Faulk added. “We are doing everything we can to operate efficiently and responsibly, but continued community support is essential to sustaining this service.”

KEET PBS will continue to provide uninterrupted service throughout the transition.