WETA to cancel “PBS News Weekend” amid federal funding cuts

WETA, the public television station based in Washington, D.C., will end broadcasts of “PBS News Weekend” and shut down the “News Hour West” bureau as part of a restructuring effort driven by reduced federal funding.

The changes, reported by The Current, will eliminate 34 positions, following a separate round of 21 staff reductions in September.

The latest cuts affect technical, editorial, administrative and corporate support services. They do not impact the weekday “PBS News Hour” or “Washington Week with The Atlantic”.

The final broadcast of “PBS News Weekend” is scheduled for Jan. 11.

John Yang, who has anchored the program since 2022, will transition to the editorial staff of the “News Hour.” The program moved under WETA’s production oversight in 2021.

A WETA spokesperson described the decision to end the weekend newscast as a direct result of federal budget reductions.

In a memo sent to staff Thursday, WETA CEO Sharon Rockefeller said system funding for news programming is “significantly less than previous levels and will be so for the foreseeable future.” She cited reduced revenues from project grants and increased competition for foundation support as contributing factors.

WETA lost its Community Service Grant from the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, which created a $6.7 million budget shortfall for fiscal year 2026 and a projected $9 million deficit for fiscal 2027, according to the organization.

Advertisement

WETA previously reduced its workforce by 5% in September and canceled some local programs in an effort to save $4.4 million in the current fiscal year. 

The “News Hour West” bureau, based at Arizona State University’s Walter Cronkite School of Journalism and Mass Communication, will cease operations Dec. 19. The university declined to renew its contract with WETA.

The station will no longer produce the 6 p.m. Pacific feed of “PBS News Hour,” instead offering a soft feed of the program.

To fill the weekend gap, WETA is developing two new half-hour public affairs programs, one focusing on international issues and the other on science, technology and health.