Lehigh Valley Public Media, known for its operation of PBS 39, WLVR 91.3, and LehighValleyNews.com, announced Friday that they plan to lay off nearly half of their staff. It’s a move that follows years of financial struggles, which have been intensified by recent cuts to public media funding at the federal level. The closure of the Corporation for Public Broadcasting amounted to a loss of $1 million for LVPM.
The organization had grown to a record 80 employees by 2023, according to LehighValleyNews.com, which was responsible for creating 22 of those positions. Eight staffers were laid off in December 2023, with former CEO Tim Fallon emphasizing that a restructuring was needed in order to focus their resources.
In February 2025, the nonprofit drew attention amidst discussion about the future of its NPR radio station, WLVR, as reports circulated that LVPM had built up a deficit of $8.6 million in 2023. Some listeners requested that ownership of the radio station be returned to Lehigh University, which transferred operations to Lehigh Valley Public Media in 2019…