WSU’s KWSU-TV Shutting Down After 63 Years

A long-running public television station based at Washington State University will go dark at the end of the year.

KWSU-TV in Pullman — founded 63 years ago and operated jointly by WSU’s Edward R. Murrow College of Communication and Northwest Public Broadcasting — will cease operations on December 31 following budget cuts and the loss of federal funding.

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The station, which primarily served the Palouse region as a secondary public broadcaster, was one of the earliest educational TV outlets in the Northwest. Officials say most viewers in Washington will still receive PBS programming through KSPS in Spokane.

Murrow College Dean Bruce Pinkleton says the closure is part of a $1.8 million reduction in operating costs for the college and Northwest Public Broadcasting. He says the process is ongoing, and it’s unclear how many jobs will be affected.

WSU’s broadcasting operations took a $1.6 million hit in 2023, followed by another $1.7 million reduction in 2024. The most significant blow came earlier this year when Congress rescinded more than $1 billion in federal funding, leading to a $1.95 million cut to WSU and public media layoffs nationwide.

U.S. Sen. Maria Cantwell issued a statement Wednesday, noting that KWSU’s closure follows 17 layoffs from Cascade PBS in Seattle earlier this month, and that more than 400 journalists and staff have been laid off from public media organizations nationwide.

While KWSU-TV will shut down, Northwest Public Broadcasting will continue operating radio stations that reach more than 3.6 million listeners across 44 Washington counties, as well as KTNW-TV in the Tri-Cities.

Pinkleton says the goal now is to stabilize the budget and continue providing public programming aligned with WSU’s educational mission.