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.
CEO Hasanna Birdsong, who took on the position in mid-2025, revealed that the organization has already lost more than $1.8 million in the 2025-26 fiscal year. That’s despite cutting several expenditures like the Book Nook program, which provides free books to underprivileged children.
The layoffs affected all departments and leave LVPM with around 20 employees.
LVPM is not the first news organization in the state to face significant struggles to stay open. The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, one of the oldest newspapers in the country, announced last week that they will shut down in May, and LancasterOnline.com recently laid off 9% of its workforce.
