PBS weekend newscasts shut down due to funding cuts, replaced by single-topic programs

PBS will premiere separate programs on science and foreign affairs next weekend after shutting the doors on its Saturday and Sunday breaking newscasts because of the federal government's cut of $1.1 billion in funding to public broadcasting.

“PBS News Weekend” signed off Sunday, “at least for the foreseeable future,” anchor John Yang said. The weekend sister of “PBS NewsHour” began broadcasting in 2013 from New York, and moved to Washington in 2022.

Starting Saturday, PBS will air the weekly show “Horizons” on science and technology issues. The new show “Compass Points” will focus on foreign affairs Sunday. Both programs will be taped in advance during the week, enabling PBS to save money by cutting back on weekend staff, said Sara Just, senior executive producer for “NewsHour.”

The weekend newscast averaged 827,000 viewers per show, roughly 1 million less than what “NewsHour” gets during the week, according to the Nielsen company.

The Republican-controlled Congress, responding to President Donald Trump's wishes, eliminated funding for PBS and NPR in July. The president has complained about news programming on public broadcasting being biased against conservatives.

During Sunday's finale, highlights aired by PBS illustrated important news stories that broke over weekends — Hamas' attack on Israel in October 2023, the assassination attempt on Donald Trump in summer 2024, and Joe Biden's exit from the presidential race on a Sunday a few weeks later.

Asked if the weekend newscasts could return if a future government restores funding to PBS, Just said, “I never say never, but this is not a temporary decision.”

Also in response to funding cuts, PBS shut down a bureau in Arizona that had enabled “NewsHour” to update its broadcasts for West Coast viewers. But Just cautioned against interpreting the moves as an indication the weekday newscast is in any danger. Through TikTok and YouTube, the broadcast is seeing more exposure for its journalism, she said.

“I don't see that program at risk in the near future,” she said.

Both “Horizons” and “Compass Points” will be 30-minute broadcasts. William Brangham will host “Horizons,” which will focus on a single topic each week, such as artificial intelligence, climate science or medical advances. Each episode of “Compass Points,” with Nick Schifrin as host, will also concentrate on one topic, PBS said.

David Bauder writes about the intersection of media and entertainment for the AP. Follow him at http://x.com/dbauder and https://bsky.app/profile/dbauder.bsky.social.