Pai, who chaired the FCC from 2017 to 2021, during the Donald Trump administration and was often derided online mostly for undoing the net neutrality rules, is now a partner at Searchlight Capital Partners, a global investment firm.

”America’s Public Television Stations are honored and delighted to welcome Ajit Pai to the APTS board,” said APTS president and CEO Patrick Butler.

Fox in the henhouse, again.

  • thesmokingman@programming.dev
    91·
    1 year ago

    I don’t trust their website given Pai’s involvement. Did you find an external source that talked about their funding of stations? The about you quoted (that I read several times to try to parse) really just highlights they funnel money to lobbyists.

      • thesmokingman@programming.dev
        61·
        1 year ago

        All that does is show public stations, not stations they fund. I can find no record that shows they’re in any way involved in the public stations in my state.

        • money_loo@1337lemmy.com
          41·
          1 year ago

          You seem to be confusing the two organizations which is understandable as it is kind of confusing subject.

          One of them supports local stations, and then the other supports them politically that’s why it says it’s affiliate.

          So while one half of the group lobbies in their interest to “support local stations” (again, allegedly, I don’t fucking work for them and have no idea what they actually do) the other half supports the stations that are a part of their membership.

          Those member stations that they support are indeed the ones listed on that website. What “support” truly means in their context, I have no clue my dude.

          *the starting comment for this tree found their tax stuff and after looking it over myself, I agree with their assessment that they mostly funnel money to staff, earning their 15 full time employees about 163k dollars a year each, if it’s divided equally. They claim to provide money to their member stations based on certain conditions being met, but it’s a pittance of their total income. Seems like Ajit will feel right at home!

          • thesmokingman@programming.dev
            4·
            1 year ago

            I am the starting comment in this tree. We don’t have data on the lobbying arm because it’s not a nonprofit. “Supporting their members” is what I want to understand and, unless you’ve found a source I haven’t, I can find no concrete impact of the nonprofit on public television in the United States other than members of the station boards get money in salary from the dues their stations pay. With all due respect, I’m interested in sources that explain what they do, not speculation pulled from marketing copy on their own website, which is where I started.

            • money_loo@1337lemmy.com
              4·
              1 year ago

              Yeah dude I’m interested in that, too.

              But I’m not sure what you want from me I’m not one of their board members I’m just finding shit on the internet and parsing it, same as you.