Please support the union members at Cascade PBS by sending a letter to Cascade PBS Executives demanding they offer more severance to those workers impacted by the unnecessary layoffs.

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On Monday, September 22, 2025, the newsroom staff at Cascade PBS were informed the company had made the decision to close the newsroom permanently as of October 31st resulting in layoff notices to 9 union members of the Pacific Northwest Newspaper Guild.

In a time when local and public news is increasingly vital to our democracy and ability to keep the public informed and hold power to account, the shortsightedness of shuttering an independent journalism outlet highlights the news crisis we are in.

Despite Cascade PBS's public narrative, the Guild, its members and the public do not believe this was solely based on finances. Not a single executive has taken a pay cut. CEO Rob Dunlop makes over 500k a year. The decision to deprive Seattle of a vital news source is based on a lack of desire to report news, no respect to its staff, and cowardice to the community of readers.

As the current administration is working tirelessly to silence free speech and the free press, Cascade PBS has an obligation as a public media entity to bolster and preserve its newsroom using every avenue possible.