by Daniel Alfredo Garcia, Secretary, DPBC

What’s going on in this country right now? They’re cutting public broadcasting—and not just a little. NPR is facing massive cuts. Public television—the kind we grew up with, that taught us our ABCs, that brought real people into our homes—is being taken apart, piece by piece.

And this isn’t just about TV. This is about power—and who gets to speak.

Public broadcasting is where we saw teachers, artists, elders, activists, and storytellers. It gave working-class people a voice. It gave us truth without corporate sponsors or billionaires running the show. Now they’re trying to quietly tear it all down, hoping we don’t notice.

And then came another blow: Late Night with Stephen Colbert will end in May 2026. That show wasn’t just entertainment. It was a space where politics, humor, and truth met. Colbert said what a lot of us were thinking. He called out the lies, the greed, and the nonsense. Losing him? That’s a big hit.

But here’s what they don’t get—you can’t shut down the people. You can’t cancel community. You can’t cut truth out of the conversation.

I’m still here. We’re still here.

I may be one person from Albuquerque, New Mexico—but I’ve seen what people can do when they come together. I’ve worked in local politics. I’ve helped run meetings, schedule events, and support the folks who show up, week after week, to fight for what’s right. I know what it feels like to be ignored. But I also know how to keep showing up and speaking up.

This isn’t just my story—it’s ours. It’s the story of every person who ever turned on PBS to learn something new, who listened to NPR on a quiet drive, who stayed up late watching Colbert and thought, “He’s saying what I feel.”

They think they can control the message, but we’ve got tools of our own now—Facebook, TikTok, podcasts, newsletters, livestreams, and most of all, each other. We don’t need a fancy studio to be heard. We’ve got our own voices, and they’re getting louder.

This isn’t the end. Not even close.

It’s the start of a new chapter—where we get louder, smarter, and more united. Where we lift up independent media, local journalism, and grassroots truth-tellers.

Stephen Colbert may be stepping off the stage. But we’re stepping up.

Because you can cut the mic—but you’ll never shut down the movement.