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Cable’s civic-minded C-SPAN looks for help as streaming takes a toll

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For several decades, C-SPAN, a non-profit organization, has been delivering real-time, gavel-to-gavel congressional broadcasts on cable television. However, like many other sectors in the television industry, it is now experiencing the pressures that come with the changing landscape of TV.

With more people choosing to stream content instead of maintaining traditional cable or satellite TV subscriptions, the primary funding source for C-SPAN is diminishing. This shift could potentially endanger one of the few media entities that enjoys widespread bipartisan political backing, even boasting a supporter in the White House.

“It’s not a sustainable situation,” said C-SPAN Chief Executive Sam Feist said in an interview.

The issue lies with C-SPAN (Cable-Satellite Public Affairs Network), a service traditionally backed by cable and satellite providers. However, these companies have been experiencing a decrease in their customer base as viewers shift towards online streaming platforms, which now represent approximately half of all television viewership, based on recent Nielsen statistics. In 2015, C-SPAN was accessible to roughly 100 million pay TV households; however, this number has since dropped to only 51 million homes.

Due to the contraction, C-SPAN, a company that has always refrained from advertising sales, experienced a substantial drop in revenue. In 2024, their earnings amounted to only $46.3 million, representing a decrease of 37% compared to the $73 million earned in 2015. As a result, C-SPAN is now operating at a loss.

C-SPAN isn’t a flashy television network like many others. You won’t find expensive anchors or fancy studio sets here. Instead, it requires financial support for its team of over 30 camera crews that broadcast every instance the House and Senate are in session, along with think tank discussions, town halls, and other political events across Washington D.C. and beyond. Unlike government-operated equipment, C-SPAN’s cameras in the Capitol allow them to capture events when audio and visual resources are discontinued.

Feist proposes that C-SPAN could bridge its budget shortfall if providers of smaller television channel bundles, like Google’s YouTube TV and Disney’s Hulu Live TV, were to include their feeds in their services. Approximately 20 million households subscribe to these online streaming platforms, often referred to as virtual multichannel video distributors, which transmit both broadcast and cable channels.

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1973’s live broadcast of the Watergate hearings attracted large viewership and donations from viewers. Moreover, this coverage played a crucial role in the establishment of the “PBS NewsHour.

It’s quite demanding indeed. To stay competitive against traditional cable and satellite plans, streaming TV service providers strive to maintain affordable pricing. Each additional channel added to a subscription tends to increase its overall cost.

C-SPAN is currently in discussions with Hulu and YouTube to get carriage.

A YouTube spokesperson stated that they’re collaborating with C-SPAN to discover methods enabling broader public access to their civic materials. They take pride in the fact that a significant portion of C-SPAN’s content can be found on the main YouTube site, where it’s accessible for free and generates ad revenue for C-SPAN.

1979 saw the birth of C-SPAN, as cable television providers sought favor from local government officials, who held the power to decide which companies would lay the wiring for community telecommunications.

Providing a community-focused platform showcasing live democratic processes accelerated the growth of the pay TV sector. Over time, C-SPAN established itself as a trusted name, fostering positive sentiment towards cable and satellite services, who have been supporting this service since then.

However, the legacy of C-SPAN holds less significance for the emerging streaming platforms, which cater primarily to viewers who’ve never subscribed to traditional pay TV.

I’ve jumped on the bandwagon and lent my voice to the conversation. On the 2nd of June, a bipartisan agreement was reached in the Senate, recognizing the anniversary of C-SPAN2 – the channel that broadcasts our chamber sessions. The resolution emphasized the importance of making live coverage of these proceedings easily accessible across all digital platforms.

Besides receiving backing from some of the nation’s top television viewers, C-SPAN also enjoys support from President Trump. Lately, the President has been sharing on social media that he frequently tunes into the channel during late nights, when it broadcasts highlights of the previous day, including his own press conferences and events.

Despite some cable news networks debating the amount of airtime dedicated to Trump’s rallies and public appearances, C-SPAN consistently broadcasts them in full. This method has been commended by the Trump White House communications office and has been a constant practice across all contemporary administrations.

Though certain streaming platforms broadcast congressional events, Feist points out that C-SPAN remains unique in providing all occurrences live across its three channels, even when multiple events happen concurrently. This was true for the confirmations of FBI Director Kash Patel, Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard, and Secretary of Health and Human Services Robert F. Kennedy Jr.

Feist, once CNN’s Washington bureau chief, pointed out that C-SPAN’s unbiased approach holds value in today’s media landscape where platforms tend to align with the political views of their audiences. He referenced a poll by Ipsos, which reveals that 30% of C-SPAN’s audience identifies as Democrat, 30% as Republican, and 36% as independent, demonstrating its balanced following.

According to Feist, it fits perfectly with the population profile of the nation. I believe this positions us uniquely within this particular environment or system.

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2025-06-25 13:33

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