U.S. Sen. Shelley Moore Capito has received an award for her support of public broadcasting.
Capito accepted the Champion of Public Broadcasting Award from America’s Public Television Stations on Wednesday.
The two-term West Virginia Republican is the ranking member of the Senate Appropriations subcommittee that maintains federal funding for public broadcasting.
In another role on a Homeland Security subcommittee, Capito has supported funding for public broadcasting’s emergency communications services.
“Public broadcasting plays a significant role in our communities and helps inform Americans on what is happening around their state, our nation, and our world,” Capito said. “It certainly does in my state of West Virginia.”
The organization also presented Sen. Tammy Baldwin, a Wisconsin Democrat, who chairs the Appropriations subcommittee alongside Capito, with the same award.
The award is the highest given by the organization, to state and federal leaders who have made an extraordinary contribution to public television.
The organization presented Rep. Earl Blumenauer, an Oregon Democrat, with a Lifetime Achievement Award. Blumenauer founded and chaired the Congressional Public Broadcasting Caucus.