If you’re like me, you’re used to hearing “This program was made possible by supporters like you” at the end of NPR and PBS shows. But this year those words take on a special significance.

Thanks to an incredible outpouring of support from people all across the country, public media survived the most serious political attacks in Congress it has faced in years. Repeated efforts to pass bad bills, sneak through dangerous cuts and undermine the fundamental structure of public media failed thanks to the hard work of activists and fans who wrote to Congress, called their policymakers and even showed up in Washington, D.C., to make their voices heard.

President Obama recently signed next year’s funding bill, which provides level funding of $445 million for the Corporation for Public Broadcasting for fiscal year 2014 (the CPB budget is determined two years in advance). This is a huge win for the public.

But the fight is not over. Snuck into the funding bill is a requirement that the CPB study alternative funding streams, signaling there may be future attacks on its federal support. And that’s not all: We are still literally fighting over pocket change. With a budget of $445 million, we spend less than $1.50 per capita on public broadcasting.

We should be glad Congress got the message that it needs to keep its hands off this vital public service. But we should also start demanding more. Even in a tough economy — or perhaps even more in a tough economy — we need hard-hitting journalism, quality content for kids and access for all Americans to arts and culture programming. After a year in which Washington has seemed wildly out of touch with the American people, it is gratifying to see that our message — to defend public media — was heard.

Photo credit: Images of Money via Flickr