The Corporation for Public Broadcasting, a cornerstone of American culture for three generations, announced Friday it would take steps toward its own closure after being defunded by Congress — marking the end of a nearly six-decade era in which it fueled the production of renowned educational programming,

The company is among the first casualties of a vote to strip roughly $500 million in federal funding from NPR, PBS and local stations across the country.

Arizona PBS said it has been searching for ways to fill the multimillion-dollar funding gap left by the federal cuts.