Winding down operations didn’t stop the money from flowing as a White House-curbed contract was back in play for NPR after a settlement with the Corporation for Public Broadcasting (CPB).
In addition to aiming to tackle waste, fraud, and abuse in the federal government, President Donald Trump set out to put an end to propaganda, especially where taxpayer dollars are concerned. Including NPR in that mission, and its CEO on the record viewing the First Amendment as a “challenge,” hit a pitfall Monday when CPB agreed to restore a $36 million contract pulled after an executive order in May.
“The settlement is a victory for editorial independence and a step toward upholding the First Amendment rights of NPR and the public media system in our legal challenge to Executive Order 14290,” read a statement from NPR President and CEO Katherine Maher as she referenced the order “Ending Taxpayer Subsidization Of Biased Media.”
“While we entered into this dispute with CPB reluctantly, we’re glad to resolve it in a way that enables us to continue to provide for the stability of the Public Radio Satellite System, offer immediate and direct support to public radio stations across the country, and proceed with our strong and substantive claims against this illegal and unconstitutional Executive Order,” she went on. “We look forward to our day in court in December.”
In April 2024, 25-year veteran editor Uri Berliner resigned his position with NPR after being suspended for alleging leftist bias at the outlet. He notably did not call for a campaign to defund NPR, and instead said, “But I cannot work in a newsroom where I am disparaged by a new CEO whose divisive views confirm the very problems at NPR I cite in my Free Press essay.”
Maher’s past remarks have been circulated, including a statement made while CEO of Wikimedia where she said, “On the side of governmental regulation, the number one challenge here that we see is, of course, the First Amendment is a fairly robust protection of rights,” adding, “but it also means that it is a little bit tricky to really address some of the real challenges of where does that information come from and sort of the influence peddlers who have made a real market economy around it.”
NPR’s Uri Berliner resigns – blasts CEO who sees 1st Amendment used to defend old posts as ‘a challenge’ https://t.co/OCEGIeIbmj via @BIZPACReview
— BPR based (@DumpstrFireNews) April 17, 2024
NPR’s David Folkenflik noted that three Colorado public radio stations had joined NPR in filing suit following the May 1 order from the president, alleging that disfavor of their coverage had led to their being unlawfully punished.
His report pointed to a meeting between CPB’s board chair and two senior executives with a White House budget official prior to the executive order. That official was said to have “attested to her ‘intense dislike for NPR.’ The budget official told them CPB didn’t have to ‘throw the baby out with the bathwater,’ according to a deposition from CPB executive Clayton Barsoum submitted as part of NPR’s legal filings.”
That same day, NPR was notified that the satellite and distribution service would go elsewhere.
Meanwhile, despite announcing in August that its operations would be winding down after the passage of a $9 billion rescissions package cut funding, CPB also marked the settlement as a win as NPR dropped a challenge against their five-year contract with Public Media Infrastructure (PMI) to provide public radio distribution
CPB President and CEO Patricia Harrison stated, “This is an important moment for public media. We are very pleased that this costly and unnecessary litigation is over, and that our investment in the future through PMI marks an exciting new era for public media.”
NPR’s lawsuit against the Trump administration regarding funding is ongoing, and a hearing is scheduled for December.
Native of Brooklyn, NY, Kevin Haggerty is a graduate of Hunter College where he studied Cultural Anthropology and Geography. An avid reader and truth seeker, he currently resides in Texas with his wife and their dog and, when he isn't researching current events and their impacts, you'll find him spending time with friends and family or working on his next novel.
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