NPR CEO Criticized for Liberal Tweets

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Facts

  • Left-wing tweets from NPR's new CEO, Katherine Maher, have re-emerged, increasing scrutiny on the media outlet accused of stark liberal bias by a long-time editor last week.1
  • On April 9, NPR senior editor Uri Berliner claimed that his employer had 'lost America's trust' due to its strong liberal bias. He was suspended by NPR last Friday for carrying out non-NPR work without permission. Berliner then resigned on Wednesday.2
  • Following his resignation, the allegations of partisan bias opened up Maher and NPR to increased criticism from conservatives who accused the publisher and its leadership of supporting liberal causes.3
  • In a 2020 tweet, years before she joined the news organization, Maher openly shared her disapproval of former Pres. Donald Trump, calling him a 'deranged racist.'4
  • On Thursday, researcher Christopher Rufo posted a video of Maher — who previously served as the CEO of Wikipedia — in which she appears to reject Wikipedia's principles of a 'free and open' internet, claiming it was based on a 'white male Westernized construct.'5
  • Maher's critics have called to 'defund NPR,' which allegedly receives millions in funding from the Corporation for Public Broadcasting — a nonprofit that distributes federal funding to NPR and PBS.6

Sources: 1New York Post, 2Verity, 3New York Times, 4Washington Post, 5Twitter and 6FOX News.

Narratives

  • Conservative narrative, as provided by Daily Wire. While conservatives have long known that NPR is essentially a publicly funded mouthpiece of the Democratic Party, it's refreshing to see the outlet's CEO get exposed for her overt left-wing bias. Uri Berliner's scathing essay added credence to accusations of NPR's bias, and Katherine Maher's hyper-partisan tweets only confirm that she, like many corporate media executives, is a rabid leftist. While most outlets abhor free speech rights and journalistic integrity, NPR is the worst offender because it receives taxpayer funding.
  • Progressive narrative, as provided by Guardian. Like any outlet, NPR isn't perfect. However, Uri Berliner's essay was a cheap shot at his employer of 25 years that did very little to improve journalistic standards. It's obvious that the scorned editor had a gripe with Katherine Maher, and he was just waiting to launch his attack. Regardless, NPR's staff stands behind its leader and will work to provide the best coverage possible. Meanwhile, Berliner is trying to set himself up as the next big right-wing talk show host.

Predictions