NPR Editor Resigns After Publishing Essay Alleging Left-Leaning Bias
Uri Berliner, an employee of National Public Radio (NPR) for 25 years who had been suspended after publishing an essay accusing the network of liberal bias, resigned from the media outlet on Wednesday....
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Facts
- Uri Berliner, an employee of National Public Radio (NPR) for 25 years who had been suspended after publishing an essay accusing the network of liberal bias, resigned from the media outlet on Wednesday.1
- In a statement on X, Berliner said he had quit after being 'disparaged' by NPR's Chief Executive Officer — claiming their 'divisive views' confirmed the 'very problems at NPR I cited in my Free Press essay.'2
- Berliner was suspended last Friday for violating NPR's policy that bans journalists from taking up outside work without prior approval and releasing proprietary data about the network's confidential audience demographics.3
- In his essay published on April 9 in The Free Press, Berliner said that NPR had 'lost America's trust,' allegedly because 'an open-minded spirit no longer exists within NPR' as it caters to a 'distilled worldview of a very small segment of the U.S. population.'4
- Though he claimed that NPR had lost 'viewpoint diversity' and was 'telling listeners how to think,' Berliner rejected calls to defund the network and rejected the notion that it was a 'liberal disinformation machine' — a characterization used by former Pres. Trump.5
- Following his suspension, Edith Chapin, NPR's editor-in-chief, sent a memo to NPR's employees, stating she 'strongly' disagreed with Berliner's assessment of the network's journalism, and claimed that 'inclusion' was 'critical' to providing 'nuanced stories.'6
Sources: 1New York Times, 2twitter.com, 3NPR Online News, 4The Fp, 5CNN and 6FOX News.
Narratives
- Left narrative, as provided by NPR Online News. Berliner deserved disciplinary action for not reaching out to NPR before publishing his op-ed. While he was entitled to free speech as a private citizen, Berliner had no right to violate NPR's internal policy as a journalist on its payroll. By going to another news outlet with his network's scathing criticism, the veteran editor violated trust and reached the point of no return.
- Right narrative, as provided by The Telegraph. Berliner has paid the price for exposing NPR's far-left-leaning bias. No longer focused on truth, the organization has moved from objective reporting to partisan favoritism. As political polarization continues to grow, Berliner's resignation should stir up a fresh debate around taxpayer-funded public media's sizeable shift to appease the far left.
