As the party reignites calls to defund the broadcast company, US House Republicans have summoned NPR President and CEO Katherine Maher to Capitol Hill for a hearing on accusations of liberal ideological bias within the public radio organization.
The House Energy and Commerce Committee, chaired by Cathy McMorris Rodgers (R-WA), along with the Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations, led by Morgan Griffith (R-VA), will explore allegations from Uri Berliner, a former senior editor at NPR, regarding a lack of viewpoint diversity at the organization, which he believes has shifted NPR’s editorial stance significantly.
Berliner highlighted several concerns, including NPR’s handling of debates over the origins of COVID-19, the Mueller report, and the Hunter Biden laptop story, suggesting a consistent left-leaning bias in their reporting.
More specifically, Berliner cited an overwhelming number of registered Democrats in editorial positions within NPR’s newsroom, with no registered Republicans, which he argues contributes to a lack of political balance. The full letter to Maher can be read here.
The oversight hearing is scheduled for May 8. The committee aims to directly address these allegations with NPR’s leadership to assess whether public funding is being used to support a biased news agenda.
As stated by Influence Watch, “NPR receives funding for less than 1% of its budget directly from the federal government, but receives almost 10% of its budget from federal, state, and local governments indirectly.”
Speaker of the House Mike Johnson (R-LA) commented on the summons, saying, “In light of the recent, disturbing revelations about National Public Radio (NPR) and its leadership, I’ve directed Chair McMorris Rodgers and the Energy and Commerce Committee to conduct an investigation of NPR and determine what actions should be taken to hold the organization accountable for its ideological bias and contempt for facts. The American people support the free press but will not be made to fund a left-leaning political agenda with taxpayer funds.”
“NPR is entrusted with Americans’ hard-earned tax dollars. Serious allegations from a then-senior editor who spent decades at NPR reveal NPR engages in viewpoint discrimination and ideological bias that caters to a narrow, left-wing audience,” said Chairs Rodgers and Griffith.
Duh!