Actor Robert De Niro will no longer be receiving the NAB Leadership Foundation’s Service to America Leadership Award in light of his recent appearance outside former President Donald Trump’s criminal trial in New York City on behalf of President Joe Biden.
The NABLF initially selected De Niro as its 2024 Service to America Leadership Award recipient for his charitable work and public service contributions, and he was scheduled to attend the June 4 gala at The Anthem in Washington, DC.
On May 28, President Biden’s campaign took a notable turn by involving De Niro in the public discourse surrounding Trump’s criminal trial in Manhattan. De Niro helmed a press conference near the courthouse, asserted that Trump was guilty of the charges against him, regardless of the trial’s outcome, and advocated for his incarceration.
The event aimed to highlight Trump’s alleged misconduct leading up to the January 6 Capitol attack but was overshadowed by De Niro’s remarks and the ensuing confrontation with Trump supporters. De Niro has also voiced several campaign ads for Biden, which are rolling out in battleground states.
NAB SVP of Communications Alex Siciliano said, “The Celebration of Service to America Awards is dedicated to honoring the vital local journalism and public service that local radio and television stations provide to their communities. This event is proudly bipartisan, uniting those from across the political spectrum to celebrate the impactful work of local broadcasters and our partners.”
“While we strongly support the right of every American to exercise free speech and participate in civic engagement, it is clear that Mr. De Niro’s recent high-profile activities will create a distraction from the philanthropic work that we were hoping to recognize. To maintain the focus on service of the award winners, Mr. De Niro will no longer be attending the event.”
“We look forward to a night of celebration honoring the exceptional work of broadcasters and our partners who make a difference in their communities every day.”
De Niro’s philanthropic efforts include co-founding the Tribeca Festival in 2001 to help revitalize lower Manhattan post-9/11, serving on the board of the 911 Museum and Memorial, and promoting diverse storytelling through the Tribeca Festival. He is actively involved with FilmAid’s Global Artists Council, supports The Community for peace and human rights, and established the Robert De Niro Sr. Fellowship.
A decision to Drop coming from the Top,
Seems hypocritical to me.
When radio supports the squid Ink of retorts-
just prior to him found Guilty.
Such garbage!
How is this right?
They rescinded the award for a reason totally unrelated to the reasons he was to receive it in the first place. If he had gone and yelled and screamed FOR low-life Trump, they would not have rescinded it. Total projection on their part. While stating they are bi-partisan, they have disparaged and belittled someone brave enough to speak his mind, that obviously has different views than the turncoat decision makers.
Agreed
Some of the past winners: Jose Andres, Lin-Manuel Miranda, Sharon Stone, Gary Sinese, Paul Simon, Jeff Bridges, Elton John, Bill Clinton.
Yeah, we don’t want politics from our award winners.
Thankfully, NAB stuck to its guns and (at least outwardly) remains committed to being bipartisan and focused on the advancement of the broadcast media…..not in currying favor with the so-called “elites” of this country who think their opinion matters more than others.
Good riddance to Mr. De Niro.
People are sick of PC lightweight, hurt-feelings crying in the media. Radio used to be bold, now it’s an industry that looks for excuses and wants to scream how unfair the industry is…. that’s why it’s losing attention; both from the audience and intra-industry people. All Access shut down, and these articles barely get 10 comments. It’s like everyone got up and left the party at the same time.