CV NEWS FEED // A National Public Radio veteran recently argued that the massive audio platform has “lost America’s trust” for skewing significantly to the left politically and culturally.
“It’s true NPR has always had a liberal bent, but during most of my tenure here, an open-minded, curious culture prevailed. We were nerdy, but not knee-jerk, activist, or scolding,” wrote Uri Berliner in The Free Press. Berliner is a senior editor who has worked for NPR for 25 years.
Berliner wrote that 2011 was the year the audience of NPR shifted more notably to the left, but even then, the political tone of NPR remained more central.
“In recent years, however, that has changed,” he continued. “Today, those who listen to NPR or read its coverage online find something different: the distilled worldview of a very small segment of the U.S. population.”
Berliner wrote that 67% of NPR listeners in 2023 identified as “very” or “somewhat” liberal, a major uptick from what used to be a wide variety of political identifications.
“By 2023,” Berliner continued, “We weren’t just losing conservatives; we were also losing moderates and traditional liberals. An open-minded spirit no longer exists within NPR, and now, predictably, we don’t have an audience that reflects America.”
NPR’s reporting on Trump, Hunter Biden’s laptop, and COVID-19
NPR became more politically charged and advocacy-focused in 2016, after Donald Trump was elected president.
“But what began as tough, straightforward coverage of a belligerent, truth-impaired president veered toward efforts to damage or topple Trump’s presidency,” Berliner wrote. “Persistent rumors that the Trump campaign colluded with Russia over the election became the catnip that drove reporting.”
This intense focus on the “Russiagate” allegations eventually backfired for NPR after a major report indicated “no credible evidence of collusion,” Berliner explained, and yet “NPR’s coverage (of the report) was notably sparse. Russiagate quietly faded from our programming.”
Another turning point for trust in NPR occurred when an “explosive report” about Hunter Biden’s laptop and “sordid business deals” came out in October of 2020.
“With the election only weeks away, NPR turned a blind eye,” Berliner wrote, adding that NPR’s then-managing editor said the story would be a “pure distraction” and “waste of time” for the listeners.
“During a meeting with colleagues, I listened as one of NPR’s best and most fair-minded journalists said it was good we weren’t following the laptop story because it could help Trump,” he wrote.
Another misfire for NPR occurred when the radio outlet refused to ever cover information about COVID-19 potentially originating from a lab leak, rather than having natural origins. Berliner explained that NPR remained “dismissive” of reports and possibilities that the origins of COVID-19 were a lab.
Though his three examples reveal times when NPR has “faltered,” Berliner wrote that “to truly understand how independent journalism suffered at NPR, you need to step inside the organization.”
Internal changes in NPR’s approach to journalism
John Lansing, former CEO of NPR, was hired in 2019. Berliner explained that Lansing was hired mainly to maintain and improve relations with local networks, but the tone of his mission shifted in 2020 after the death of George Floyd.
“After working mostly behind the scenes, Lansing became a more visible and forceful figure after the killing of George Floyd in May 2020,” Berliner wrote.
Lansing wrote an article to his company about the importance of combating systemic racism moving forward, and letting diversity be the “North star” of NPR’s mission.
“Race and identity became paramount in nearly every aspect of the workplace,” Berliner wrote. Additionally, the language used in articles and reporting became controlled and determined by current diversity, equity, and inclusion standards imposed by an updated NPR union contract.
“In essence, this means the NPR union, of which I am a dues-paying member, has ensured that advocacy groups are given a seat at the table in determining the terms and vocabulary of our news coverage,” Berliner explained.
One such example is when NPR reporters cover stories involving transgenderism.
“In a document called NPR Transgender Coverage Guidance—disseminated by news management—we’re asked to avoid the term biological sex,” Berliner wrote.
In light of these changes, “the most damaging development at NPR,” Berliner argued, was “the absence of viewpoint diversity.”
Looking into this absence in 2021, Berliner examined a voter registration report for the newsroom he is a part of.
He wrote: “In D.C., where NPR is headquartered and many of us live, I found 87 registered Democrats working in editorial positions and zero Republicans. None.”
Berliner brought this to an editorial staff meeting in May of 2021 and expressed his concern about a lack of diversity, the response was “profound indifference.”
Berliner received an email from an NPR news executive after the meeting warning him not to bring up diversity of viewpoints. The executive shared that she had been “skewered” when she attempted to bring that up, and warned him to be careful of how he discusses the concern in public.
Though he said he has always received polite responses in these exchanges, “nothing changes. So I’ve become a visible wrong-thinker at a place I love.”
NPR leaders respond to Berliner
In response to Berliner’s article, NPR leaders disputed his claim and argued that NPR has maintained its journalistic integrity.
NPR journalist David Folkenflik wrote on April 10, “NPR’s chief news executive, Edith Chapin, wrote in a memo to staff Tuesday afternoon that she and the news leadership team strongly reject Berliner’s assessment.”
In the memo, Chapin wrote, “None of our work is above scrutiny or critique. We must have vigorous discussions in the newsroom about how we serve the public as a whole.”
Chapin added that the team is “proud to stand behind the exceptional work that our desks and shows do to cover a wide range of challenging stories.”
New NPR CEO Katherine Maher backed Chapin’s statement.
A spokesperson for NPR told Folkenflik that Maher “believes that it’s a healthy thing for a public service newsroom to engage in rigorous consideration of the needs of our audiences, including where we serve our mission well and where we can serve it better.”
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