An editor at National Public Radio resigned Wednesday, just days after stoking the ongoing culture war surrounding the mainstream media with an essay about what he considers the news station’s liberal views.
Uri Berliner, a senior business editor, wrote an essay for the right-wing online publication The Free Press saying he believes NPR is losing the public’s trust.
NPR, a nonprofit radio network, has a “lack of viewpoint diversity,” he wrote in the essay published April 9. It “has always had a liberal slant,” but now there is “no longer a spirit of open-mindedness within NPR,” he wrote.
The essay sparked a wave of criticism of NPR among conservatives, some of whom responded with calls to defund the news organization, which receives federal funding through the Corporation for Public Broadcasting. NPR says on its website that federal funding is “essential” to NPR, but that “less than 1% of NPR’s annual operating budget comes in the form of grants from CPB and federal agencies and departments.”
In a resignation statement on X, Berliner explained this briefly about the reason for his departure, which came days after NPR reported that it had suspended him without pay for five days following the release of the op-ed.
NPR’s editor-in-chief Pallavi Gogoi had told Berliner about his requirement to obtain approval before appearing in outside media, NPR’s report said.
“I do not support calls to defund NPR,” Berliner wrote. “I respect the integrity of my colleagues and wish to see NPR thrive and practice important journalism. But I can’t work in a newsroom where I’m being discredited by a new CEO whose divisiveness confirms the very problems at NPR that I point out in my Free Press essay.”
Berliner did not immediately respond to a request for comment on Wednesday. A representative for NPR said it “does not comment on individual personnel matters.”
Berliner’s essay gained traction with X, with many conservatives digging into his thoughts on NPR’s political makeup. He wrote: “In DC, where NPR is headquartered and where many of us live, I found 87 registered Democrats working in editorial positions and zero Republicans. No.”
He also criticized NPR’s reporting, or lack thereof, of certain stories, such as the Mueller report, Hunter Biden’s laptop, the origins of Covid-19 and systemic racism following the killing of George Floyd.
High-profile supporters of Berliner’s essay, including former President Donald Trump and X owner Elon Musk, shared criticism of NPR and its CEO, Katherine Maher.
“NO MORE FUNDING FOR NPR, A TOTAL SCAM! THE EDITOR SAID THEY HAVE NO REPUBLICANS AND ARE ONLY USED TO ‘HARM TRUMP.’ THEY ARE A LIBERAL DISINFORMATION MACHINE. NOT ONE DOLLARS!!!” Trump wrote in Truth Social on April 10.
Musk wrote on X that the “head of NPR hates the US Constitution” in response to a segment in which Maher discusses the challenges of combating disinformation and honoring the First Amendment right to freedom of speech.
Meanwhile, some journalists at NPR pushed back against Berliner’s accusations.
Morning Edition co-host Steve Inskeep shared his thoughts in a post on his Substack newsletter, saying he believes Berliner failed to “engage someone who had a different point of view.”
“When asked, I responded: My colleague’s article was full of errors and omissions,” he wrote, adding: “The errors make NPR look bad because it’s embarrassing that an NPR journalist would make so many .”
Edith Chapin, NPR’s newsroom chief, also denied Berliner’s assessment of the newsroom in a memo to employees, according to NPR.
“We are proud to stand behind the exceptional work our agencies and shows do to present a wide range of challenging stories,” she wrote. “We believe that inclusion – among our staff, in our purchasing and in our overall messaging – is critical to telling the nuanced stories of this country and our world.”
Maher also said in a statement to NPR on Monday: “In America, everyone has the right to freedom of expression as a private individual. What matters is the work of NPR and my commitment as CEO: public service, editorial independence and the mission to serve the entire American public. NPR is independent, not affiliated with any party and without commercial interests.”
This article was originally published on NBCNews.com
