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NPR in turmoil after it is accused of liberal bias

WASHINGTON, DC - FEBRUARY 22: A view of the National Public Radio (NPR) headquarters on North Capitol Street February 22, 2023 in Washington, DC. NPR CEO John Lansing announced in a memo to staff that the network is planning to lay off around 10% of its workforce, citing a decline in advertising revenue. (Photo by Drew Angerer/Getty Images) (Drew Angerer)
By Benjamin Mullin and Katie Robertson New York Times

NPR is facing both internal tumult and a fusillade of attacks by prominent conservatives this week after a senior editor publicly claimed the broadcaster had allowed liberal bias to affect its coverage, risking its trust with audiences.

Uri Berliner, a senior business editor who has worked at NPR for 25 years, wrote in an essay published Tuesday by the Free Press, a popular Substack publication, that “people at every level of NPR have comfortably coalesced around the progressive worldview.”

Berliner castigated NPR for what he said was a litany of journalistic missteps around coverage of several major news events, including the origins of COVID-19 and the war in the Gaza Strip. He also said the internal culture at NPR had placed race and identity as “paramount in nearly every aspect of the workplace.”

Berliner’s essay has ignited a firestorm of criticism of NPR on social media, especially among conservatives who have long accused the network of political bias in its reporting. Former President Donald Trump took to social media to argue that NPR’s government funding should be rescinded, an argument he has made in the past.

NPR has forcefully pushed back on Berliner’s accusations and the criticism.

“We’re proud to stand behind the exceptional work that our desks and shows do to cover a wide range of challenging stories,” Edith Chapin, the organization’s editor-in-chief, said in an email to staff Tuesday. “We believe that inclusion — among our staff, with our sourcing, and in our overall coverage — is critical to telling the nuanced stories of this country and our world.” Some other NPR journalists also criticized the essay publicly, including Eric Deggans, its TV critic, who faulted Berliner for not giving NPR an opportunity to comment on the piece.

In an interview Thursday, Berliner expressed no regrets about publishing the essay, saying he loved NPR and hoped to make it better by airing criticisms that have gone unheeded by leaders for years.

He said that he had not been disciplined by managers, though he said he received a note from his supervisor reminding him that NPR requires employees to clear speaking appearances and media requests with standards and media relations.

This article originally appeared in The New York Times.