First appearance on Fox: The House Energy and Commerce Committee is subpoenaing NPR’s director to Congress to answer accusations that the station has left-wing bias despite receiving federal funding.
“The Committee is concerned about the direction NPR may be headed under past and current leadership. As a taxpayer-funded public radio organization, NPR is committed to providing the voice of more Americans.” “We should focus on fair and objective news reporting that considers and reflects “not just niche audiences,” said committee chair Cathy McMorris Rogers (R-Wash.), NPR’s top executive. A letter has been sent to CEO Katherine Maher.
He will lead Oversight Subcommittee Chairman Morgan Griffith (R-Va.) and Communications and Technology Subcommittee Chairman Bob Latta (R-Ohio) to testify publicly before Griffith’s panel next week. requested Mr. Maher.
“You are asked to appear before the Oversight and Investigations Subcommittee for a hearing on May 8, 2024, to explain the allegations of political and ideological bias that permeate NPR,” they wrote.
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The House Energy and Commerce Committee, led by Chairwoman Cathy McMorris Rodgers, is investigating NPR and its CEO Katherine Maher. (Getty Images)
Lawmakers also sent Mr. Maher a list of questions, including the political affiliation of registered voters who work in newsrooms and whether NPR’s board of directors has raised any concerns in recent years about political diversity in the workplace.
The committee also requested internal documentation regarding the lack of diversity of viewpoints within NPR.
Conservatives have long accused NPR of biasing its coverage to the left, even though some of the funding comes through federal grants and government-backed funds.
These concerns were compounded recently by former NPR editor-in-chief Uli Berliner. argued in an editorial Among other things, the outlet mishandled important stories stemming from Hunter Biden’s laptop hard drive and the COVID-19 lab leak theory, and the newsroom had 87 votes for registered Democrats. He pointed out that the overwhelming majority was 0.
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Former NPR editor-in-chief Uli Berliner has accused NPR of bias. (JP Im/Wire Image)
“I’m also perplexed by how NPR’s coverage of major news stories in recent years has become so polarized that it obviates the need for truth-telling, including the Mueller report and the Hunter paper. Also includes news stories about national security and other important issues.” Biden’s laptop, investigation into the origins of COVID-19 On each of these issues, NPR approaches reporting with a far-left lens. ,” the lawmakers wrote.
They also took issue with Maher’s own past statements in a 2021 TED Talk, where the letter said that “our respect for the truth is what motivates us to find common ground and get things done.” “It may be a distraction that prevents you from accomplishing anything.”
“You yourself have said that you think the First Amendment is the “biggest challenge” because protected speech protects the peddlers of “bad information” and “the peddlers who have built a real market economy around it.” Ironically. , you and NPR are using the same First Amendment to protect your own views and speech,” they wrote.
“In 2020, you took issue with the New York Times choosing to publish an op-ed written by Republican Sen. Tom Cotton as “full of racist dog whistles.”
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They asked Maher to answer NPR’s history questions by May 14.
Maher criticized the backlash on NPR in an interview. wall street journal Last week, she accused critics of “malicious distortion” of her views and statements.
Fox News Digital has reached out to NPR for comment on the letter.
