NPR editor who alleged left-wing bias at network suspended

National Public Radio has suspended an editor who has repeatedly criticized the station in recent days, saying his left-leaning bias is hurting the station’s journalism.

Last week, senior editor Uli Berliner, who has worked at NPR for more than 20 years, was suspended from the company for five days without pay, according to NPR media reporter David Folkenflik. reported on Tuesday.

Berliner published an essay Last week in the Free Press, he argued that “people who listen to NPR or read its coverage online” are getting “a distilled worldview of a tiny fraction of the U.S. population.”

Folkenflik reported that in handing down the punishment, NPR executives told Berlin that he had not received approval for outside work at other news outlets, which is required of journalists at the network.

Mr. Berliner’s essay has provided fodder for the public broadcaster’s frequent critics, who have long argued for a liberal bias.

Some of this week’s critics Highlighted social media posts NPR CEO Katherine Maher praised Democrats, calling President Trump a racist and saying they promote progressive ideas.

Maher forcefully pushed back on his claims and defended the media’s standards in a memo to staff after Berliner’s essay was published.

Berliner also criticized Maher’s social media posts in an interview with Folkenflik.

“We are now looking for a leader who will come together, bring more people into the tent, and take a broader view of what America is about,” he told reporters at the outlet. “And this seems to be the opposite.”

President Trump criticized NPR’s leadership for criticizing the show and called for the show’s funding to be cut.