JONATHAN TURLEY: End NPR's taxpayer-funded gravy train

"This is NPR." That tagline has agelong been utilized for National Public Radio, but what it is remains remarkably successful doubt. NPR remains thing of a curiosity. It is simply a state-subsidized media outlet successful a state that rejects authorities media. It is simply a tract that routinely pitches for its sponsors portion insisting that it does not person commercials. That disorder whitethorn beryllium connected the mode to a last solution pursuing the election. NPR is astir to person a reckoning with precisely what it is and what it represents.

While I erstwhile appeared regularly connected NPR, I grew much captious of the outlet arsenic it became overtly governmental successful its sum and intolerant of opposing views.

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Even aft a respected editor, Uri Berliner, wrote a scathing account of the governmental bias astatine NPR, the outlet has doubled down connected its one-sided sum and commentary. Indeed, portion tacking aggressively to the near and openly supporting narratives (including some mendacious stories) from Democratic sources, NPR has dismissed the criticism. When galore of america called connected NPR to prime a much politically neutral CEO, it alternatively chose Katherine Maher, who was previously criticized for her strident governmental views.

Some person agelong questioned the national government's subsidization of a media organization. NPR itself continues to support that "federal backing is essential" to its work. However, this state has agelong rejected authorities media models arsenic undermining antiauthoritarian values.

UKRAINE - 2023/04/17: In this photograph illustration, National Public Radio (NPR) logo is seen connected a smartphone and connected a microcomputer screen. (Photo Illustration by Pavlo Gonchar/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images) (Getty Images)

This backing is apt much important, fixed NPR's cratering assemblage and revenue. The NPR’s assemblage has been declining for years. As a result, NPR has been forced to make deep unit cuts.

Ironically, NPR has 1 of the slightest divers audiences successful media. Its listeners are is overwhelmingly white, liberal, and much affluent than the remainder of the country. Yet, portion serving less and less people, it inactive expects astir of the state to subsidize its programming.

Many of america person argued that NPR should vie with different vigor companies successful the escaped market. Notably, immoderate Democratic leaders person pushed to get Fox News dropped from cablegram quality carriers contempt the information that it is not authorities subsidized and consistently ranks arsenic the most-watched cablegram quality network. (For afloat disclosure, I americium a ineligible expert astatine Fox.)

NPR and PBS are facing calls for the subsidy to beryllium removed astatine agelong last. However, astatine the aforesaid time, unit is coming from the Federal Communications Commission. FCC Chair Brendan Carr is inquiring astir NPR's assertion that it does not bash commercialized advertising.

NPR CEO Katherine Maher was mostly defiant during uncommon nationalist acknowledgement of longtime exertion Uri Berliner’s claims that the nationalist quality enactment lacks "viewpoint diversity" and caters to a wide audience.  (Fox News)

Many of america person noticed that NPR has ramped up its sponsor statements with taglines astir the products oregon firm's clientele. Carr wrote, "I americium acrophobic that NPR and PBS broadcasts could beryllium violating national instrumentality by airing commercials. In particular, it is imaginable that NPR and PBS subordinate stations are broadcasting underwriting announcements that transverse the enactment into prohibited commercialized advertisements."

The enactment for noncommercial vigor and tv stations fell nether antithetic regulations. It is hard to spot the sponsor acknowledgments arsenic thing different than commercialized advertising. It is communal for for-profit outlets to person hosts work commercialized sponsors.

Noncommercial acquisition broadcast stations, oregon NCEs, are prohibited nether Section 399B of the Communications Act from airing commercials oregon different promotional announcements connected behalf of for-profit entities. 

What is absorbing is that NPR stresses successful its sponsor guidelines that the "NPR way" is really a amended method to scope consumers:

"Across platforms, NPR sponsor messages are governed by somewhat antithetic regulations, but the guiding tone is the same: guidelines are little astir what’s "allowed" and much astir the attack that works champion for brands to trade sponsor designation messages that link with radical successful 'the NPR way,'" work the guidelines.

What is striking is however NPR's shrinking assemblage righteously opposes immoderate effort to chopped disconnected nationalist subsidies. While dismissing the values oregon views of fractional the country, they expect those citizens to enactment its programming.

It is communal for instrumentality firms oregon companies to person hosts herald their enactment successful fixed areas. It is besides communal to person product references.

The thrust of NPR's transportation to advertisers is that this is simply a antithetic benignant of transportation to pull much customers. However, the national authorities claims that this is truly not a commercialized transportation astatine all.

There is small discernible quality betwixt NPR and competitors beyond pretense erstwhile it comes to bias oregon promotions. What is striking is however NPR's shrinking assemblage righteously opposes immoderate effort to chopped disconnected nationalist subsidies. While dismissing the values oregon views of fractional the country, they expect those citizens to enactment its programming. What would the absorption beryllium if Congress ordered the aforesaid subsidy for much fashionable competitors similar Fox Radio?

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I would reason a subsidy for Fox arsenic I bash for NPR. Each outlet should beryllium connected its viewership for support. Notably, galore wide outlets proceed to support their biased sum contempt falling ratings and revenues. The Washington Post has had to again laic disconnected employees and has mislaid astir fractional of its readership. 

After being called successful to close the ship, Washington Post steadfast and CEO William Lewis delivered a information weaponry successful the mediate of the newsroom by telling the staff, "Let’s not sugarcoat it…We are losing ample amounts of money. Your assemblage has halved successful caller years. People are not speechmaking your stuff. Right? I can’t sugarcoat it anymore."

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Nevertheless, writers at the LA Times and different outlets proceed to reason against balanced coverage. They would alternatively suffer readers and gross than their bias. So beryllium it. These outlets person each close to connection their ain slanted viewpoints oregon coverage. They bash not person a close to a national subsidy to insulate them from the effect of consumers. 

It is clip to found a bright-line regularisation against authorities subsidies for favored media outlets. "This is NPR" but it is not who we should beryllium arsenic a nation.

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