PBS, NPR push liberal propaganda. Trump is right to cut their funding. | Opinion
Why do conservatives have so much disdain for NPR and PBS? Since both are taxpayer funded, they are supposed to serve all the public. But both push leftist propaganda to a progressive audience.
NPR and PBS were once one-stop shops for news and wholesome programs for families. The kids could watch "Sesame Street" while their parents listened to "All Things Considered."
But now NPR and, to a lesser extent, PBS have become a cesspool of liberal bias that taxpayers have been forced to fund.
From my perspective, President Donald Trump can't cut funding for these two liberal fortresses fast enough. Does that make me heartless or financially prudent? I say the latter.
Trump is right to cut funding for public broadcasting
At Trump's behest, the Senate voted July 17 to cut $9 billion in federal funds from public broadcasting and foreign aid programs. House Republicans are expected to concur and send the legislation to Trump for his signature.
The executives who run NPR say that the public broadcaster gets only 1% of its funding directly from the federal government and member stations receive around 10% of their budgets from Washington.
Yet, the progressives who love PBS and NPR can't stop screaming that the budget cuts will mean the end of public broadcasting as we know it.
To which I say: Now, tell me the bad news.
NPR pushes liberal propaganda
Why do so many conservatives have so much disdain for NPR and PBS? Since both are taxpayer funded, they are supposed to, at least in theory, serve all the public. But both outfits push leftist propaganda and partisan talking points to a targeted audience of progressives.
Even worse, executives like NPR CEO Katherine Maher refuse to admit the obvious.
On CNN, Maher seemed befuddled about the suggestion of liberal bias. "As far as the accusations that we’re biased, I’d stand up and say, ‘Please show me a story that concerns you,’” she said.
Hey, no problem. Here are a few headlines from NPR:
- This right wing conspiracy theory about eating bugs is about as racist as you think − March 2024
- Kamala Harris already faces racism and sexism from Trump and Republicans − July 2024
- 'There Is No Neutral': 'Nice White People' Can Still Be Complicit In A Racist Society − June 2020
Let's review: Republicans and their presidential nominee are racist and sexist. The Democratic nominee is the victim of that racism and sexism. Even "nice" White people are racist as is American society as a whole.
And by the way, before you ask, none of those "news" stories were labeled as opinion.
Yes, no bias here. Just keep those tax dollars flowing.
The bias starts with executives like Maher, who in 2020 posted on social media that "America begins in black plunder and white democracy."
NPR often frames its news coverage in ways that make Trump's conservative policies seem harmful, rather than simply reporting the facts. A progressive point of view is fine when presented as commentary, but NPR purports to be a neutral news source that serves all Americans.
Don't believe me? AllSides, a media literacy organization that rates news organization's biases, has repeatedly found that NPR's online content "leans left."
And the calls about NPR's leftist bias have even come from inside the house. Longtime business editor Uri Berliner famously resigned last year after being suspended for publicly detailing his employer's history of newsroom bias.
Taxpayers shouldn't be forced to financially support a news source that's so blatantly partisan. Trump's cuts can't happen soon enough.
Hear that sound? It's liberals screaming into the void without NPR as their mouthpiece.
Nicole Russell is an opinion columnist with Paste BN. She lives in Texas with her four kids. Sign up for her newsletter, The Right Track, and get it delivered to your inbox.