NPR and PBS’s impending reckoning with DOGE

Washington Examiner Header

Public broadcasting’s lobbyists and their television and radio clients huddled in a Washington hotel this week to chart an uncertain future. And who could blame them if they assumed the roar they heard outside came from a chainsaw-wielding Elon Musk, stalking the hotel a la Jack Nicholson in The Shining?

The noise, however, was a bus rented by the Media Research Center — a rolling billboard with “DEFUND PBS & NPR” splashed on the side. It circled Capitol Hill this week, reminding its denizens that this is the year to end what is an injustice on many levels: taxpayer funding of these outlets.

END THE CORPORATION FOR PUBLIC BROADCASTING

Of course, the broadcasting and lobbying executives at the 2025 Public Media Summit — the annual conference held by public broadcasting’s leading advocacy group, America’s Public Television Stations, at the Salamander Hotel Feb. 24 through 26 — probably saw no humor in the fact that the planets may finally be aligning against them.

Not only has Musk, who heads the Department of Government Efficiency, been very outspoken that public broadcasting’s more than half-a-billion-dollar annual public subsidy is a target as he seeks to reduce federal spending, but members of Congress are also readying several bills to axe NPR and PBS funding.

The head of the DOGE Subcommittee on the House, Rep. Marjorie Taylor-Greene (R-GA), has called on the leaders of PBS and NPR to testify sometime in March. At heart is not just the wasteful spending — it was revealed recently that NPR hosts make close to half a million dollars a year — but also that PBS and NPR are biased toward the Left.

Elon Musk recently posted on X, “Defund NPR. It should survive on its own.” The post included a video of NPR CEO Katherine Maher saying, “I think our reverence for the truth might have become a bit of a distraction that is preventing us from finding consensus and getting things done.”

It’s not just the irony of the CEO of a news organization brazenly spitting at the truth. That clip perfectly encapsulates the smug liberal mindset that DOGE and President Donald Trump have set out to destroy in Washington, D.C.

“As an organization that receives federal funds, both directly and indirectly through its member stations, NPR’s reporting should serve the entire public, not just a narrow slice of likeminded individuals and ideological interest groups,” Greene wrote in a letter to Maher. An almost identical letter went to PBS.

By Mike Gonzalez

Read Full Article on WashingtonExaminer.com

Washington Examiner
Washington Examinerhttps://www.washingtonexaminer.com/
The Washington Examiner brings news and analysis on politics, with news coverage, investigative reporting and commentary about Washington's latest exploits.

Columns

How a Chinese Government Statistician Was Forced to Report Fake Data

Chinese local govt employee produced a non-authorized report on bees and was visited by police and threatened with being sent to a mental hospital.

‘This One Time, at Groomer Camp’

All Camp Brave Trails programs focus on helping LGBTQ+ youth find what they need most to thrive: their people, their place, and their passion.

Why Recognizing a Palestinian State Now Undermines U.S. Interests 

A recent American Conservative article suggests President Trump recognize a Palestinian state, but this would undermine the interests of the United States.

Harvard’s China Ties Under Scrutiny as US Targets Student Visas

Following Trump admin’s action to vet Chinese nationals studying in US for ties to the CCP, Harvard's involvement with Beijing has come to the fore.

The Russian-Ukrainian Talks Are At An Impasse That Only The US Or Brute Force Can Break

The second round of Russian-Ukrainian talks in Istanbul resulted in no progress and talks are at an impasse that only the US or brute force can break.

News

Guatemalan Deportee Arrives in US After Judge Orders Trump Admin to Facilitate Return

“America’s asylum system was never intended to be used as a de facto amnesty program or a catch-all, get-out-of-deportation-free card,” McLaughlin said.

Trump-Musk Feud Escalates Over Spending Bill: 5 Things to Know

A public feud between Musk and Trump took a turn for the worse. Musk claimed president wouldn’t have won without him and president suggested Musk’s subsidies could be pulled.

Supreme Court Rules 9-0 Wisconsin Violated First Amendment by Denying Tax Exemption to Catholic Charity

Supreme Court ruled unanimously that WI violated the First Amendment by not granting Catholic charity an exemption from paying unemployment tax.

Appeals Court Rules San Diego’s Yoga Ban Is Unconstitutional

The city of San Diego’s ban on yoga classes in public parks and beaches was ruled unconstitutional by a federal appeals court.

Supreme Court Rejects Mexico’s Lawsuit Against Gun Companies

SCOTUS said gun companies should not face lawsuit in which Mexican govt was trying to hold them liable for cartel-related violence involving firearms from US.

FDA Not Recommending Newly Approved COVID-19 Vaccine: Official

FDA approved a new COVID-19 vaccine but is not recommending people receive it, the agency’s top vaccine officials said on June 4.

Self-Sufficiency Summits in Ohio Reflect Surging Interest in Homesteading

After an age of reliance on store-bought items, many Americans are returning to a self-sufficient lifestyle and growing and raising the food they consume.

Judge Requires Trump Admin to Provide Due Process for Deportees in El Salvador Prison

Boasberg ordered Trump admin to provide habeas relief for individuals it deported and are held in Salvadoran maximum security prison.
spot_img

Related Articles