Free Speech Alliance Members Applaud House Hearing on Leftist Tilt at Tax-Funded NPR

May 7th, 2024 5:20 PM

The House Energy and Commerce Committee's Oversight Subcommittee is holding a hearing on Wednesday morning to address the political tilt of taxpayer-subsidized National Public Radio. NewsBusters Executive Editor Tim Graham is one of the experts who will testify. 

Members of the MRC-led Free Speech Alliance sent a letter to committee chair Cathy McMorris Rodgers (R-Wash.) applauding the hearing and insisting taxpayers "should not be compelled to pay for a politicized media outlet whose primary objective is to undermine American ideas and ideals."

The letter argues PBS and NPR have made a mockery of the Public Broadcasting Act of 1967, which mandates “objectivity and balance in all programs or series of programs of a controversial nature.” Therefore, "NPR must not be rewarded for its unlawful behavior and anti-American objectives."

Signatories include MRC founder and president Brent Bozell, Young America’s Foundation President Governor Scott Walker, American Values President Gary Bauer, and American Principles Project President Terry Schilling. 

The letter is below: 

Dear Chair McMorris Rodgers,

We applaud your decision to investigate National Public Radio (NPR). Its politicized leadership and programming have once again been brought into the spotlight, but its history of biased reporting is legendary. It long ago abandoned even the appearance of abiding by its statutory mandates in favor of pursuing a leftwing agenda. 

Taxpayers should not be compelled to pay for a politicized media outlet whose primary objective is to undermine American ideas and ideals, including our First Amendment free-speech rights as well as the economic system that creates the wealth that NPR feeds off of. 

It is critical that this hearing expose NPR’s unlawful conduct and how its leadership and reporters have used its resources to pursue political outcomes. 

For its entire existence, NPR and its sister organization, the Public Broadcasting Service (PBS), have made a mockery of the Public Broadcasting Act of 1967, which mandates “objectivity and balance in all programs or series of programs of a controversial nature.” NPR must not be rewarded for its unlawful behavior and anti-American objectives. Many argue that no media outlet should be subsidized with US tax dollars, but NPR has certainly lost the moral authority to demand our continued support. 

We encourage you to thoroughly investigate how NPR uses its talent and resources in contravention of the law. The Committee should determine the following: 

  1. With thousands of alternative media outlets now available to the public, has NPR outlived its usefulness?
  2. Are NPR’s hiring practices designed to prevent diversity of viewpoints in its programming?
  3. Has NPR used its power, reach and resources to interfere in elections, including the 2020 and 2024 presidential elections?
  4. Half of Americans are conservative or lean right in their political views; how does NPR attempt, if at all, to address the interests of this swath of Americans?

In 1967, Congress determined that funding NPR and PBS, both entities under the Corporation for Public Broadcasting (CPB), was necessary since there were only three broadcasters on television and only a small number of news-oriented radio stations across the country. Today, the internet has allowed countless alternative news sources to flourish. There are tens of thousands of online media sites and countless podcasts where the public access news daily. 

Black-and-white televisions have been replaced with 5G technology and most radio stations now have apps to compete with audio streaming services. Why should taxpayers continue to finance PBS and NPR now that there’s CNN, MSNBC, Fox News, Spotify, Pandora, Sirius XM, iHeart Radio, Amazon Prime, Apple Music, and countless others? 

Thank you for holding this important hearing. We look forward to learning how the Committee intends to reform NPR and the role taxpayers play in funding its operations. 

Sincerely,

L. Brent Bozell III

Founder and President

Media Research Center

 

J. Christian Adams

President and General Counsel

Public Interest Legal Foundation

 

Saulius “Saul” Anuzis

President

The American Association of Senior Citizens 

 

Brent Baker

Vice President for Research and Publications

Media Research Center

 

Gary L. Bauer

President

American Values

 

Ryan Bomberger

CoFounder & Chief Creative Officer

Radiance Foundation

 

David N. Bossie

President

Citizens United

 

Floyd Brown

Founder

The Western Journal

 

The Honorable T. Kenneth Cribb, Jr.

Assistant to the President for Domestic Affairs

President Ronald Reagan

 

Kenneth T. Cuccinelli II

 

Elaine Donnelly

President

Center for Military Readiness

 

Steven Ertelt

Editor

LifeNews.com

 

Kevin Freeman

Founder

NSIC Institute

 

Mark J. Fitzgibbons

President of Corporate Affairs

American Target Advertising

 

Lady Brigitte Gabriel

Founder & Chairman

ACT For America

 

Paul Gessing

President

Rio Grande Foundation

 

Tim Graham

Executive Editor

NewsBusters

 

Mike​​​​ Gonzalez

Angeles T. Arredondo E Pluribus Unum Senior Fellow, Kathryn and Shelby Cullom Davis Institute for National Security and Foreign Policy

The Heritage Foundation

 

Mike Hill 

Former Member 

Florida State House

 

Phil Kerpen

President

American Commitment


 

Kelly M. Kullberg

General Secretary

American Association of Evangelicals 

 

Jim Lakely

Vice President & Director of Communications

The Heartland Institute

 

George Landrith

President

Frontiers of Freedom

 

John Pierce 

Chairman

National Constitutional Law Union

 

Richard Manning

President

Americans for Limited Government

 

Josh Manning

Deputy Managing Editor

The Western Journal

 

Mr. Edward Martin

President

Phyllis Schlafly Eagles

 

James L. Martin

Founder/Chairman 

60 Plus Association

 

Christie-Lee McNally

President

Raven Strategies

 

Cleta Mitchell, Esq.

Founder

Election Integrity Network

 

C. Preston Noell III

President

Tradition, Family, Property, Inc

The Honorable George K Rasley Jr

Managing Editor

ConservativeHQ.com

 

Khadine L. Ritter, Esq.

Chairman

Eagle Forum of Ohio

 

Craig Shirley

Chairman and CEO

Shirley & McVicker Public Affairs

 

Terry Schilling

President

American Principles Project

 

Cameron Sholty

Executive Director

Heartland Impact

 

Dan Schneider 

Vice President for Free Speech

Media Research Center

 

Jon Schweppe

Policy Director

American Principles Project

 

Sharon Slater

President 

Family Watch International

 

Sean Spicer

Host

The Sean Spicer Show

 

James Taylor

President

The Heartland Institute

 

Tim Throckmorton 

President

Lifepointe Ministries

 

Kristen A. Ullman

President

Eagle Forum

 

Governor Scott Walker

President

Young America’s Foundation

 

Gavin Mario Wax

President

New York Young Republican Club

 

Deborah Weiss, Esq., 

President,

Vigilance, Inc

 

Tim Wildmon

President

American Family Association