The proverbial handwriting was on the wall for Uri Berliner. He had broken the leftist journalism code of omerta and actually pointed out the biases – in writing – at NPR.

For shining the spotlight on that, NPR suspended Uri Berliner and gave him a “final warning” – thus proving the point about the bias running through the entire institution, as Nina covered yesterday.

But while NPR was busy punishing Berliner for daring to step out of line, the new CEO, Katherine Maher, was busy having her own biases laid bare for the world to see via her comments on Twitter/X. It was so overwhelming that even the New York Times had to cover it. And even then, it was all the right’s fault for noticing.

The NY Times managed to put in their lede one of the least controversial things she posted about Trump.

That's how you know THEY know how bad this looks.

— Stephen L. Miller (@redsteeze) April 16, 2024

Well, Katherine Maher has said a lot of things. And real investigators like Christopher Rufo were going to make her own her own words.

EXCLUSIVE: Katherine Maher says the "the number one challenge" in her fight against disinformation is "the First Amendment in the United States," which makes it "a little bit tricky" to censor "bad information" and "the influence peddlers" who spread it.

NPR's censor-in-chief. pic.twitter.com/0vY6hIpbmO

— Christopher F. Rufo ⚔️ (@realchrisrufo) April 17, 2024

NPR’s far-left CEO Katherine Maher: "Our reverence for the truth might be a distraction that’s getting in the way of finding common ground and getting things done." pic.twitter.com/yuFCKBjzjT

— Ben Kew (@ben_kew) April 17, 2024

That pesky First Amendment, it can really be a problem. And truth might be a “distraction” from getting those very sacred leftist goals acheived. Huh. I wonder why Uri Berliner said there was a bias problem at NPR. It’s a real mystery.

Well, as of this morning, it’s a problem that Berliner will no longer have to deal with. He resigned this morning from NPR, after calling out CEO Katherine Maher, and saying that his entire point in his Free Press piece had been made for him.

My resignation letter to NPR CEO @krmaher pic.twitter.com/0hafVbcZAK

— Uri Berliner (@uberliner) April 17, 2024

The tweet reads in full:

I am resigning from NPR, a great American institution where I have worked for 25 years. I don’t support calls to defund NPR. I respect the integrity of my colleagues and wish for NPR to thrive and do important journalism. But I cannot work in a newsroom where I am disparaged by a new CEO whose divisive views confirm the very problems at NPR I cite in my Free Press essay.

Even now, as he is resigning, Uri Berliner is trying to stand up for the principle of NPR. It’s a distinction without a difference to those still at National Public Radio. In their minds, probably, Uri Berliner should have sat out his suspension quietly, taking his “punishment” on the chin like a man. Then he was supposed to come back, grovel to Katherine Maher and his colleagues, apologizing for daring to speak up about the dirty laundry, and then get back in line and never step out again. Abberations from the narrative will not be tolerated, after all – he WAS given a “final warning.”

But now he’s quitting instead. This will deeply aggravate and confuse the leftist media. After all, he refused to kneel before Zod. They are angry that he isn’t shutting up and giving in – because that is what THEY do, and that’s what is expected of THEM. And they will be confused, because he just wouldn’t kneel and go along to get along. Why quit his job over something like PRINCIPLES?

Now, given that Katherine Maher is both snotty and thin-skinned, and believes that the truth is some pesky thing that can be bent to her narrative, she will either do one of two things. She could proclaim “good riddance” and go upon her merry way, happy to have one less impediment to her censorship machinery. Or, she will complain about the negative attention that Uri Berliner has brought upon them all. How DARE he point out the flaws at NPR? How DARE he have principles! It wouldn’t surprise me at all if she tried to slap him with some kind of non-disclosure agreement or non-compete clause in court, just to try and shut him up. It would be a singular mistake on her part – but so was suspending him for a week and letting it be known that it was a “final warning” for breaking NPR omerta.

And while Berliner isn’t calling for NPR to be defunded, Professor Jonathan Turley is asking what IS the point of funding them?

Regardless of the slant, there remains the question of why all Americans should have to pay taxes to support NPR. Maher and the company just made clear that they will not change their approach or their bias. Yet, they expect all Americans support them in this effort. However, they would be appalled if the government were to subsidize Fox Radio.

As I have previously written, that is the right of NPR to slant its coverage and certainly the right of listeners to use such sources for news. However, it does not have a right to public subsidy.

I expect that someone in Congress looking to make a media splash will be introducing a “defund NPR” bill very, very soon.

Featured image: NPR sign by Mr.TinDC on Openverse, cropped and modified, Attribution-NoDerivs 2.0 Generic (CC BY-ND 2.0 DEED)