Elon Musk–who was just revealed as Trump’s choice to spearhead a massive government restructuring project–has a bone to pick with National Public Radio (NPR).
In a renewed controversy, CEO Katherine Maher faces intense scrutiny after a 2021 video resurfaced showing her questioning the role of truth in the media.
This clip, covered extensively by Resist the Mainstream, prompted tech billionaire Musk to call for the organization’s defunding.
The video, which was unearthed on Tuesday, shows Maher speaking at a TED Talk in August 2021 while serving as CEO of Wikimedia.
In the brief clip, Maher states, “I think our reverence for the truth might have become a bit of a distraction that is preventing us from finding consensus and getting important things done.”
Fox Business reported that Maher, who assumed leadership of NPR in March 2024, delivered these remarks nearly three years before taking her current position.
The controversy has reignited debates about the taxpayer-funded broadcaster’s role and alleged political bias.
“Should your tax dollars really be paying for an organization run by people who think the truth is a ‘distraction’?” Musk quipped, to which one user responded, “Not 1 penny.”
This isn’t Musk’s first criticism of Maher’s statements.
The tech entrepreneur previously advocated for NPR’s defunding in April after the clip initially circulated, the Gateway Pundit reported.
NPR found itself in hot water after Senior Editor Uri Berliner highlighted a striking partisan disparity within the network.
Berliner revealed that 87 registered Democrats held editorial positions at the outlet’s Washington, DC, headquarters. There were zero Republicans in similar roles, Resist the Mainstream outlined.
Following the bombshell news from Berliner, X users found and resurfaced various controversial posts from Maher; some of which were so left-wing that Musk dubbed the NPR CEO a “crazy racist.”
Some posts, for example, showed Maher herself being a Trump hater that had been outspoken about her personal support for Biden and BLM in the past.
The controversy surrounding NPR and its CEO heightened so much that back in May, the House Energy and Commerce Committee issued an invitation to Maher, summoning her to address allegations of biased news coverage by the outlet.
ABC News reported that the committee conducted a hearing to scrutinize NPR’s trajectory under Maher’s leadership, following her assumption of the role in March.
“As a taxpayer funded, public radio organization, NPR should focus on fair and objective news reporting that both considers and reflects the views of the larger U.S. population and not just a niche audience,” the committee wrote, per Fox News.
Musk’s latest call for action represents an escalation in the ongoing debate about public broadcasting funding.
NPR, which receives partial funding through federal appropriations, has long been a subject of controversy regarding its editorial stance.
Critics argue that the organization’s taxpayer funding model deserves reassessment, particularly in light of concerns about potential bias in its coverage.
The timing of this controversy coincides with broader national discussions about government spending and the role of publicly funded media organizations in America’s increasingly polarized media landscape.
