Trump axes funding to PBS, NPR in new executive order

The order instructs the Corporation for Public Broadcasting (CPB), which allocates federal funds to NPR and PBS, to halt both direct and indirect financial support. According to the order, this policy shift stems from the belief that public broadcasting no longer serves its intended purpose in a media landscape that has become diverse and saturated with alternative news sources.

According to a White House statement accompanying the order, “Unlike in 1967, when CPB was established, today the media landscape is filled with abundant, diverse, and innovative news options, making government funding of news media outdated, unnecessary, and corrosive to journalistic independence.” The administration argues that NPR and PBS have drifted far from the nonpartisan mission outlined in the CPB’s founding statute and are now biased outlets that prop up a leftist agenda.

That statute explicitly prohibits political bias, stating that CPB must remain “nonpolitical [in] nature” and may not “contribute to or otherwise support any political party.” The executive order contends that both NPR and PBS routinely violate this mandate by promoting left-leaning viewpoints and undercutting conservative perspectives.

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The order argues that “government funding of news media in this environment is not only outdated and unnecessary but corrosive to the appearance of journalistic independence.” It also emphasizes that no media organization has a constitutional right to taxpayer subsidies and that the federal government has the discretion to decide how public money is spent.

Under the order, the CPB Board is directed to cancel existing and future funding to NPR and PBS wherever legally possible. Additionally, all executive agencies must identify and terminate any direct or indirect support of these entities.

Trump’s order also tasked the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) with reviewing whether NPR and PBS are complying with federal anti-discrimination laws, taking corrective action where necessary.

Funding rules for 2024 and 2025 grants must be amended to prevent any direct or indirect financial flow to NPR and PBS through local stations or partner organizations.

The order cites the CPB’s governing statute, which prohibits support for any political party, arguing that NPR and PBS violate the spirit—if not the letter—of this law through partisan bias.

The CPB and affected agencies must act on the directive by June 30, 2025.

The White House provided numerous examples to support its claim that NPR serves as in-kind contributors to Democratic Party causes, including: An NPR editor reportedly found that registered Democrats out number Republicans 87 to zero among newsroom editorial staff and NPR’s President and CEO dismissing “truth” as a “distraction” from the outlet’s goals.

NPR also discouraged staff from using the term “biological sex” in reporting on transgender issues, as well as publishing stories defending looting, minimizing crime concerns. The White House also accused NPR of embedding diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) practices into editorial content.

The outlet also refused to cover the Hunter Biden laptop story in the lead-up to the 2020 election, calling it a “distraction,” and despite findings from the FBI, CIA, and Department of Energy pointing to a lab-leak origin of COVID-19, NPR long dismissed the notion and declined to explore it.

The administration similarly scolded PBS for slanted coverage of the 2024 Republican National Convention, which was reportedly 72 percent negative, compared to 88 percent positive coverage of the Democratic National Convention. Addditionally, research cited by the White House indicated that congressional Republicans received 85% negative coverage on PBS’s flagship NewsHour program, while Democrats received 54% positive coverage. The statement also noted that over a six-month period, PBS NewsHour reportedly used the term “far-right” 162 times but “far-left” only 6 times.

Additional examples cited by the White House include: a story run by NPR titled "Cannibalism: It's 'Perfectly Natural," wherein the author discusses having consumed the placenta of another person. The chef's preparation was also discussed. In 2021, NPR compalined that th Declaration of Independence was rife with "hypocrisies." They also pushed an editorial policy of not calling illegal immigrants "illegal," saying that this was dehumanizing. The outlet also assigned three reportes to investigate the racism inherent in the thumbs-up emoji.

In March, Trump said that he would "love" to defund NPR and PBS. He said at the time, “I think it’s very unfair. It’s been very biased. The whole group, I mean, a whole group of them, and frankly, there’s plenty of — look at all the media you have right now. There’s plenty of coverage.”

He added, "I was from a different age, and they spent more money than any other network of its type ever conceived, so the kind of money that’s being wasted, and it’s a very biased view. You know that better than anybody and I’d be honored to see it end. We’re well covered. Look at all the people that we have here today. We’re well covered, and we don’t need it, and it’s a waste of money, especially. I don’t even know what DOGE’s recommendation is. I assume their recommendation is to close them up.”

Trump’s comments came before NPR's CEO Katherine Maher's disastrous testimony before Congress, during which she was confronted with tweets that exposed her far-left bias.