NPR whistleblower resigns a day after being suspended by 'divisive' new CEO for ... trends now
NPR whistleblower editor Uri Berliner, who claimed the publicly-funded broadcaster became an activist organization obsessed with pushing progressive ideals, officially resigned after he was suspended by the outlets 'divisive' new CEO.
Berliner sparked a storm last week as he penned an open essay for The Free Press, where he slammed the outlet for being made up almost entirely of Democrats which he argued 'lost America's trust.'
In response to the 25-year NPR veteran's article, the network suspended him for five days for violating its policy of working or reporting for another outlet without permission, starting Friday.
Berliner announced he submitted his resignation letter to NPR's new chief executive Katherine Maher on Wednesday.
'I cannot work in a newsroom where I am disparaged by a new CEO whose divisive views confirm the very problems I cite in my Free Press essay,' Berliner said.
NPR whistleblower editor Uri Berliner (pictured) who exposed the network's liberal bias officially resigned after he was suspended by the outlets 'divisive' new CEO
Berliner said he cannot work for the 'divisive' new CEO, Katherine Maher (pictured), in his resignation
'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.'
Maher insisted in a statement that the company remains committed to 'serving all of the American public.'
'Questioning whether our people are serving our mission with integrity, based on little more than the recognition of their identity, is profoundly disrespectful, hurtful, and demeaning,' she said.
Berliner said in an interview that the emergence of Maher's old tweets undercuts her message.
The tweets in question included a veiled shot at Trump branding him a 'deranged racist sociopath', and sharing her support for President Biden by sharing selfies wearing his campaign hats.
Berliner confirmed his suspension as he sat down for a follow-up interview with NPR, and the network said he would be fired if he overstepped again.
But the business editor argued Maher's tweets make her unable to steer the taxpayer-funded company in a moderate and fair way.
'We're looking for a leader right now who's going to be unifying and bring more people into the tent and have a broader perspective on, sort of, what America is all about,' he said.
'And this seems to be the opposite of that.'
The tweets also included Maher saying: 'I do wish Hillary wouldn't use the language of "boy and girl" - it's erasing language for non-binary people.'
