David Margolick has an interesting piece about NPR in the new issue of Vanity Fair. He spends much of his time on Juan Williams, but this observation about NPR‘s right-wing critics is an important observation:
Apart from the occasional stories about gays or Palestinians (and maybe even gay Palestinians), there’s precious little on NPR these days for conservatives really to hate. For them, despising NPR and cutting off what amounts to the few pennies it collects from the federal budget has increasingly become more a matter of pandering, or habit, or sophomoric sport, than of conviction or serious policy. The editor of the Weekly Standard, Bill Kristol, once confessed to former NPR ombudsman Jeffrey Dvorkin that he really didn’t believe NPR was liberal; he just said so “to keep you guys on the defensive.” And that still seems true.
As Janine Jackson pointed out here (10/7/11), when you hear about new NPR boss Gary Knell talking about his desire to “depoliticize” the debate, what he means is try to do more to placate people like Kristol. Since that’s not going to happen, the only real consequence is to push NPR to the right.
The Right wants NPR defunded because The Right despises any communication or broadcast that is not part of a market. In a market, money controls the message. Everything becomes transactional. News for news sake, for truth’s sake, is unthinkable to them. The medium is the message, but the medium, the Right insists, must first be controlled by the medium of money. Tethered to the entity financing it, the medium will flinch before the financer.
this was a muddled article; I don’t understand this kind of journalism.
NPR almost always takes the corporate side over the individual’s side. Their promotion of mainstream books and music is perhaps the largest on the net and gets lots of attention from the main media and art companies as well as a sort of kick back called revenue sharing.
Try to introduce indie music and books and see if they get reviewed ever! LOL
Way to go, FAIR, we need to keep pushing bac since “public” media obviously are not going to do it for us…
I have listened to NPR for over 25 years and have bristled at its slow but methodical march to the right. Like many others who cherished its intellect and progressive expressions, I have slowly and methodically reduced my contributions to it, which is surely part of why it has had to sell its soul to corporate sponsors and has moved back to an increasingly music filled, politically neutered, format more appealing to the oatmeal and dentures crowd. It is now worse off than organized religion having not only failing to change with the culture, but instead actually changing in the wrong direction. Its ‘conservative’ management, fearful of further defunding by a conservative Congress have doomed it to irrelevance, speaking in the refined tones of educated liberalism, but as equally without real substance.
About ten years ago I discontinued my membership in the local NPR station saying that when they broadcast a show called “Work Place” to balance “Market Place,” I might consider becoming a supporting member again.
Did anybody read in Newsweek recently that tuning in Al Jazeerah News was 4th on their list for being well informed? Was NPR even on their list? I’d like to know.
“…NPR boss Gary Knell talking about his desire to “depoliticize” the debate, what he means is try to do more to placate people like Kristol.”
So true. I’ve been complaining to NPR for about a decade about their rightward leanings. They obviously do not care what I have to say about it. Maybe more of us have to communicate directly to them and also make more noise through the rest of the media, as conservatives have always done. Long before that creep Brietbart entered the picture, NPR was bending over to placate conservatives and try not to be considered part of the so-called mythical “liberal media.”
This current presidential election season has been a good example of NPR’s commitment to pleasing Republicans. It’s like Democrats and progressive ideas don’t even exist. Even Republicans couldn’t afford to buy the morning-to-night non-stop airtime NPR has been donating to Republicans in the last few months, and that’s going to continue for the next several months. And then after Republicans choose a nominee, NPR will probably buy into every specious swift-boat stunt that Republicans come up with throughout the campaign and treat it with false equivalency or worse, just as they did with the attacks on John Kerry and Al Gore.
the right have been “working the refs” at npr for a decade….and it’s worked….their gop coverage is simply fauxnews minus the race-baiting.
All this is really beside the point.In the end you will see the pond of money drying up for this and for that.The cracked earth will show the well has run dry,and only the strong will survive.Only those who can pay for their keep will be left standing.You are right to point out that there are real inherent problems in a free society with this situation.But there is no alternative short of printing money.I see in the lefts mentality a hatred of that thing in capitalism that affords the room for all government spending.From its social programs and charity to all else.MAKING THE MONEY in the first place.If we don’t recreate wealth in this country you will see your love of all things libs drying up just like the well.
Wow michael e. I guess your “well” has run dry from all that fracking! “Only the strong will surviuve?”
Read Darwin, ..only those that can ADAPT will survive. I had no idea that the’left” hates capitalism. Facts please, or we’ll turn you over to FAIR
I have read more than once about Left of center an Progressives who when they are allowed to have a say, not a show but about 5 minutes have these very involved guidelines on what they can say an how they can say it. And it is very political in its bend to the hard right.
Watch out for the well, gloriana! We’ll throw you libs right down that frackin’ well, alright? So, print some money or else you’re going to be living on nuts and berries . . . .
Gloriana
Sorry only the strong companies that don’t depend on government will survive.And yes that will take adaptation from a mindset.Im surprised you are even stating that capitalism is the favored son of the left.It is not.I think a true statement is that capitalism is necessary to pay for the socialism the left does advocate.If you don’t believe me lets open the discussion to other bloggers…..Go on Tim(and the rest), tell Gloriana all the wonderful things about capitalism.
Fracking ..?Oh yes another source of energy you wish to curtail.So what is new