Watch: NPR CEO Katherine Maher Says First Amendment Is ‘Number One Challenge’ For Censoring ‘Bad Information’

Original article here.

National Public Radio (NPR) CEO and president Katherine Maher has been in hot water for her response following senior editor Uri Berliner’s allegations of internal political bias at the network.

She has been dinged by critics for past leftist comments, and has just entered the spotlight again after a new video shows her saying “the number one challenge” in her fight against disinformation is “the First Amendment in the United States.”

The video, which was posted on X by Christopher F. Rufo, shows Maher saying the First Amendment makes it “a little bit tricky” to censor “bad information” and “the influence peddlers” who spread it.

Christina Pushaw responded to the footage, saying, “So, the CEO of a publicly funded media organization supports First Amendment protections for Big Tech corporations — but not for individual citizens. Wow.”

She then dubbed Maher “Nina 2.0” in a separate reply, referencing the White House’s short-lived former “Disinformation Czar” Nina Jankowicz.

Others chimed in on X following the circulated video to blast Maher. “New CEO of taxpayer funded NPR finds the First Amendment to be a nuisance because then it’s harder for her censor information,” Libs Of TikTok wrote.

Rufo later weighed in again on the NPR CEO’s comments, writing, “NPR has hired a left-wing activist who openly endorses censoring, deplatforming, and punching political opponents.”

“She considers the First Amendment the ‘number one challenge’ to controlling ‘bad information,’” he added. “The American people should not be paying for this. She must resign.”

Resist The Mainstream reported earlier this week about some of Maher’s old posts resurfacing in light of the NPR controversy.

Elon Musk ripped Maher as a “crazy racist” following a post Rufo highlighted where Maher identified as “someone with cis white mobility privilege.”

Berliner’s scathing op-ed, published in The Free Press, accused NPR, a stalwart in the realm of American media, of veering off course, asserting that the organization had eroded “America’s trust” through its perceived bias.

Maher, relatively new to her position at NPR, wasted no time in responding to Berliner’s accusations. The Daily Wire reported she denounced Berliner’s assessment as “deeply simplistic” and decried it as “profoundly disrespectful, hurtful, and demeaning.”

The conflict between Maher and Berliner underscored deeper tensions within NPR, with Maher defending the organization’s commitment to its mission of providing unbiased information to the public. She emphasized NPR’s dedication to journalistic integrity and the importance of upholding its mission in the face of scrutiny.

“Asking a question about whether we’re living up to our mission should always be fair game: after all, journalism is nothing if not hard questions. 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.” Maher asserted.