NPR really would be better off without federal funding.

As someone who was once fired from National Public Radio, you can imagine that many people are asking if I can escape the media fire that is currently enveloping the organization.

Well, I got through that personal hell. All of the executives who fired me and publicly called me a psycho and a bigot have either resigned or been removed from office. But it’s hard to shake off the rain of scorn from NPR executives who decided I was too black and conservative to work for them.

Now, NPR’s arrogance is sparking a new national controversy. Veteran editor Uli Berliner has publicly stated that “the open-minded spirit no longer exists at NPR.”

In response, Rep. Bob Good (R-Va.), chairman of the far-right House Freedom Caucus, announced that Rep. Jim Banks (R-Ind.) and Claudia Tenney (R-New York) ) and came to submit the bill. End federal funding for NPR.

So Republicans hope to use Berliner’s insider criticism of NPR to realize their conservative dream of neutralizing NPR. Because right-wingers have felt for decades that NPR doesn’t support their views.

“National Public Radio has a track record of using taxpayer dollars to promote anti-American rhetoric,” Goode complained in a news release.

On the other side of the political divide, several years ago the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee sent out a fundraising letter asking for campaign funds to help Democrats ensure NPR’s government funding remains against the threat of cuts proposed by Republicans. It was sent.

DCCC’s fundraising letters made it clear that people on the political left view NPR as a playground.

Good can express his opinion on whether a news article is “anti-American.” But his opinions should not be linked to threats to defund NPR.

Unfortunately, NPR accepts very little federal funding. This reality opens the door for journalists to be called on the carpet by politicians on either side.

Years ago, this made Ron Schiller, NPR’s top fundraiser, admit it on tape. “In the long run…”[NPR is] We would be better off without federal funding. ” Agree.

Retaliation from the left and right has turned me, as a journalist, into a man walking along a yellow line in the middle of the road with cars coming at me from both sides. Neither side wants to hear straight news delivered as honestly as possible.

Both the DCCC letter and far-right attacks tarnish the reputations of hard-working reporters, editors, and reporters who strive to provide quality journalism.

Journalists should not work for fear of offending political parties or government officials.

This is a stark fact in this era where news distribution via the Internet and social media has become mainstream. Advertisers are running away from serious news coverage.

Websites that aggregate stories and use them to provoke outrage and generate clicks are draining advertising dollars away from news organizations that provide authentic reporting. As a result, local newspaper companies across the country disappeared.

Major broadcast stations, radio and television operations are losing news staff jobs, sacrificing the resources needed to send reporters to cover school boards and Congress.

People looking for news will instead receive posts from Tik Tok, X and Facebook.

There are also many one-sided entertainment programs that pretend to be news programs. This is especially true for today’s most popular talk radio, websites, podcasts, and prime time cable news.

Donald Trump won the presidency in 2016 by harnessing populist anger and turning disagreement into a canyon of political polarization. He encouraged Republicans to demonize Democrats.

President Trump’s fans scored points in the echo chamber by denigrating the “mainstream media” while praising one-sided conservative-leaning shows that reveled in tribal and racial divisions.

Today, Goode complains about NPR’s bias, but says nothing about the conservative talk show that sneakily defends Trump’s lie that the 2020 election was “stolen.”

In a right-wing echo chamber, historic public protests against police brutality after the killing of a black man in Minnesota have devolved into often-threatening riots, with some incidents marked by extraordinary destruction of private property. It was blown up as evidence.

Meanwhile, in the halls of left-wing media, years after NPR fired me, similar arrogance caused a PBS host to cancel an invitation he sent me to speak on his show about race relations. I let it happen.

He said I was the wrong kind of black American, not only because of my immigrant background but because I questioned left-wing political orthodoxy.

This confusion is not journalism. It is a distortion for political purposes.

Whether on the right or the left, the public has become accustomed to listening to bogus news programs whose real intent is to affirm the pre-existing opinions of their listeners, readers, and viewers.

I worked at NPR for over 10 years as an afternoon talk show host and then as a senior news analyst. The NPR audience I got to know included Alaskan liberals, middle-class Iowa housewives, and conservative jazz musicians.

They are great viewers and smart people looking for news. That’s where some NPR shows fall short. They don’t believe that viewers want to hear all opinions.

That’s the real story and the real tragedy.

Juan Williams is a writer and political analyst for Fox News Channel.