Senior editor Uri Berliner has resigned from NPR after his critical op-ed renewed public scrutiny of the outlet’s alleged liberal bias.
“I am resigning from NPR, a great American institution where I have worked for 25 years,” he wrote in a statement posted on X. “I respect the integrity of my colleagues and wish for NPR to thrive and do important journalism.”
“But I cannot work in a newsroom where I am disparaged by a new CEO whose divisive views confirm the very problems at NPR I cite in my Free Press essay,” he added. My resignation letter to NPR CEO @krmaher pic.twitter.com/0hafVbcZAK
— Uri Berliner (@uberliner) April 17, 2024
Berliner’s resignation follows an announcement earlier this week that he was suspended for five days without pay.
The suspension was announced in a Tuesday op-ed by fellow veteran NPR media correspondent David Folkenflik.
"It angered many of his colleagues, led NPR leaders to announce monthly internal reviews of the network's coverage, and gave fresh ammunition to conservative and partisan Republican critics of NPR, including former President Donald Trump," Folkenflik wrote, noting NPR's new CEO, Katherine Maher, had been faced with an onslaught of heavy criticism for her overtly progressive liberal opinions discovered through old social media posts in the wake of Berliner's op-ed.
Among Maher's posts which have come under scrutiny include a 2020 post on X, then-Twitter, in which Maher referred to Trump as a "racist sociopath."
"In an interview with me later on Monday, Berliner said the social media posts demonstrated Maher was all but incapable of being the person best poised to direct the organization," Folkenflik continued.
"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," Berliner reportedly told Folkenflik. "And this seems to be the opposite of that."
Berliner said he had previously attempted to raise his concerns about the network's direction prior to publishing his op-ed with The Free Press.
"I love NPR and feel it's a national trust," Berliner said. "We have great journalists here. If they shed their opinions and did the great journalism they're capable of, this would be a much more interesting and fulfilling organization for our listeners."
NPR reportedly cited Berliner's failure to receive approval for publishing outside the network when issuing their official suspension. The outlet warned Berliner would be fired from NPR if he violated the policy again. Berliner, a member of NPR's newsroom union, said he will not appeal the punishment.
Christopher Bertman contributed to this report
