Blind trust in institutions almost always spells disaster. Growing up, I remember feeling like it wasn’t patriotic enough to question certain groups.
Do not question military officials; they would never lie to the American people. Trust what the evening news and morning newspapers tell you; it is a reporter’s responsibility to report the facts and expose wrongdoing.
While there have always been people smart enough to know that questioning institutions and verifying information is a citizen’s right and, in many ways, a responsibility, this trend has only begun to take off in recent years. Fortunately, there are some veteran journalists willing to tell the truth.
Take NPR veteran Uri Berliner, who goes to great lengths to expose the true face of American newsrooms.
Down with Trump!
While I’m not a typical NPR listener, I’ve listened to a fair amount of NPR most of my adult life. I like some of their alternative stories and culture.
Yet, like many other moderates, I stopped listening because, as NPR senior correspondent Uri Berliner wrote this week, I’m tired of being told what to think.Uri Berliner wrote an article for Freiheit Zeitung titled I’ve been at NPR for 25 years.This is how we lost America’s trust.
In his article, he explains how NPR, while always leaning left, still had a diverse audience at one point. But, like many news organizations, the arrival of President Donald Trump was the beginning of the end for this diversity.
Mr Berliner wrote:
“… What began as hard-hitting, no-nonsense coverage of a belligerent, truth-informed president turned to efforts to undermine or overthrow the Trump presidency.”
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It was clear from his tone that Mr. Berliner was not a Trump supporter. Yet even he was troubled by the coverage of his organization.
His rightful disdain for the way NPR handles anything to do with Donald Trump is a perfect example of how a good journalist should operate. While it is natural for journalists to have a political opinion, it is unethical for a reporter to use that opinion to guide coverage.
It’s about politics, not facts
Mr. Berliner gave an example of how NPR went from a newsroom to a mouthpiece for the Democratic Party. In NPR’s report on the “Russia Gate” incident, he wrote:
“It’s one thing to waver on an important story and miss out. … It’s even worse to pretend it never happened and move on, without any fault or self-reflection. … That’s what undermines trust and sparks distrust of the media.” The reason for the cynicism.
It’s worth noting that NPR isn’t the only newsroom that hasn’t issued any apology for the Russia hoax.
Mr. Berliner went on to illustrate the story of Hunter Biden’s laptop.
He wrote:
“In a meeting with colleagues, I heard one of NPR’s best and most unbiased reporters say it was a good thing we weren’t focusing on the laptop story because it would help Trump.”
To NPR or similar outlets, it doesn’t matter whether the story is newsworthy; what matters is its importance. What matters is how this will affect Donald Trump and, perhaps most notably, Joe Biden. Mr. Berliner underscored this point with an observation on NPR’s coronavirus coverage:
“Politics has once again erased the curiosity and independence that should drive our work.”
That’s the truth. Mainstream news is not about facts or truth telling, it is about politics and thought control.
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it is present in everything
Not surprisingly, NPR has become the mouthpiece of the progressive left. According to Berliner, at NPR’s DC headquarters, there are 87 registered Democrats holding editorial positions and zero registered Republicans.
When Mr. Berliner tried to raise what he called a “lack of viewpoint diversity,” a senior NPR news executive told him:
“…When she came to NPR, she was ‘skewered’ for proposing diverse ideas.”
Like many other scientific, higher education, medical, and government institutions, the press jumped on the diversity, equity, and inclusion train after the death of George Floyd. As Mr. Berliner explained, the NPR union:
“…ensure advocacy groups have a seat at the table in determining the terms and vocabulary of our news coverage.”
What does Mr. Berliner mean by this? He provides the following examples:
“In a document circulated by news management called NPR’s Guidelines for Transgender Coverage, we were asked to avoid using the word biological sex”.
It’s a scientific term that, if removed from the trans conversation, eliminates any dissent. Finally, Mr. Berliner pointed out an obvious fact from today’s NPR:
“Our news audience doesn’t reflect America. It’s overwhelmingly white and progressive, clustered around coastal cities and college towns.
These exclusive audiences are a direct reflection of the devotion of NPR and other mainstream newsrooms to the cult of DEI. Segmenting audiences by basic characteristics and viewing reporting through a left-wing political lens will always ironically cater to white elites.
Let’s see how long it takes for NPR to let Yuri go. After all, we don’t want any diversity of thought in journalism.
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