National Public Radio has put its senior business editor, Uri Berliner, on a five-day unpaid suspension following his controversial essay criticizing the network’s alleged left-leaning bias.

Berliner’s piece, published in The Free Press, accused NPR of losing its audience’s trust by adopting a “progressive worldview” and failing to cover certain stories impartially. The essay sparked a wave of criticism from right-wing media and calls to defund NPR.

NPR’s Response to Berliner’s Claims

NPR responded to Berliner’s claims by stating that he had violated the network’s policy of seeking approval before publishing work in other outlets. The network warned Berliner that any further violation would result in his termination. NPR declined to comment on the disciplinary action, citing it as a personnel matter.

Berliner’s essay criticized NPR’s coverage of several stories, including allegations of Donald Trump’s collusion with Russia, the Covid-19 lab-leak theory, and the Hunter Biden story by the New York Post. He argued that NPR had lost its “viewpoint diversity” and was dictating listeners’ opinions.

NPR’s editor-in-chief, Edith Chapin, refuted Berliner’s claims, emphasizing the network’s commitment to inclusive and nuanced storytelling. Other NPR staff also publicly disagreed with Berliner’s assessment.

Backlash from Right-Wing Media

Berliner’s essay ignited a backlash from Republicans and right-wing media, who accused NPR of “liberal bias” and called for the withdrawal of its public funding. Despite the controversy, Berliner clarified that he does not support defunding NPR and rejected the label of NPR as a “liberal disinformation machine.”

Read more at CNN.