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NPR
| National Public Radio | |
 | |
| Basic facts | |
| Location: | Washington, D.C. |
| Type: | 501(c)(3) |
| Top official: | Katherine Maher, President and CEO |
| Year founded: | 1970 |
| Employees: | 800 |
| Website: | Official website |
National Public Radio (NPR) is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit news organization and radio producer broadcasting over 1,000 member station signals.[1]
Background
As of August 2025, the NPR website said the organization's goal is to "collaborate with Member Stations to cultivate an informed public, fostering a deeper understanding and appreciation of events, ideas, and cultures."[2]
NPR began in 1970 with 88 original member stations "representing non-commercial, educational and community radio stations across the country," according to its website.[3] All Things Considered began in 1971 as the first national program, with its morning news show, Morning Edition debuting in 1979.[3]
Leadership
As of August 2025, Katherine Maher was president and CEO of NPR.[4] John McGinn was the chair of the NPR Foundation.[4]
The following individuals were members of the NPR board of directors as of August 2025:[4]
- Milena Alberti-Perez
- Matthew Barzun
- Scott Donaton
- Stephen George
- LeRoy Kim
- Joanna Lambert
- Catherine Levene
- Judith Segura
- Howard Wollner
Work
As of August 2025, NPR has over 1,000 member stations.[2] Nearly 250 NPR stations have news operations employing thousands of journalists, in addition to those employed directly by NPR.[2] NPR also has a mobile app with podcasts and digital news stories.[5]
NPR's website said it takes "seriously our democratic role as watchdogs, holding the powerful accountable as we hold ourselves to the core principles of honesty, integrity, independence, accuracy, contextual truth, transparency, respect and fairness for the people we serve and the people we cover."[6] In Sound Reporting, Jonathan Kern said NPR's approach to journalism strove for fairness: "Your goal should be to find the truth—and being fair and unbiased is the way to get there. Reporting means finding out all you can about a given topic, and delivering that information in a way that helps listeners make up their own minds about the issue at hand."[7]
As of August 2025, NPR distributed the following shows and podcasts:[8]
- NPR News Now
- Up First
- Consider This from NPR
- The NPR Politics Podcast
- Trump's Terms
- State of the World from NPR
- Here & Now
- 1A
- Morning Edition
- All Things Considered
- Weekend Edition Saturday
- Weekend Edition Sunday
- Throughline
- Embedded
- Radio Ambulante
- NPR Explains
- Invisibilia
- Rough Translation
- The Last Cup
- White Lies
- Taking Cover
- No Compromise
- How to Do Everything
- Wild Card with Rachel Martin
- Wait Wait...Don't Tell Me!
- Fresh Air
- Pop Culture Happy Hour
- Code Switch
- The Best of Car Talk
- NPR's Book of the Day
- It's Been a Minute
- Bullseye with Jesse Thorn
- StoryCorps
- Tiny Desk
- Alt.Latino
- All Songs Considered
- From the Top
- Jazz Night in America
- Mountain Stage
- World Cafe Words and Music from WXPN
- Louder Than a Riot
- Planet Money
- The Indicator from Planet Money
- Short Wave
- TED Radio Hour
- Life Kit
- Body Electric
Fact-checking
NPR also includes fact-checking in its political coverage. It posts fact checks irregularly (meaning not weekly or monthly) to its website and covers statements made by political candidates, elected officials and public figures.[9]
Notable endorsements
This section displays endorsements this organization made in elections within Ballotpedia's coverage scope. Know of one we missed? Click here to let us know.
Finances
The most significant source of NPR's revenue comes from dues paid by member stations. Federal funds finance the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, which public radio stations receive a portion of through grants. Other financing for stations includes listener donations and corporate sponsorship.[10]
The following is a breakdown of NPR's revenues and expenses for the 2020 to 2024 fiscal years according to its annual reports.
Noteworthy events
Executive order and Rescissions Act of 2025 (2025)
On May 1, 2025, President Donald Trump issued an executive order entitled Ending Taxpayer Subsidization of Biased Media. The executive order mandated the Corporation for Public Broadcasting "cease Federal funding for NPR and PBS." Later that month, NPR and PBS challenged the order in court, arguing it was unlawful.[14][15]
In July, Congress approved the Rescissions Act of 2025 removing $1.1 billion in funding for the Corporation for Public Broadcasting in fiscal years 2026 and 2027.[16] U.S. House Speaker Mike Johnson (R) said "there is no reason for any media organization to be singled out to receive federal funds. We're in a different era now."[17] Katherine Maher, president and CEO of NPR, said after the vote that "if a station doesn't survive this sudden turn by Congress, a vital stitch in our American fabric will be gone for good."[18]
Recent news
The link below is to the most recent stories in a Google news search for the terms NPR. These results are automatically generated from Google. Ballotpedia does not curate or endorse these articles.
See also
External links
Footnotes
- ↑ Corporation for Public Broadcasting , "FAQ," accessed August 20, 2025
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 NPR , "About," accessed August 20, 2025
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 NPR , "A Timeline Of NPR's First 50 Years," April 28, 2021
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 NPR, "NPR Board of Directors," accessed August 20, 2025
- ↑ NPR , "App," accessed August 20, 2025
- ↑ NPR , "Ethics," accessed August 20, 2025
- ↑ Kern, J. (2008). Sound reporting: The NPR guide to audio journalism and production. Chicago: University of Chicago Press. (page 10)
- ↑ NPR, "Programs," accessed September 8, 2015
- ↑ NPR, "Fact-check," accessed September 18, 2015
- ↑ NPR, "Public Radio Finances," accessed August 21, 2025
- ↑ 11.0 11.1 NPR , "Audited Consolidated Financial Statements 2024," accessed August 21, 2025
- ↑ 12.0 12.1 NPR , "Annual Consolidated Financial Statements 2022," accessed August 21, 2025
- ↑ NPR , "Consolidated Financial Statements 2021," accessed August 21, 2025
- ↑ NBC News , "NPR sues Trump over executive order cutting federal funding," May 27, 2025
- ↑ CNBC , "PBS sues Trump over executive order to cut funding," May 30, 2025
- ↑ USA Facts , "What's in the Rescissions Act of 2025," accessed August 21, 2025
- ↑ NPR , "Partisan battle lines form over Trump's plan to defund NPR & PBS," June 4, 2025
- ↑ NPR , "Unprecedented Rescission Bill Defunds Public Media," July 18, 2025
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