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WATCH LIVE: NPR, PBS heads answer lawmakers’ allegations of bias

By: WDET News
26 March 2025 at 13:51

The CEOs of NPR and PBS are appearing Wednesday before a House subcommittee on government efficiency, chaired by Republican Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, where they will answer questions about perceived political bias at the public broadcasters. 

Watch the livestream  below, beginning at 10 a.m. ET.

The hearing, entitled “Anti-American Airwaves: Holding the Heads of NPR and PBS Accountable,” was called by Greene in February to examine accusations by conservatives that news and cultural programming at the radio and television networks have a profound liberal bias. She has expressed skepticism that any federal funds should go to public broadcasting.

PBS President and CEO Paula Kerger, who worked at New York City’s WNET public television before taking over the reins at the network nearly two decades ago, will appear beside NPR CEO Katherine Maher, who came to the public broadcaster last year from Web Summit. She is also a former CEO and executive director at the Wikimedia Foundation.

Wednesday’s hearing is part of a larger Republican-led effort to defund the Corporation for Public Broadcasting (CPB), established by Congress in 1967 as a private, nonprofit corporation to distribute federal money to NPR, PBS and other public broadcasting entities. Sen. John Kennedy, R-La., and Rep. Scott Perry, R-Penn., introduced legislation to bar all funding for the CPB. Meanwhile, Brendan Carr, President Trump’s newly appointed chairman of the Federal Communications Commission, has also initiated inquiries of NPR and PBS stations, arguing that their corporate underwriting spots violate federal laws and policies because they too closely resemble commercial advertisements.

NPR receives about 3% of its funding from the government, either directly via CPB or through its member stations, who pay fees to carry its programming. PBS receives 16% of its funds from the CPB.

NPR reaches 43 million listeners each week with its flagship news programs, Morning Edition and All Things Considered. Its programming is distributed by 230 member stations around the country, which together hold the licenses to 1,300 local public broadcasters. The programming at PBS ranges from the acclaimed News Hour to children’s programming such as Daniel Tiger.

Disclosure: This story was reported and written by NPR Correspondents Scott Neuman and David Folkenflik. It was edited by Deputy Business Editor Emily Kopp and Managing Editors Gerry Holmes and Vickie Walton-James. Under NPR’s protocol for reporting on itself, no NPR corporate official or news executive reviewed this story before it was posted publicly.

Trusted, accurate, up-to-date.

WDET strives to make our journalism accessible to everyone. As a public media institution, we maintain our journalistic integrity through independent support from readers like you. If you value WDET as your source of news, music and conversation, please make a gift today.

Donate today »

The post WATCH LIVE: NPR, PBS heads answer lawmakers’ allegations of bias appeared first on WDET 101.9 FM.

WATCH LIVE: Detroit Mayor Mike Duggan’s last State of the City address

By: WDET News
25 March 2025 at 22:29

Detroit Mayor Mike Duggan will give his final State of the City address on Tuesday from inside the new development at Hudson’s Detroit.

Duggan will not be seeking reelection as mayor of Detroit in 2025. Instead, the longtime Democrat is making a bid for Michigan’s next governor in 2026, running as an independent.

The State of the City address will begin at 7 p.m. Watch the livestream below or tune in to 101.9 FM WDET.

Trusted, accurate, up-to-date.

WDET strives to make our journalism accessible to everyone. As a public media institution, we maintain our journalistic integrity through independent support from readers like you. If you value WDET as your source of news, music and conversation, please make a gift today.

Donate today »

The post WATCH LIVE: Detroit Mayor Mike Duggan’s last State of the City address appeared first on WDET 101.9 FM.

Cross-border conversation: What would Canada as the 51st state mean to you?

By: WDET News
20 February 2025 at 17:41

With tensions rising between the U.S. and Canada, WDET is bringing back our cross-border collaboration with Jeremy Hobson of NPR’s The Middle and CBC’s Ian Hanomansing.

WDET will preempt its regular programming from 4-6 p.m. this Sunday, Feb. 23, to present an open conversation with listeners from both nations.

Recording live from Vancouver, Hobson and Hanomansing  — co-host of CBC’s The National and host of Cross Country Checkup — will dive into key issues like tariffs, trade, and the Trump administration’s far-fetched proposal to make Canada the 51st state.

The question being posed to listeners will be:

What’s next for the U.S.-Canada relationship?

Want to join the discussion? Tune in live by visiting 101.9 FM on your radio dial, or stream the show via wdet.org or the WDET mobile app. You can also share your feedback using the Google Form below.

Trusted, accurate, up-to-date.

WDET strives to make our journalism accessible to everyone. As a public media institution, we maintain our journalistic integrity through independent support from readers like you. If you value WDET as your source of news, music and conversation, please make a gift today.

Donate today »

The post Cross-border conversation: What would Canada as the 51st state mean to you? appeared first on WDET 101.9 FM.

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