Opinion NPR Senior Editor Blasts Lack of ‘Viewpoint Diversity’ After Leftward Lurch: ‘Open-Minded Spirit No Longer Exists’

[Islam Imamate]

Well, the only person in this discussion. And, not coincidentally, the only person with actual experience here.

Most newspapers don't have "donors" to begin with. They have owners (unless they're owned by public companies, which many are). But serious organizations with a primarily journalistic mission aren't getting ideological cues from owners, and journalists wouldn't generally go for that.

When Project Veritas did their "sting" on NPR to make it look like they were taking donations in exchange for influence on in their reporting the full unedited footage showed that in fact the NPR executive was saying the opposite and trying to make it clear that he can't influence reporting.

In fairness pan is arguing a far less direct kind of influence but in that video the NPR exec stressed that there was a "firewall" between revenue generation and reporting.

 

[DrDune]

Wonder if this is true. Not exactly a great look for the 'balanced' news organization if so. And before anyone gets bent out of shape, the same would be true if the ratio was the other direction.

 

[Jack V Savage]

When Project Veritas did their "sting" on NPR to make it look like they were taking donations in exchange for influence on in their reporting the full unedited footage showed that in fact the NPR executive was saying the opposite and trying to make it clear that he can't influence reporting.

In fairness pan is arguing a far less direct kind of influence but in that video the NPR exec stressed that there was a "firewall" between revenue generation and reporting.

Didn't see that, but, yeah, that's exactly what I'm talking about. The organizational structure and culture are both designed to deal with that potential issue. Obviously, it depends on the type of organization. You wouldn't say the same about Daily Kos or Breitbart or something--but the issue there is not inferior controls as much a difference in mission. This is also what people miss when they bothsides ideological/partisan media and mainstream media that they think is biased.

 

[Islam Imamate]

Didn't see that, but, yeah, that's exactly what I'm talking about. The organizational structure and culture are both designed to deal with that potential issue. Obviously, it depends on the type of organization. You wouldn't say the same about Daily Kos or Breitbart or something--but the issue there is not inferior controls as much a difference in mission. This is also what people miss when they bothsides ideological/partisan media and mainstream media that they think is biased.

To the extent that there is a left wing bias in journalism generally and at NPR in particular as I said earlier I think it mostly comes down to the fact that certain personality types will gravitate to certain fields and political beliefs. Asking why there are no Republican journalists at NPR is like asking why there are no Democrat petroleum engineers at ExxonMobil.

 

[Whippy McGee]

The idea of "open minded" in America today, especially on the right, is lurching towards giving the same weight to retarded CTs as is given to factual analysis. It's the "let's hear both sides" nonsense...if one side is peddling lie after lie after lie, no, we shouldn't play the "let's hear em out game"...it's basically "let us lie and muddy the waters, it's only fair!"

ROFL! Thanks for that pure idiocy! You're such a clown.

Here we go!!!! Here is the Fake News pushed by the Left:

Jussie Smollett
Bubba Wallace garage pull
Covington kids
Kavanaugh rape
Trump pee tape
Covid lab leak was a conspiracy theory
Border agents whipped migrants.
Steele Dossier
Russian bounties on US soldiers in Afghanistan
Trump said drinking bleach would fight covid
Hunter Biden's laptop was Russian disinformation
Muslim travel ban
Trump built cages for migrant kids
Trump tax cuts benefited only the rich.
SUV killed parade marchers
Trump used teargas to clear a crowd for a bible photo
Don't say gay was in a bill
Ivermectin is a horse dewormer and not for humans
Mostly peaceful protests
BYU students hurled racist insults at Duke volleyball player
Trump overpowered secret service for wheel of The Beast
Covid vaccine stops spread of covid
Mask on small children
Trump called migrants animals
Inflation is transitory
Trump called for a bloodbath

Only a Democrat would think NPR being 87 (D) and (0) R is a not bad thing. The Left have been truly brainwashed and indoctrinated into the Left Cult.

Where is the Diversity? This is not a equitable representation of America. Inclusion?

Oh... this is (D)ifferent.

 

[Scerpi]

You know as well as I do that the influence at the top influences the middle and the bottom. You know that if the donors share an opinion with the top of NPR that it will impact what those people say to the editors which eventually influences what the editors say to the journalists. Which eventually influences what the journalists prioritize in their work. That what the top of NPR thinks impacts the type of journalists they hire, the language of the workspace, etc.

It doesn't happen overnight but it does happen.

A known element is that donors give more when they see tangible results. Show them a new hospital wing or a new chemistry lab and they contribute more to that organization. And in journalism, tangibility is found in the journalistic pieces produced, the podcasts aired, etc. News Org A wants to capture the attention of Donor Doug? Show him articles produced that align with his priorities. His money made that happen and more money will make more of it happen. If the donor class becomes too monolithic then the prioritized pieces will become monolithic as well.

Hmmm… sounds strangely like lobbyists

 

[Scerpi]

Again, playing to the audience is possible. But playing to donors is just not how this stuff works. Donors donate to organizations they already support, not to organizations they disagree with.

What the fuck happened to you? You’ve gone completely off the rails

And what happens if they start pumping out news articles donors disagree with

Donations aren’t a one and done thing… lol

 

[Scerpi]

They jumped the shark during their coverage of the migrant crisis and never looked back. It became intolerable during and after that. Up until that point I listened every day.

You were able to hang on listening to Amy Goodman drone on about Covid?

Brave man

 

[LeonardoBjj]

There was more diversity of opinion in the USSR soviet party than in mainstream media today. just like the article says - starting today, this is how we think.

Awful, just awful. The capitulation of intellect that i've witnessed these last few years is staggering. Midwit fanatics infiltrated and are in charge of informing the public.

- You just described brazilian media!

 

[koquerelle]

A statement which completely misunderstood what I said previously. I never said that they were in the newsroom. What I said is that the pressure from donors on the individuals responsible for generating donations results in those individuals putting pressure on management, management puts pressure on editors, subtle but there. And that leads to editors influencing what happens in the newsrooms and the meetings.

If you're thinking this is Donor X walking into a newsroom and demanding stories about Y while editors bow their head in acquiescence then you don't understand how this works.

Influence is a subtle thing and you seem stuck in thinking about it like a club or a hammer.

Let me put it in the context of an issue that you understand. Clarence Thomas. No one is bribing Clarence Thomas directly. But it is impossible for Clarence Thomas to benefit from the economic largesse of those who pay for his trips and RVs without becoming more sympathetic to their political positions. And once Clarence Thomas is sympathetic, the other justices might be swayed by arguments that Thomas makes that are sympathetic to the perspective of those who are financing Thomas beneficially, even though they're not taking the trips or riding in the RV.

Does that mean that Thomas is corrupt? Of course not. Does is mean that the other members of the Court are corrupted by the benefits that they haven't received? Of course not. But it does mean that the influence provided by the money can slowly alter the perspectives of those on the receiving end and ultimately the perspectives of the people they work with.

That is what money does and how financial influence works. It's why rich people donate. They don't donate to schools because they want to influence teachers. They donate to schools so they can influence the head of the school. The head of school will eventually, unintentionally, do the rest.

Gave you a like because I generally like your post, but strongly disagree about your opinion of Thomas. I think he's the ultimate example of corruption. I also think he represents what's wrong with the Supreme Court.

I wrote for a cinema-TV magazine and I saw the influence ads had on the content. You won't be free to talk honestly about a bad Sony product if Sony buys a full-page ad every month. It's simple logic.

 

[panamaican]

Well, the only person in this discussion. And, not coincidentally, the only person with actual experience here.

Most newspapers don't have "donors" to begin with. They have owners (unless they're owned by public companies, which many are). But serious organizations with a primarily journalistic mission aren't getting ideological cues from owners, and journalists wouldn't generally go for that.

You're entitled to your fantasy.

The American Press Institute (API) sought answers to these questions in a survey conducted in 2015. The institute found that 52% of funders were trying to influence public policy with their donations to journalism, while 54% hoped to strengthen a free press. A full 44% of respondents admitted that their media-funding decisions served "to advance other larger strategic goals."

Donor-driven Journalism

As the news business has hemorrhaged subscribers and advertisers in recent years, many newspapers, magazines, and websites have sought philanthropic support not only for opinion writing and analysis, but for news coverage. Such help can make otherwis...

nationalaffairs.com

Funders describe making grants in multiple areas, with 74% reporting they fund journalism that addresses a specific topic or problem and 71% saying they make investments to increase local journalism. More than 50% say they make grants to help journalists increase community engagement, produce investigative reporting, or support news organizations with fundraising and business sustainability.

But the risk of conflict of interest has grown alongside funding. More funders are financing journalism in areas where they also do policy work (57% vs. 52% eight years ago), and four in 10 outlets take money to do specific reporting suggested by a funder, though that percentage has dropped significantly from 59% eight years ago.

Philanthropy's growing role in American journalism: A new study reveals increased funding and ethical considerations | Media Impact Funders

A new study conducted by NORC at the University of Chicago in partnership with Media Impact Funders and The Lenfest Institute for Journalism that examines the role of philanthropy in American journalism found strong growth in support for nonprofit news over the past five years, an increase in...

mediaimpactfunders.org

“Donors are increasingly involved in trying to shape editorial content,” says Leon Willems, director of policy and programs at Free Press Unlimited, an organization based in Amsterdam that works to improve the climate for and quality of journalism around the world. “I understand that donors want to specifically contribute to certain topics that they think are in need of support. But as a journalist, I think this is a scary tendency that infringes on media’s independence and in (our) mind the independence is crucial for public trust. Donors have to be cautious not to be too interventionist.”

• Donor involvement takes the form of guidelines as to what topics should be covered, as well as suggestions for story ideas, sources that should be included or omitted, and follow-up to see what kind of impact the coverage had.
• There is a sense from veterans in the media development field that there is more donor involvement with content than, say, 10 to 20 years ago.

Can donor-funded newsrooms be truly independent?

Around the world, media outlets are taking millions of dollars from private donors and foundations in order to pay for news. The Mail & Guardian in South Africa receives grants from the Gates Foundation to cover health, and Gates funds development news at The Guardian in the UK. In Latin...

www.cjr.org

I think your perspective might be outdated.

 

[panamaican]

Hmmm… sounds strangely like lobbyists

It's exactly like lobbyists. I can't believe any decently intelligent person would argue that free cash to prop up your news organization wouldn't result in some beneficial impact on the content covered.

 

[andnowweknow]

ROFL! Thanks for that pure idiocy! You're such a clown.

Here we go!!!! Here is the Fake News pushed by the Left:

Jussie Smollett
Bubba Wallace garage pull
Covington kids
Kavanaugh rape
Trump pee tape
Covid lab leak was a conspiracy theory
Border agents whipped migrants.
Steele Dossier
Russian bounties on US soldiers in Afghanistan
Trump said drinking bleach would fight covid
Hunter Biden's laptop was Russian disinformation
Muslim travel ban
Trump built cages for migrant kids
Trump tax cuts benefited only the rich.
SUV killed parade marchers
Trump used teargas to clear a crowd for a bible photo
Don't say gay was in a bill
Ivermectin is a horse dewormer and not for humans
Mostly peaceful protests
BYU students hurled racist insults at Duke volleyball player
Trump overpowered secret service for wheel of The Beast
Covid vaccine stops spread of covid
Mask on small children
Trump called migrants animals
Inflation is transitory
Trump called for a bloodbath

Only a Democrat would think NPR being 87 (D) and (0) R is a not bad thing. The Left have been truly brainwashed and indoctrinated into the Left Cult.

Where is the Diversity? This is not a equitable representation of America. Inclusion?

Oh... this is (D)ifferent.

Do you keep that list on a word doc or something? You post that shit really often.

Also, you should change your handle here to "ok, but what about something else"...

 

[Kassitus]

First off, I'm not a regular NPR listener so I can't comment truthfully about any shift in their stories.

But it is an interesting article and I think that a lot of people will agree with it. It reminds me of why I stopped listening to conservative talk radio. The stories being presented are less and less connected with the cross section of America and have become increasingly niche.

I don't know if the problem is that places like NPR have become more slanted or that audiences increasingly only to want to hear their perspectives. And audiences that want echo chambers put pressure on the business of journalism to feed them what they want. Chicken or egg.

The chicken is NGOs imo. Media Matters for example has been attacking moderate leftists for decades in order to radicalize the left and it goes downstream from there. AIPAC does to same to any conservatives who don't love zionism.

 

[terrapin]

You're entitled to your fantasy.

Donor-driven Journalism

As the news business has hemorrhaged subscribers and advertisers in recent years, many newspapers, magazines, and websites have sought philanthropic support not only for opinion writing and analysis, but for news coverage. Such help can make otherwis...

nationalaffairs.com

Philanthropy's growing role in American journalism: A new study reveals increased funding and ethical considerations | Media Impact Funders

A new study conducted by NORC at the University of Chicago in partnership with Media Impact Funders and The Lenfest Institute for Journalism that examines the role of philanthropy in American journalism found strong growth in support for nonprofit news over the past five years, an increase in...

mediaimpactfunders.org

Can donor-funded newsrooms be truly independent?

Around the world, media outlets are taking millions of dollars from private donors and foundations in order to pay for news. The Mail & Guardian in South Africa receives grants from the Gates Foundation to cover health, and Gates funds development news at The Guardian in the UK. In Latin...

www.cjr.org

I think your perspective might be outdated.

I'm grateful for the work you are doing in this thread man. I think it's very important.

 

[Jack V Savage]

You're entitled to your fantasy.

I think your perspective might be outdated.

And also to reality. But I can tell you're getting too emotional to keep on track here.

 

[Jack V Savage]

Gave you a like because I generally like your post, but strongly disagree about your opinion of Thomas. I think he's the ultimate example of corruption. I also think he represents what's wrong with the Supreme Court.

I wrote for a cinema-TV magazine and I saw the influence ads had on the content. You won't be free to talk honestly about a bad Sony product if Sony buys a full-page ad every month. It's simple logic.

Movie magazines are hardly equivalent to NPR.

 

[Whippy McGee]

Do you keep that list on a word doc or something? You post that shit really often.

Also, you should change your handle here to "ok, but what about something else"...

You step in the shit often, so you get checked for being a clown.

Left Cult like you should not be casting stones.

 

[koquerelle]

Movie magazines are hardly equivalent to NPR.

I totally realize that. It's my closest personal experience to a media outlet and the 2 have things in common. I thought it was relevant to the conversation. Don't you?

 

[Jack V Savage]

I totally realize that. It's my closest personal experience to a media outlet and the 2 have things in common. I thought it was relevant to the conversation. Don't you?

I don't because the point I've been making here is specific to a particular type of organization (that NPR is an example of). There are organizations that have persuasion as part of their mission (and niche organizations) that are clearly subject to influences of ownership/marketing/donors. But major news orgs are fundamentally different in terms of their structure and culture (I mention culture because there is self-policing of efforts to breach firewalls).