NPR, PBS Chiefs Respond to GOP Allegations of Bias in House Hearing

The hearing comes a day after President Donald Trump said NPR and PBS should be defunded.

President and CEO of National Public Radio Katherine Maher (L) and President and CEO of Public Broadcasting Service Paula Kerger are sworn in before a House Oversight and Government Reform Committee hearing at the U.S. Capitol in Washington on March 26, 2025. Andrew Harnik/Getty Images

The heads of National Public Radio (NPR) and the Public Broadcasting Service (PBS) responded to Republican allegations of liberal bias during a March 26 hearing by the House Subcommittee on Delivering on Government Efficiency.

The hearing occurred a day after President Donald Trump, echoing other Republicans, said NPR and PBS should be defunded.

“I would love to do that. I think it’s very unfair. It’s been very biased,” he told reporters at the White House during a Cabinet meeting.

In her opening statement, NPR CEO and President Katherine Maher said her outlet is committed to serving all audiences.

“We have a responsibility to serve Americans across the full political spectrum in a trustworthy, nonpartisan fashion,” she said.

Maher said NPR has processes to ensure that its content is “fair and comprehensive” and that diverse issues and viewpoints are aired.

She also said that NPR’s digital audience reflects “the makeup of the country across the ideological spectrum.”

PBS CEO and President Paula Kerger said in her opening statement that her station looks to appeal to all Americans, although she did not go into depth about allegations of bias.

“Our stations pool resources to invest in programming that will benefit all Americans, ranging from history and science to art and music,” Kreger said.

She cited “Firing Line with Margaret Hoover” as a program where people with diverse political views are interviewed.

During questioning, the committee’s chairwoman, Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-Ga.), listed examples of what she said was problematic content on PBS, including programming related to transgenderism and “racist trees“ in Palm Springs, California.

Kerger said the primetime programming is for adults.

However, Greene fired back.

“Parents and adults don’t trust that type of programming,” she said.

Several Republicans confronted Maher about NPR’s coverage of the 2020 story of the laptop of former President Joe Biden’s son, Hunter Biden. The laptop consisted of information related to Hunter Biden’s business dealings that have included work in China and Ukraine, where he was on the board of energy company Burisma.

“We don’t want to waste our time on stories that are not really stories, and we don’t want to waste the listeners’ and readers’ time on stories that are just pure distractions,” NPR managing editor Terence Samuel said at the time.

At the hearing, however, Maher said NPR’s attitude over the laptop story was a “mistake.”

Democrats on the subcommittee came to the defense of NPR and PBS.

Rep. Stephen Lynch (D-Mass.), who served as the ranking Democrat member for the hearing in the place of Rep. Melanie Stansbury (D-N.M.), asked Kerger and Maher to explain how their outlets provide educational programming for children of low-income families. He also asked Maher to talk about her outlet providing crucial information during emergencies such as natural disasters.

Del. Eleanor Holmes Norton (D-D.C.) praised NPR’s Washington affiliate, WAMU, for airing programming including the latest news and cultural stories related to the nation’s capital.