Trump Signs Executive Order to Defund NPR and PBS, Citing “Radical, Woke Propaganda”

By: Fern Sidman

In a move that has ignited fierce debate over press freedom and the role of public broadcasting, President Donald Trump signed an executive order late Thursday to terminate federal funding for National Public Radio (NPR) and the Public Broadcasting Service (PBS). As was reported by NBC News, the order, which targets the Corporation for Public Broadcasting (CPB)—the federal body that channels taxpayer dollars to NPR and PBS—accuses both media outlets of delivering “biased and partisan news coverage” at the public’s expense.

As reported by NBC News, the order directs the Corporation for Public Broadcasting (CPB) to immediately halt the flow of taxpayer dollars to these organizations “to the extent permitted by law,” effectively pulling the plug on hundreds of millions in subsidies that have enabled leftist indoctrination on the public dime.

“We are no longer going to force hardworking Americans to bankroll media outlets that despise our values, distort the truth, and undermine our country,” President Trump declared. “This is the end of taxpayer-funded fake news.”

The White House didn’t mince words. Accompanying the executive order was a detailed breakdown of the stunning extremism and intellectual degeneracy that NPR and PBS have promoted for years—content that has become increasingly bizarre, divisive, and grotesquely political.

Among the many examples cited:

NPR’s sympathetic coverage of cannibalism, celebrating a woman who ate a human placenta prepared “osso bucco-style.”

The outlet’s labeling of the Declaration of Independence as a document riddled with “hypocrisies” and “offensive language.”

The replacement of Independence Day readings with lectures on “equality,” effectively canceling America’s founding ideals.

An NPR segment on so-called “queer ducks” and “trans-ceratops,” aimed at teaching teens about sexuality through the lens of cartoon animals.

PBS airing a children’s program hosted by a drag queen named “Lil’ Miss Hot Mess”—part of their ongoing campaign to normalize sexualized content for kids.

NPR’s suggestion that doorway sizes are fatphobic, that animals deserve pronouns, and that the thumbs-up emoji is racist.

These are not fringe stories—they’re emblematic of a taxpayer-funded media culture that has abandoned objectivity, ridiculed traditional values, and relentlessly pushed a radical far-left ideology.

President Trump has also slammed NPR and PBS for being blatantly partisan. According to findings cited by multiple studies:

NPR newsroom staff are 100% Democrat—with not a single registered Republican in its ranks.

Their coverage of Republicans is overwhelmingly negative: 85% of NPR’s coverage of congressional Republicans and 72% of PBS’s coverage of the Republican National Convention was negative, compared to 88% positive coverage of the DNC.

NPR not only ignored the Hunter Biden laptop story before the 2020 election but dismissed it outright, calling it a “distraction.”

NPR’s obsession with “Russia collusion” turned its newsroom into a mouthpiece for Adam Schiff talking points.

The executive order also points to NPR’s repeated denials of the lab-leak theory of COVID-19’s origins—now deemed highly credible by the FBI, CIA, and the Department of Energy—as proof of their journalistic malpractice and political bias.

NPR CEO Katherine Maher, a known far-left activist, once called President Trump “racist,” appeared in a “Biden for President” campaign hat, and openly stated that “reverence for truth” is a “distraction.” This is the person leading a federally funded news organization. As President Trump put it, “Enough is enough.”

The executive order came just days after President Trump cleaned out the leadership of the CPB, removing three board members who failed to take action against the corruption of public media. Although a lawsuit was filed to contest the removals, a federal judge upheld the decision, requiring only 48 hours’ notice before replacements are named.

Board members must be confirmed by the U.S. Senate, and Trump’s team plans to replace them with individuals who value neutrality, truth, and accountability—not far-left ideology.

Naturally, NPR and PBS responded with hysterical warnings of doom. PBS President Paula Kerger called the move “disruptive” and claimed PBS is “bipartisan”—a laughable assertion considering its programming. NPR insisted that its services are “essential” for delivering “public safety information”—as if no other news outlets exist.

In truth, as President Trump explained in the order, the media landscape has drastically changed since CPB’s creation in 1967. Americans now have limitless options for news, entertainment, and education. Continuing to fund a government-endorsed monopoly of misinformation is not just outdated—it’s dangerous and corrosive to the republic.

While the far-left and mainstream media are already screeching about “attacks on press freedom,” what’s really at stake is not free speech—it’s forced taxpayer funding of speech that actively undermines our values. President Trump’s action doesn’t silence NPR or PBS; it simply ends their government handout and demands they operate like every other private media company—on their own merit, not on your paycheck.

“You want to call President Trump a threat to democracy?” one senior administration official said. “Then fund your propaganda machine yourself. The American people shouldn’t have to pay for your lies.”

This move is a watershed moment in the fight to reclaim our institutions from the grip of radical leftist ideology. President Trump’s executive order sends a clear message: the era of unaccountable, taxpayer-funded left-wing propaganda is over. No more drag queens on children’s shows. No more pronouns for animals. No more lies about Mount Rushmore speeches or ignoring stories that hurt Democrats.