Katherine Maher, the President and CEO of National Public Radio (NPR), is set to receive the James C. Goodale First Amendment Award on October 26. Harper’s Magazine has recognized her leadership in guiding NPR through intense political, legal, and financial challenges.
According to Harper’s Magazine, Maher has led NPR successfully during a period of heightened scrutiny. She managed the organization while opposing President Donald Trump’s attempts to defund NPR. Despite these efforts, Congress cut $1.1 billion in federal funding to the Corporation for Public Broadcasting in 2025. NPR later secured an $80 million gift from a Democratic donor, easing the impact of reduced government support.
Maher has had a complex relationship with the First Amendment. In 2021, while the CEO of Wikimedia, she viewed the First Amendment as challenging in combating disinformation. Maher explained that the amendment’s robust protection of rights for platforms allowed them to regulate content, but also made it difficult to address misinformation effectively.
Some have criticized NPR’s journalistic choices under Maher’s leadership. A prominent issue was NPR’s decision not to cover the Hunter Biden laptop story in 2020, a move seen by many as protective of then-candidate Joe Biden. Maher acknowledged the oversight in congressional testimony, expressing that they should have covered the story more aggressively and earlier.
Tim Graham from NewsBusters commented on the award’s irony, highlighting that while NPR did not challenge President Biden, Maher combated conservative content on air, aligning with a more liberal perspective. He pointed out Maher’s past remarks, where she described the First Amendment as a hurdle in the context of controlling misinformation, questioning the basis for her First Amendment award.
NPR defended their past statement upon learning about Maher receiving the award. Maher herself emphasized the importance of public media in defending constitutional rights and expressed honor in receiving the recognition. She asserted the significance of the First Amendment in enabling Americans to better understand each other and the world.
For any story tips, contact Lindsay Kornick, an associate editor at Fox News Digital, at [email protected] or on Twitter: @lmkornick.
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