EXCLUSIVE: GOP moves to defund ‘chronically biased’ NPR, PBS after disastrous hearing

EXCLUSIVE: After a hard-hitting hearing by the House DOGE Subcommittee, Rep. Ronny Jackson, R-Texas, is introducing a bill Thursday to pull all government funding from “chronically biased” outlets NPR and PBS, which he says have been “pushing Democrat talking points under the fake banner of ‘public media.’”

Jackson’s bill – titled the “No Partisan Radio and Partisan Broadcasting Services Act” or simply the “NPR and PBS Act” – would fully cut off any direct and indirect government funding for both outlets, forcing them to compete instead of being propped up by the government.

This comes amid Elon Musk’s sweeping cuts to wasteful government programs through the Department of Government Efficiency.

The move also follows a high-intensity House DOGE Subcommittee hearing in which NPR’s Katherine Maher and PBS’ Paula Kerger attempted to explain why their outlets still deserve public funding.

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After a hard-hitting hearing by the House DOGE Subcommittee, Rep. Ronny Jackson is introducing a bill Thursday to pull all government funding from “chronically biased” outlets NPR and PBS. (Getty Images)

During the hearing, Maher conceded that NPR botched coverage of Hunter Biden’s infamous laptop, saying, “We made a mistake.” At the time, NPR representatives publicly called the story unserious and a distraction. During the hearing, Maher said, “We were mistaken in failing to cover the Hunter Biden laptop story more aggressively and sooner.”

She also expressed regret about remarks she made about President Donald Trump, calling him “a fascist and a deranged racist sociopath.”  

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Meanwhile, Kerger’s PBS was slammed for producing such programs as “Real Boy,” which follows a transgender character exploring sexuality.

DOGE Subcommittee Chair Marjorie Taylor Greene, R-Ga., bashed PBS as “one of the founders of the trans child abuse industry.” 

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President and CEO of National Public Radio Katherine Maher testifies during a House Oversight and Government Reform Committee hearing at the U.S. Capitol on March 26, 2025. (Andrew Harnik/Getty Images)

Following the NPR and PBS leaders’ testimonies, Greene called the outlets “out of touch with everyday Americans,” saying: “I think from what we have heard here today, the American people will not continue to allow such propaganda to be funded through the federal government with their hard-earned tax dollars.”

Jackson told Fox News Digital that though NPR and PBS were originally founded to produce non-biased, informational and educational content, the outlets have since “turned into taxpayer-funded propaganda machines for the radical left, pushing Democratic talking points under the fake banner of ‘public media.’”

A statement by Jackson’s office further said the two outlets’ “chronically biased” programming has made them simply a “messaging arm for woke, radical Democrats.”

“Hardworking Americans are sick of footing the bill,” said Jackson. “It’s time to cut them off and stop forcing taxpayers to pay for their liberal lies!”

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Rep. Ronny Jackson on the House steps of the Capitol on Jan. 4, 2021. (Tom Williams/CQ-Roll Call, Inc via Getty Images)

Trump has expressed he is open to defunding NPR and other “biased” publicly funded outlets, meaning he would be likely to sign a bill doing so if passed by Congress.

“They spend more money than any other network of its type ever conceived, so the kind of money that’s being wasted, and it’s a very biased view, you know that better than anybody,” said Trump. “And I’d be honored to see it end.”  

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Musk has also called to defund NPR. In February, he posted a 2022 video of Maher in which she said, “Our reverence for the truth might have become a bit of a distraction that is preventing us from finding consensus and getting things done.”

Commenting on Maher’s speech, Musk said NPR “should survive on its own.”  

Fox News Digital’s Brian Flood and Joseph A. Wulfsohn contributed to this report.