Wow...New NPR and CPB Issues Ignite the Media

When zzoott last blogged in early February, 2011, after listening to the Diane Rehm Show http://www.thedianerehmshow.org/ on NPR http://www.npr.org/  in late January discussing CPB http://www.cpb.org/, NPR and PBS http://www.pbs.org/, the focus was on just what each of this public triumverate bring to the table, and how they are each fed, at least from a public standpoint. Frankly, zzoott's concern was not political but, rather, driven by a desire to learn more about the financial aspects of the behemoth that has become public broadcasting in these United States.

That being said, the events of the last two days, as they impact on all three, has been nothing short of astonishing. Lest the fine folks at NPR decide to revise their own website's recent postings on the controversy surrounding recently-resigned former CEO Schiller, I thought it might be prudent to post them here, so as to at least lock in NPR's own take on things. First is the current link to NPR's running story, and second is a simple lifting of what that link currently brings:

http://www.npr.org/blogs/thetwo-way/2011/03/10/134388981/npr-ceo-vivian-schiller-resigns?ps=cprs

(3/9/2011, 5:25 p.m. ET: This post has been given an end-of-day write-through and re-ordering. After the following introduction, it lays out our updates in chronological order.)


Vivian Schiller, NPR's CEO and president since January 2009, left that job today in the wake of the second high-profile controversy to hit the organization in the past six months.

Dave Edwards, chairman of NPR's board, said directors came to the conclusion that the controversies under Schiller's watch had become such a distraction that she could no longer effectively lead the organization. She had told the directors that they should take the action they felt was appropriate, and Edwards said the board decided it would be best for her to depart.

The controversies in recent months that led to Schiller's departure have given NPR's critics opportunities to accuse it of liberal bias and to push for elimination of any federal funding for public broadcasting:

— Tuesday, a videotape surfaced of then-NPR fundraiser Ron Schiller (no relation) slamming conservatives and questioning whether NPR needs federal funding. His comments were secretly recorded by men posing as members of a Muslim organization (they were working with political activist James O'Keefe on a "sting").

— Last fall, NPR dismissed news analyst Juan Williams after he said on Fox News Channel (where he was also a paid contributor) that he gets nervous when he sees people in "Muslim garb" on an airplane. Williams went on to say it's wrong to profile or sterotype anyone based on their appearance, but NPR said it was the latest in a series of comments he had made that violated NPR's standards. The handling of his dismissal and the controversy surrounding it ultimately led to the resignation of NPR's top news executive at the time, Ellen Weiss.

We live-blogged today's developments. Here is how things happened and the news along the way:

Our original post, at 9:19 a.m. ET:

NPR President and CEO Vivian Schiller has resigned after NPR's board of directors decided that she could no longer effectively lead the organization.

This follows Tuesday's news that then-NPR fundraiser Ron Schiller (no relation) was videotaped slamming conservatives and questioning whether NPR needs federal funding during a lunch with men posing as members of a Muslim organization (they were working with political activist James O'Keefe on a "sting").

Vivian Schiller, 49, quickly condemned Ron Schiller's comments, and he moved up an already-announced decision to leave NPR and resigned effective immediately. But Ron Schiller's gaffe followed last fall's dismissal of NPR political analyst Juan Williams, for which Vivian Schiller came under harsh criticism and NPR's top news executive, Ellen Weiss, resigned.

NPR just sent this statement from NPR Board of Directors Chairman Dave Edwards to its staff and member stations:

"It is with deep regret that I tell you that the NPR Board of Directors has accepted the resignation of Vivian Schiller as President and CEO of NPR, effective immediately.

"The Board accepted her resignation with understanding, genuine regret, and great respect for her leadership of NPR these past two years.

"Vivian brought vision and energy to this organization. She led NPR back from the enormous economic challenges of the previous two years. She was passionately committed to NPR's mission, and to stations and NPR working collaboratively as a local-national news network.

"According to a CEO succession plan adopted by the Board in 2009, Joyce Slocum, SVP of Legal Affairs and General Counsel, has been appointed to the position of Interim CEO. The Board will immediately establish an Executive Transition Committee that will develop a timeframe and process for the recruitment and selection of new leadership.

"I recognize the magnitude of this news – and that it comes on top of what has been a traumatic period for NPR and the larger public radio community. The Board is committed to supporting NPR through this interim period and has confidence in NPR's leadership team."


We'll have much more on this as the story develops.

Update at 9:30 a.m. ET: "I'm told by sources that she was forced out," NPR's David Folkenflik just said on Morning Edition.

Update at 9:43 a.m. ET. More from NPR media correspondent David Folkenflik,via Twitter:

"The board for NPR NEWS has just ousted CEO Vivian Schiller in the wake of video sting by conservative activist of a top exec."


Update at 9:47 a.m. ET. On Vivian Schiller:

— She joined NPR in January 2009.

— Before that, she was senior vice president and general manager of NYTimes.com.

— In previous years, she worked in top posts at Discovery Times Channel and CNN Productions.

Update at 9:55 a.m. ET. What some others are writing:

— The Associated Press: "NPR president and CEO Vivian Schiller resigned Wednesday in the wake of comments by a fellow executive that angered conservatives and renewed calls to end federal funding for public broadcasting."


— The New York Times' Media Decoder blog: "Controversy has swirled around NPR in recent months, as Republicans in Congress have sought to reduce or eliminate money for NPR from the federal budget and as conservatives have accused the network of having a liberal bias."

Update at 10:25 a.m. ET: As we reported, NPR media correspondent David Folkenflik was on Morning Edition earlier and said that he's been told Schiller was forced out.

Update at 11 a.m. ET: NPR Board Chairman Dave Edwards "confirms board ousted her — said Schiller set tone by saying board should take any action it felt necessary," our colleague David Folkenflik reports via Twitter. He just interviewed Edwards. We're on the phone awaiting a conference call that the board chairman is supposed to be on. We'll pass on more from that shortly.

Update at 11:06 a.m. ET: NPR Board Chairman Dave Edwards just told reporters, on a conference call, that "the CEO of any organization is accountable for all of the operations of that organization." So, he said, even though Vivian Schiller wasn't personally responsible for all the mistakes made in recent months "we determined that it was the wise move for us to accept her resignation and move on."


Update at 11:10 a.m. ET: The comments made by Ron Schiller in the video produced by Project Veritas "were so opposite" to what NPR stands for that "I cannot tell you how much [they] bothered me to my core," NPR Board Chairman Dave Edwards just told reporters.


And he said the decision to part ways with Vivian Schiller should prove the board's commitment to NPR's standards.


Update at 11:15 a.m. ET: On the issue of whether Vivian Schiller resigned or was forced out, NPR Board Chairman Dave Edwards just told reporters that:


"The board had a wide-ranging conversation with Vivian last night," about recent events and "how the organization needed to move forward."


Schiller, he said, told the board members that they should have "the flexibility to do what [they] felt was important." She "offered to step aside if that was the board's will," he said, "and the board ultimately decided that was in the best interest of the organization."

Update at 11:22 a.m. ET. As NPR Board Chairman Dave Edwards continues to talk with reporters, The Associated Press reports this:

"National Public Radio President and CEO Vivian Schiller is not saying whether she offered to quit or was forced out by the organization's board of directions. Schiller told The Associated Press on Wednesday that she resigned after a discussion with the board."


Update at 11:25 a.m. ET. More from NPR Board Chairman Dave Edwards on why Vivian Schiller has departed:

"The events that took place [particularly Ron Schiller's statements and Juan Williams' dismissal] became such a distraction to the organization that in the board's mind it hindered Vivian Schiller's abilty to lead the organization going forward."


Update at 11:40 a.m. ET. Ron Schiller is no longer going to take a job at the Aspen Institute. Yahoo's The Cutline reports that:

" 'Ron Schiller has informed us that, in light of the controversy surrounding his recent statements, he does not feel that it's in the best interests of the Aspen Institute for him to come work here,' [an institute] spokesman said in a statement to The Cutline."


Update at 11:48 a.m. ET: Based on what NPR Board Chairman Dave Edwards has said in the past hour about Vivian Schiller's departure, we've added a phrase to our headline — "after board decides she should go." That reflects his statements that she told the board members to do what they thought needed to be done, and that they decided the wisest thing would be for her to leave.

Update at 12:02 p.m. ET: The issue of whether NPR and PBS should receive any federal funding has been front-and-center in recent months, with conservative lawmakers in particular saying it should be cut.

Aides to House Majority Leader Eric Cantor (R-VA), who has been among those calling for the funding to be eliminated, just released this statement from him:


"Our concern is not about any one person at NPR, rather it's about millions of taxpayers. NPR has admitted that they don't need taxpayer subsidies to thrive, and at a time when the government is borrowing 40 cents of every dollar that it spends, we certainly agree with them."


Update at 1:20 p.m. ET. More from Vivian Schiller:


"I did not want to leave NPR. There's a lot of pressure on NPR right now," Schiller said today in an interview with The Associated Press. But, she said, "it would have made it too difficult for stations to face that funding threat in Congress without this change."


And, according to the AP:

"Schiller said she and the board concluded that her 'departure from NPR would help to mitigate the threat from those who have misperceptions about NPR as a news organization. NPR is one of the finest news organizations I've ever encountered. Our journalists are unassailable in their work.' "


Update at 1:45 p.m. ET. NPR's David Folkenflik has now spoken with Vivian Schiller and reports that:


"In an interview, now ex-NPR CEO Schiller said she recognized her departure might help public radio get past controversies of recent months."


Update at 3:40 p.m. ET: On today's edition of All Things Considered, NPR's David Folkenflik will report that Vivian Schiller "helped NPR emerge on firm financial footing from the recession with deep, but targeted cuts." And NPR's radio and online audiences continued to grow when she was CEO.


"But some at NPR found Vivian Schiller's leadership under fire wanting," David will say. Susan Stamberg, who has been with NPR nearly 40 years, tells him that "we have not been well served by recent management. Many of our managers are talented and solid, but others have not been — and have exposed us to some terrible, terrible hits."

Update at 3:55 p.m. ET. PBS Was Also Targeted:

The Associated Press writes that "PBS said it also was contacted by the same fake Muslim group that met with Ron Schiller. PBS spokeswoman Anne Bentley said an executive there had an initial conversation with the Muslim Education Action Center, but concerns were raised about the group and PBS couldn't confirm the organization's credentials, so they halted discussions."

Update at 4:10 p.m. ET. More On PBS:

The New York Times' Media Decoder blog writes that "Anne Bentley, a PBS spokeswoman, said PBS' senior vice president for development, Brian Reddington, attended a lunch with the fake donors in February. ... Ms. Bentley said that Mr. Reddington came back from the lunch with 'profound concerns about the organization' and began what she called a routine vetting process 'when there is an appearance of a conflict of interest and to ensure they meet requirements of transparency and openness.' "

Wow. Then, CPB decided it was time to say something, too, on its own website today. Again, in the good sense of preserving that text, lest it likewise be later revised, it's reprinted here in its entirety, first with the link, then with the text:

http://www.cpb.org/pressroom/release.php?prn=874

Statement from the Corporation for Public Broadcasting’s Board of Directors and Management



For Immediate Release on March 10, 2011


The following statement should be attributed to the Corporation for Public Broadcasting:


For nearly fifty years, the federal investment in public broadcasting has helped to strengthen our society. Public broadcasting educates our children, increases our sense of community as Americans, and provides a respectful non-commercial alternative on a hyper-commercial media landscape.

The Corporation for Public Broadcasting is responsible for the health and vitality of public broadcasting in the United States and the investment of taxpayer dollars in locally owned and controlled public broadcasting stations and national producers and distributors of content such as PBS and NPR.


Recent events involving NPR officials have not reflected the values and aspirations of public broadcasting. The Corporation for Public Broadcasting is committed to fair, balanced, objective, and transparent journalism that reflects a variety of viewpoints. The Corporation is committed to editorial standards that clearly separate decisions about content from financial or political considerations. We demand respect for all Americans whatever their racial or ethnic background, political belief, educational level, or occupation.


The Corporation condemns the unprofessional conduct and offensive statements by Mr. Schiller and Ms. Liley that are inconsistent with these values. We will continue to work with our local station and national network partners to achieve these values and we will support NPR in its search for a Chief Executive who can strengthen NPR and fulfill them.

Again, wow.

And, from PBS on March 9, 2011, the following:

http://www.pbs.org/newshour/bb/media/jan-june11/npr_03-09.html#

JEFFREY BROWN: And finally tonight, NPR's CEO departs amid a growing storm.


CRAIG WINDHAM, National Public Radio: From NPR News in Washington, I'm Craig Windham.

JEFFREY BROWN: News of Vivian Schiller's departure followed yesterday's release of this hidden-camera video. It showed NPR fund-raising executive Ron Schiller -- no relation -- at what he thought was a meeting with potential funders.

Among much else, he was heard disparaging Tea Party Republicans.

RON SCHILLER, National Public Radio: They are -- they believe in sort of white, middle America, gun-toting -- I mean, it's pretty scary. They're seriously racist.

JEFFREY BROWN: And he also commented on the hot-button issue of NPR's use of public money.

RON SCHILLER: It is very clear that we would be better off in the long run without federal funding.

JEFFREY BROWN: Indeed, the video came as Republicans in Congress are pressing to eliminate more than $400 million a year in federal funding of public broadcasting, including PBS.

The man behind the video release was conservative activist James O'Keefe. His associates, posing as members of a fake Muslim organization, lunched with Ron Schiller in late February, offering to donate $5 million to NPR. The fund-raiser resigned yesterday, though he had been planning to leave NPR anyway.

Vivian Schiller had served in her post two years. She drew criticism last year over the firing of commentator Juan Williams, after he said on FOX News that flying with some Muslims scared him.

James O'Keefe has previously gone after the community action group ACORN with hidden cameras. And last year, he was arrested and pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor charge of attempting to bug the offices of Louisiana Democratic Sen. Mary Landrieu.

This afternoon, a spokeswoman at PBS, the TV side of public broadcasting that operates separately from NPR, said one of its executives also met with people who claimed to be with the same fake Muslim organization. Those discussions ended when PBS couldn't confirm the group's credentials.

For more on all this, I'm joined by Brian Stelter, media reporter for The New York Times.


Brian, you talked to Vivian Schiller and others today. Tell us about the decision to end her tenure.


BRIAN STELTER, The New York Times: The decision happened pretty quickly yesterday. It was all about 12 hours after this video emerged on the Internet.

It was seized upon by conservative blogs and also generally by the media as yet another setback for NPR. And, by about 7:00 p.m. on Tuesday, Vivian Schiller was on a phone call with NPR's board of directors, many of whom are managers at local stations who have been frustrated for months about all the controversies that have surrounded NPR.

After about an hour, she offered to resign, if the board wished that to happen. And, sure enough, later in the evening, they decided they did want that, and she did resign. It was announced on Wednesday morning. And now NPR finds itself without a permanent chief executive or a chief of fund-raising.

JEFFREY BROWN: Now, fill in a little bit more this -- the video itself. As we said, it was a group saying it was a Muslim organization, but even further, they were saying they had some ties to the Muslim Brotherhood.

BRIAN STELTER: That's right.

This was a classic setup, where they were trying to goad the NPR executives into saying things on camera that were going to make news. Sometimes, the NPR executives didn't take the bait. Sometimes, they just sat there and nodded their heads or didn't - or didn't comment.

But, other times, they did seem to take the bait. This executive, Ronald Schiller, said he was expressing his own personal opinions, but he was talking about Tea Party members as being racist. He was talking about Republicans generally as being anti-intellectual.

And, as we heard in the segment there, he also talked about the fact that NPR has federal funding and that NPR would be better off without it. That was seized upon quickly by congressional Republicans who say NPR shouldn't have any federal funding. And I think, going forward here in the next few days, we will continue to hear that point come up again and again.

JEFFREY BROWN: Well, let's talk about that last point, because that, of course, is not the official -- the official point of view of NPR.

BRIAN STELTER: That's right.

NPR says that this federal funding is vital. It helps the average station by about 10 percent of their budget. And for some stations, that means $100,000. For other stations, that means millions of dollars. And it would be hard to recoup that money any other way.

I talked to station managers across the country today who said that it would mean less journalists, less high-quality programming, and in some cases, less transmitters and repeaters. These are the small stations that transmit signals out to rural areas. Clearly, this funding is important to those stations.

And maybe they could make up some of the difference from private groups and from citizens. But managers at stations are worried they wouldn't be able to make up all of it.

JEFFREY BROWN: Mr. O'Keefe, who -- the man behind all this, he has a history, as we said, of these kinds of provocative stings, right? I guess that's what you would call them?

BRIAN STELTER: He does. And what he often relies on is compelling, edited videotapes that he can then get attention for in the media.

In the past, he's used networks like FOX News to carry his messages. They will leak the videos very carefully in order to -- in order to encourage maximum exposure of his videotapes. He did this with the group ACORN a while back. And -- and now we see him going after NPR in the same way.

JEFFREY BROWN: Now, of course, as you mentioned, I mean, this -- this was seized upon quickly. And of course, it's something we watch with great interest here.

How much has -- has NPR become the focus? I mean, how much have these kinds of developments...

BRIAN STELTER: Yes.

JEFFREY BROWN: ... become a focal point for what is, after all, part of a much larger budget debate now?


BRIAN STELTER: You know, NPR becomes a symbol, really, I think, in this case.

Juan Williams was fired only a couple weeks before the election. So, some -- some people that were running for office that are now in Congress actually see this as a campaign promise, to defund NPR, because to them, NPR is a symbol of what they view as liberal bias and as elitism. And they want to take that down.

Many of their constituents listen to NPR, most likely, but it has become a symbol for them. Even though it's a relatively small amount of the budget, it's -- it's a main talking point, I think, for -- for some of these congressmen.

JEFFREY BROWN: And -- and, briefly, NPR going forward, they -- what do they tell you about how they try to separate them -- separate themselves from what this fund-raiser did?

BRIAN STELTER: The fact that both he -- both Ron Schiller and Vivian Schiller, who are unrelated, have both left is essentially a fresh start for NPR.

They hope this means they can -- they can have a new direction with a new chief executive. But they're going to have a tough time finding a new chief executive in the middle of this budget battle. The timing is not great for an organization that's been beset by controversies for the next -- for the last few months...

JEFFREY BROWN: Right.


BRIAN STELTER: ... now to have to figure out a new way forward.

JEFFREY BROWN: All right. Brian Stelter of The New York Times, thanks very much.


BRIAN STELTER: Thank you.

Wow..again.

Now - check out the actual video - very interesting itself:

http://www.youtube-nocookie.com/watch?v=xd9OYJMX9t4

Wow...again. Mr. Schiller's comment that there are not enough "educated elites" is what is dragging the country down...and he certainly counts himself among that small group of intellectual elites.  A big ouch for NPR, CPB, Ms. Liley at the table with him, former CEO Schiller, and, frankly, we, the taxpayers paying for this whole mess.

Nice. Have a zzootty day!!!  Look for more later!