Is NCPR liberal?

A lot of the discussion here at the In Box has wrestled with these questions: Is public radio liberal? Does NCPR reflect that bias?

And what does it mean that we rely on government funding for a small portion of our budget?

All valid questions. Let me wrestle with them, then I’ll look forward to your thoughts below.

First, I do think public radio is liberal. But only in the sense of the word when used like this: “liberal democracy” or “liberal education.”

What do I mean? I mean that we try to confront pressing issues in our communities, issues that some individuals and groups would prefer not to talk about.

If you think it’s ‘liberal’ to acknowledge environmental degradation or poverty or racism, then yes, we’re liberal.

But once we raise those questions, we do our best to reflect the public debate fairly and honestly.

That doesn’t mean we always tell “both sides of the story” equally. Sometimes, our research indicates that one side or the other has a far better grasp of the facts.

A couple of examples:

Many of the human health claims made against wind farms aren’t supported by independent, credible scientific research. We make that clear in our reports.

On the other hand, the vast majority of qualified experts do believe that climate change is real and triggered by human activity. We also make that clear.

If and when we find good data that contradicts those facts, we’ll report it promptly.

Now, it’s also possible for a news organization to show liberal bias by only asking one set of questions.

If NCPR only asked about the environment, for example, and not the economy — that would reflect a left-leaning slant.

But anyone reviewing our story lists will find that we regularly probe concerns about burdensome taxes, big and inefficient government, the aging North Country population, etc.

We’ve led the region’s media outlets in questioning whether an over-reliance on government jobs is dangerous or unsustainable.

We also regularly feature guests who hold traditional and conservative values. And while we often pose challenging questions to those individuals, we do so respectfully with a goal of illuminating their views for our listeners.

It’s been suggested by some that we ‘go easy’ on guests from liberal or progressive groups.

In fact, NCPR’s aggressive reporting has sparked far more anger and protest from left-leaning groups than from groups on the right.

The bottom line? Pundits on the left and right have worked hard to discredit the idea of a truly independent, unbiased news organization.

And they’re right in a sense: It is hard to play the neutral party, to offer common ground where everyone feels welcome. We at NCPR make mistakes all the time.

But the mission here — the compass we consult in every editorial meeting and every script edit — is to be as fair and neutral as we can possibly be.

Finally, about the money. Yes, NCPR receives a small amount of funding each year from state and Federal grants. To be honest, I’m ambivalent about this fact.

The money helps us to create great programs and offer valuable services across our enormous broadcast area.

I happen to believe that government has a mission to foster arts and culture, at the same time that it provides more bread-and-butter services (roads, defense, etc.).

But in a time of massive budget deficits, I think an open debate over funding for public radio and television should continue.

And we’ll report on it as fairly and accurately as possible.

–Brian Mann, NCPR