First interview with NPR CEO Vivian Schiller on Juan Williams firing
Call me lucky. I had a pre-scheduled interview this morning with NPR CEO Vivian Schiller this morning before her speech at the Atlanta Press Club Newsmakers luncheon at the 191 Club in downtown Atlanta.
So lo and behold, the entire Juan Williams firing blew up the past 24 hours. I happen to be the first person to talk to her about it. She basically said he was on NPR as a news analyst and wasn’t supposed to express opinions, something he had done time and time again on Fox News. This was just the final straw. Commentators, in contrast, are specifically called that on NPR and are supposed to be opinionated.
She said this has nothing to do with Fox News or his particular views of Muslims. She is also sorry NPR did this while most public radio stations (including WABE-FM) are in the middle of their fall pledge drives.
After the luncheon, John Weatherford, senior chief operating officer at WABE-FM, acknowledged the Williams flap has been a “distraction” for the pledge drive, and he has gotten many emails and calls from WABE listeners who won’t give money because of it. He also said today is the matching day for Atlanta Community Food Bank and he hopes it doesn’t hurt them.
[Williams himself spoke about the situation on Fox News today and said he couldn't believe he was let go without even a face-to-face conversation. He was terminated by phone.]
UPDATE@ 5:25 p.m. The Los Angeles Times reports that Fox has signed Williams to a new three-year contract worth nearly $2 million.
Here is part of the Q&A:
Q: Okay. What happened?
A: Let’s state a couple of facts. Juan is not an employee of NPR. He’s an independent contractor. He’s not NPR staff. He’s an NPR analyst. We have a contract with him for analyst opinions to provide news analysis. He is not a columnist or commentator. He also has an on-going relationship with Fox News. Mara Liasson is also on Fox News and is a full-time staffer. We accept that’s a whole other issue. However, we expect our journalists, whether they are news analysts or reporters to behave like journalists.
Q: So did Juan really get fired over just those Muslim comments? [He said he was uncomfortable with Muslims dressed in traditional garb on airplanes during a Fox News telecast yesterday.]
A: There have been several instances over the last couple of years where we have felt Juan has stepped over the line. He famously said last year something about Michelle Obama and Stokely Carmichael. [The quote on Fox News early last year: "Michelle Obama, you know, she's got this Stokely Carmichael in a designer dress thing going" and that she'll be an "albatross" for President Obama.]. This isn’t a case of one strike and you’re out.
Q: So this is obviously not an isolated incident.
A: There’s so much misinformation on the blogosphere, it’s nuts. This has been an on-going issue. [Here's NPR's ombudsman's piece on him last year after the Obama comment.] When he does that, when anybody does that, it undermines their credibility as a journalist or in Juan’s case, a news analyst for NPR. Those two things cannot go together.
Q: Have you done this before with other analysts or reporters?
A: It’s impossible to answer that. Every circumstance is different and would create false parallels.
Q: As you mentioned, Mara Liasson appears on Fox News. Is there an issue with Fox News?
A: No. She behaves on Fox as a journalists. I have no issues with anything she has said on Fox. This is not about Fox News. It’s not about a political agenda. This is not about even validating or invalidating [Williams'] feelings.
Q: Mike Huckabee is now saying NPR has discredited itself and should have federal funding revoked.
A: Yes, I heard that. This has become a political issue. My God, I’m shocked!
Q: Could NPR live without federal funding?
A: Let’s go on a sidebar. There’s a misperception about federal funding and public radio. There’s the Corporation for Public Broadcasting. They receive $90 million a year and a vast majority goes to member public radio stations. Those stations pull in more than $1 billion collectively a year. It’s significant and important but not even close to the lion’s share of revenues for public radio. NPR gets no allocation from CPB. Zero. We are a private 501(c)3. We’ve had journalists call up and ask what department of the government we report to. That’s laughable. Have you listened to our shows? We do apply for competitive grants from the likes of the Ford Foundation and the Knight Foundation. As a result, some money from CPB does come to us when we win grants. Depending on the year, it represents just one to three percent of our total budget.
Q: What is your annual budget?
A: $160 million a year from station fees and dues, corporate underwriting, philanthropic contributions from individuals and corporation and earned income and earnings from our endowment.
Q: How healthy are you?
A: We had some issues the last couple of years and went into deficits. But we’ve regrouped and we’re back on track.
During the luncheon, she repeated much of what she told me.
“We are for civil liberties,” she said. “If you want to be a political activist, you may not also be a reporter or news analyst for NPR.”
Schiller also said it’s “sophomoric” to deride objectivity as a lie of omission, that hiding a journalists’ biases is a bad thing: “Yes, we are humans. We have opinions. None of us are impartial, that objectivity and absolute truth as concepts are unattainable. It does not follow that providing the most objective and most impartial work possible is not a worthy goal for professional journalists.”
She continues: “This is where the Juan Williams story enters. We have checks and balances to serve that goal. That’s why we have editors. We have an ombudsman and corrections. It’s why we let readers comment on stories. It’s why we run opinions and commentaries and label them as such. Commentaries are different from news analysis. It’s certainly why we practice journalism and prohibit journalists from certain activities, not just to protect the appearance of objectivity… it’s to protect the ideal of fair-minded journalism… People have strong opinions and professional journalists have developed procedures and standards and practices to counter them. It’s to draw a fine line between reporter and commentary and punditry.”
On a brighter note, she also noted that NPR public radio stations have seen their audience grow 60 percent over the past decade to 34 million people and that doesn’t include users who access NPR shows via mobile devices, the Web and podcasting. She is also proud that NPR has expanded its coverage in international news, the arts and sciences and other topics that have been reduced in other media.
“Our goal is simple,” Schiller told more the luncheon audience. “Deliver more news and information to more people in more ways.”
NOTE: I am a board member of the Atlanta Press Club.
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524 comments Add your comment
Ray
October 21st, 2010
6:06 pm
The garbage spewed by Juan on FOX was the same fuel that ignited the Holocaust, you morons.
Had the Jews expressed such pre-school thought about Christians following Tim McVeigh’s bomb,
the uneducated raging right would have crapped a brick.
There is no greater threat to this country today than the health of the ignorant redneck white trash movement.
Who needs al qaeda when you have the GOP?
jim
October 21st, 2010
6:06 pm
I totally support NPR on their stand, Vivian Schiller is a very smart and straight forward spokesperson. I love NPR and have been listening to NPR for several years and always find it very informative. They are not bias like all the other so called News Media and their unfair and unbalanced reporting and creating fear in our nation. God Bless America and God bless Vivian Schiller and good leaders like her. Thank you Vivian.
Ian Nimmo
October 21st, 2010
6:10 pm
I don’t believe a word, this is just more BS from the Socialist takeover of America and George Soros using his money to shut down honest American free speech. We will hold her and her money backers accountable. They need to stop right now!
Paddy O
October 21st, 2010
6:10 pm
kevin – the proud atheist assertion is patently false. They were not catholic or baptist, but they did believe in a supreme being, and tended toward Christianity.
JTesla
October 21st, 2010
6:10 pm
@Drew Williams: McVeigh also stated that “Science is my religion” in addition to claiming that he was agnostic (his words) and he stated that he would “‘improvise, adapt and overcome’ if it turned out there was an afterlife” Not a lot of faith shown in that last bit.
I would debate more, but in reality I agree with what you are saying regarding Muslims. They were, as a whole, shocked and outraged at 9/11. People in the US ignore that because it’s hard to demonize someone who is compassionate.
Paddy O
October 21st, 2010
6:14 pm
Personally, I like Juan Williams and believe his firing to be thought police provoked. I shall be boycotting NPR from here on out, and will not give to them or CPB for the next decade or so. The censorship by these politically correct ninnies should not be permitted – both the woman should be terminated for cause.
Paddy O
October 21st, 2010
6:17 pm
Jtesla – i was not witness to much shock and outrage. The Palestinians would already be living in peace if they had followed Gandhi’s example. INstead, since at least the 72 Olympics, they have systematically committed violence upon the jewish people. A society can not award another competing society with that type of behavior. One bad apple ruins the bunch, so how many bad spuds in a human community contaminate the community?
Paddy O
October 21st, 2010
6:18 pm
Drew – you know that concept of the muslim community center was an after thought after the organizers suffered quite a bit of public blowback – that was not the original intent.
boots
October 21st, 2010
6:21 pm
Good night, all. I’m off to eat dinner and watch some Fox News.
Belinda Gomez
October 21st, 2010
6:24 pm
Nina Totenberg once hoped Jesse Helms or one of his grandchildren would get AIDS. Why is she still employed?
http://www.washingtonexaminer.com/opinion/blogs/beltway-confidential/will-npr-fire-nina-totenberg-for-wishing-jesse-helms-would-get-aids-105441948.html
JTesla
October 21st, 2010
6:27 pm
LOL Paddy O, really Palestinian society? Those darn Palestinian’s, they’d be living in peace as poor refugees for this past half century if they’d followed Gandhi, instead of living this past half century simply as poor refugees. Crazy Palestinians, but hey let’s pin everything this small group has done on all Muslims. Oh yeah baby!
Of course “one bad apple ruins the bunch”, yeah you don’t want to go there either. I’ve shot down the McVeigh was a Christian angle, but enterprising commentators could easily pick someone else to be the Christian or the American (McVeigh) bad apple. Well why not let NPR be the bad apple, ban all radio. There, problem solved.
Leonard Witt
October 21st, 2010
6:41 pm
I attended the speech that Vivian Schiller, NPR CEO, gave at the Atlanta Press Club today and afterward got a nice video. It’s of her explaining why NPR terminated Juan Williams’ contract after he said on Fox News that when he sees people in Muslim dress on airplanes he gets nervous.
Also catch the elevator pitch — or was it almost a ditch ( I don’t think so) — when I ask if it would be ethical for a journalist to give NPR money and cover it too. Here is the video.
See: http://sustainablejournalism.org/weblog/post/2745/
Charles Witt
October 21st, 2010
6:54 pm
NPR CEO Vivian Schiller should immediately be fired for her Juan Williams “psychiatrist” remark… She obviously thinks that ALL black people are mentally troubled and have regular visits with psychiatrists
Betty
October 21st, 2010
7:01 pm
From NPR’s website: “Nina Totenberg is NPR’s award-winning legal affairs correspondent…the creme de la creme is Nina Totenberg.” Apparently being a legal affairs correspondent doesn’t require the same standard of impartiality required of analysts. Wishing AIDS on a U.S. Senator, after all, doesn’t meet the high standards outlined in the interview above, but she’s not only kept her job with NPR, she’s touted as one of their shining stars. Methinks a double standard exists at NPR depending on whether their leadership agrees with what’s being said or not.
The Public Professor
October 21st, 2010
7:01 pm
[...] What’s more, in a move of incredible classlessness, NPR CEO Vivian Schiller gave an interview to Atlanta Journal Constitution in which she rubbed salt in the wound. First she split hairs about “Juan” (she refuses to [...]
Oop
October 21st, 2010
7:05 pm
Shiller is another liberal elitist who thinks she knows better than the rest of us, as you can tell from her condescending tone during the interview. And for all you liberals out there, if stuff like this is allowed, where does it end? I didn’t agree when Sanchez was fired and I don’t agree with this now.
Betty
October 21st, 2010
7:06 pm
Also, Ms. Schiller says, “Juan is not an employee of NPR. He’s an independent contractor. He’s not NPR staff.”
Wouldn’t that be all the more reason NOT to fire him for something he said on another network, on another show? He wasn’t appearing as a representative of NPR.
Mandy
October 21st, 2010
7:23 pm
I listened to the NPR pledge drive announcer say last night that NPR was a place where all voices were welcomed and not shouted down. Hmmmmmmm …….
Fred
October 21st, 2010
7:26 pm
Its always ok to ridicule Christians by the left so lets organize and show what the power of Christians can do when we boycott any company or organization that sponsors the anti-Christian retoric. I am not a big fan of Juan but he got screwed over big time for speaking the truth. I bet you that miz Schiller would be nervous if she sat next to some muslums who were praying on the plane. When have you seen any muslums condem the 911 attack? Wake up America you are in a holy war before it is too late
tony
October 21st, 2010
7:32 pm
Lets make this simple. The only person who should be fired is Vivian Schiller for her bigoted liberal attitude. You are welcome to be in their tent so long as you believe and say what they want you to say. Her commentator story as the reason for firing Juan does not hold water based upon NPR’s pass history.
Olivia
October 21st, 2010
7:32 pm
Speech on NPR is monitored speech, not free speech. I am friends with and related to some very liberal people and they, as a group, want to express themselves freely but if I interject with my opinions most of them look at me as though I just flew in from Mars and, gasping and sputtering, try to relieve me of my wrong thoughts by explaining my error. Yes, I do listen to their thoughts and opinions and do not demean or belittle them, but they same courtesy is not extended to me. A common trait among liberals and progressives and now we know is a common trait by the folks in charge at NPR.
Dan
October 21st, 2010
7:34 pm
So how come Vivian hasn’t fired Nina Totenberg for this statement.
”
if there was “retributive justice” in the world the (admittedly loathsome) Jesse Helms would “get AIDS from a transfusion, or one of his grandchildren will get it.”
Read more at the Washington Examiner: http://www.washingtonexaminer.com/opinion/blogs/beltway-confidential/will-npr-fire-nina-totenberg-for-wishing-jesse-helms-would-get-aids-105441948.html#ixzz132VMiYtD
Dan
October 21st, 2010
7:36 pm
Watch this, and then ask why NPR hasn’t fired Nina Totenberg.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7msrF1V4NeY
Kary
October 21st, 2010
7:40 pm
If Juan is an Independent contractor NPR should have no say over what he does when he is not working for them. You hire independent contractors so you aren’t required to pay their insurance, SS, medicare and benefits but IRS rules state
The general rule is that an individual is an independent contractor if you, the person for whom the services are performed, have the right to control or direct only the result of the work and not the means and methods of accomplishing the result.
Sure wouldn’t seem like they could fire him for work on another program.
Son of\ Roanoke
October 21st, 2010
7:43 pm
I’ll never forget the day after the Republican voter revolution of 1994, our local NPR station saying today’s headline–Feinstein wins in California and Kennedy wins in Mass. Oh yes, that was a clear, unbiased summary of that election.
Now that the Republicans are again ready to take over the House, how far does your head have to be up your nether regions to hand them an issue like this on a silver platter. Brilliant!
Dan
October 21st, 2010
7:46 pm
Ohhhhhhhhhhhhhh Viviannnnnnnnnnn, why haven’t you also fired Nina Totenberg ?
RUFUS LEVIN
October 21st, 2010
7:47 pm
Well, what SHOWS is all the years she spent running operations for THE NEW YORK TIMES…and she pulls this elitist snobbery about independence of journalism and how they have to be objective…like Maureen Down and Frank Rich???
What a sorry piece of trash. Clearly her FIRST husband got the message early enough to dump her for the guy from CNN she married, but wouldn’t even take HIS last name. If there are any people needing psychiatry or therapy, it would be her TWO POOR KIDS.
Watch NPR financials TANK.
Seas
October 21st, 2010
7:52 pm
NPR is a worthless entity and should be removed from the air waves. Additionally Vivian Schiller is worthless in any capacity. She would have trouble performing at McDonald’s drive-up window. A real Air-Head! Besides, who in their right mind would waste time listening to the idiots on NPR?
Michael
October 21st, 2010
7:54 pm
So Juan Williams can’t have opinions, but Nina Totenberg can? Good puff piece to help Ms. Schiller do damage control. Juan was an analyst for NPR, which arguably requires some opinion, Nina is a reporter which (at least in theory) should be more fact based. Nina regularly spouts opinion about many topics including that she regrets the diversity of the democratic party and would change it if she could, why is she still employed at NPR?
DR DMAN
October 21st, 2010
7:56 pm
MS SCHILLER: One word: FUNDING…! Our local Public station is again pushing folks to “support” them. I would think all of your decision would be based on how you might effect that. As a moderate/conservative who listens to WABE (90.1FM) relatively often – but who has NEVER sent money, they further reinforces my resolve NOT TO! I wish we could find out how many others who are in this same boat. Your network is PROFOUNDLY leftist with so many of the views expressed, but still offers a solid news outlet with “Morning Edition” and “All Things Considered”. It is a shame that you all of clearly bought into the “Progressive” agenda. This decision further reinforces that. While I probably disagreed with Juan Williams 80% of the time, I found myself having to respect his integrity and intelligent arguments. Without a doubt this is YOUR (NPR’s) loss. Sad…
Michael
October 21st, 2010
7:58 pm
the NPR pledge drive going on now asks for donations based on the trust they have earned over the last 40 years… well i have listened to NPR for most of those years, but no longer. they clearly want to stifle any voice with whom they do not agree while accepting government funding. firing Juan Williams eradicated any residual trust they may have had.
Melissa's mom
October 21st, 2010
8:00 pm
I like to watch Bret Baier’s round table discussions on Fox News and always thought Juan Williams was very fair, though slightly leaning to the left. I’m shocked that NPR would fire him for speaking his mind. Anyone who thinks NPR is not political or has political activists working there, has never listened to the show! Every time I’ve ever heard “All Things Considered”, my thought is – the name of the show should be “All Things Considered Liberal”!
kevin
October 21st, 2010
8:01 pm
Fred,
It’s “muslims”, not “muslums”. It’s “rhetoric”, not “retoric”. I do not know many muslims, but I know a few (and work directly with one) and all of them condemn the 911 attacks. If you’d watch something other than Fux news, you’d see that most muslims, like most Christians, are not extremists. The “holy war” exists precisely because people like you are the pig-headed, white, Christian version of the very people you claim to hate.
Whoopi
October 21st, 2010
8:01 pm
NPR should be taken off the air!!
kevin
October 21st, 2010
8:03 pm
Juan’s contract was annihilated because he no longer represented an analyst, but an opinionated pundit–which NPR, if you have ever listened, does not support or broadcast.
Dan
October 21st, 2010
8:10 pm
Why is this Okay Vivian, but Juan is fired ?
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7msrF1V4NeY
OldTimer
October 21st, 2010
8:20 pm
If it hasn’t been said, then let me say it now.
Rodney Ho is the man.
Great job, you got the story.
dave payton
October 21st, 2010
8:22 pm
The government should not be funding NPR. Also take away the tax exempt donation status, it’s not a charity. They should do just fine being run as any other media business.
Pavel Bryansky
October 21st, 2010
8:22 pm
Mara – Pogrom has beginning. Watch out your ass.
Paula101
October 21st, 2010
8:30 pm
Is she Jewish? Simple question, not one worth firing any body for.
Joey Salaun
October 21st, 2010
8:39 pm
Schiller is nothing more than a schill. Piss poor reasons for terminating Juan Williams. Even worse, her comments on why. Give her the boot. I will never give another penny in support.
Uncle Chris
October 21st, 2010
8:44 pm
Juan Williams had every right, under the First Amendment, to state his opinion that he was nervous when flying with Muslims. NPR had every right to fire Juan Williams for stating that opinion.
What is particularly galling is that Juan Williams is proud of the books he has written on southern segregation, emphasizing the civil rights movement. Here he is, however, just a bigoted about Muslims in general as members of the KKK were bigoted about blacks.
Donald McWethy
October 21st, 2010
8:45 pm
Anybody who says the word “censorship” is a freaking moron. He can say anything he wants. They just aren’t going to pay him anymore. Freedom of speech has nothing to do with a paid platform for such speech.
Donald McWethy
October 21st, 2010
8:46 pm
and oh, by the way, he violated his contract. why shouldn’t he be fired?
jazz
October 21st, 2010
8:48 pm
npr should be defunded first thing tomorrow morning. Don’t use my tax dollars to support one point of view. See these mind numbed robots
http://www2.journalnow.com/news/2010/oct/20/wssu-e-mail-called-illegal-ar-467783/
Peter Thomas
October 21st, 2010
8:55 pm
NPR will never get a dime from me. I hope they go out of business. I suggest that everyone who feels the same way boycotts public radio sponsors. I will only take a few radio stations taking hits on fund raising and they’ll get the message. There is nothing on NPR that can’t be heard elsewhere. Stop funding it with my tax dollars.
Dan
October 21st, 2010
8:59 pm
The point you leftists fail to understand, is that Nina Totenberg had absolutely disgusting comments about Jesse Helms. That’s okay of course, because leftists preach free speech all day long, as long as it’s something they agree with. Thus why Totenberg got away with her hateful vile remarks.
kevin
October 21st, 2010
9:01 pm
I love all of these people saying they will never give NPR a dime. You’ve never listened to it or given a dime in the past–big loss. Jeez.
Josh
October 21st, 2010
9:04 pm
I’ll continue listening to WABE, but I’ll never give them any money.
kevin
October 21st, 2010
9:12 pm
Peter Thomas,
Clearly, you have never listened to NPR. What other news source gives you the information, in the manner, NPR does?