DOGE Opponents Play at Saving Elmo While NPR, PBS Execs Rake in Taxpayer Cash

DOGE has identified the outlets for elimination as Congress works to pass Trump agenda.

About a month ago, a sideshow unfolded on Capitol Hill, as members of Congress sarcastically demanded to know whether Elmo had become a dirty Commie and National Public Radio CEO Katherine Maher was pressed on whether she believed the United States was “addicted to white supremacy.”

Maher and Public Broadcasting Service (PBS) CEO Paula Kerger had been called before a hearing of the House DOGE Subcommittee to defend their receipt of public tax dollars. The hearing, "Anti-American Airwaves: Holding the Heads of NPR and PBS Accountable,” was a venue for DOGE critics to rail against cuts to the arts, while conservatives went through a litany of claims of liberal bias at both institutions.

In prepared testimony, Heritage Foundation fellow Angeles T. Arredondo said, “NPR and PBS have violated the public trust, and have therefore forsaken their claim on the public money … There is also the fact that the funding is a regressive tax. It is an obnoxious forced wealth transfer from working families to the most affluent pockets of society, which constitute the lion’s share of NPR’s and PBS’s audience.”

While NPR has pointed out they receive a relatively tiny portion of funding from the feds, perhaps negating the need for such drama, the truth is a bit more complicated.

FEDERAL DOLLARS TO NPR & PBS

It’s true, on its most recent tax return, NPR reported receiving just $40,000 from federal taxpayers. That money came via the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, a nonprofit that directs federal funds to various media stations.

That taxpayer infusion represents just 0.04% of the $98.57 million in grants NPR accepted from all parties, and just a tiny sliver of CPB’s grantsmaking. It pales in comparison NPR’s total annual revenue of $304.5 million. At the end of FY23, NPR was sitting on $388.5 million in total assets despite falling ratings.

PBS’ tax return shows a more sizable $22.74 million from the government, but it’s still just over 8% of the station’s hefty $272.32 million haul in grants and contributions. (At the end of FY23, PBS was sitting on $641.23 million in total assets, an increase of $52 million from the previous year.)

That’s only part of the story, though. As Howard Husock, a former CPB board member, explained in a 2024 editorial, “It is misleading for NPR to assert … that it receives but 1 percent of its funding from the federal government. The reality is more complex — and should raise questions for those who care about the future of ‘public media.’”

TRICKLE-UP FUNDING?

The CPB spends most of its $535 million budget on “community service grants” to small, local TV and radio stations around the country. That funding level will remain constant through at least 2027, as per the continuing resolution funding package passed by Congress in March 2025 (unless Congress takes additional action to cancel it through a process known as rescission).

The Public Broadcasting Act of 1967 dictates that 23% of the community service grants that radio stations receive must be used for “acquiring or producing programming that is to be distributed nationally and is designed to serve the needs of a national audience.” In other words, the stations are legally required to send taxpayer funds to NPR to license and rebroadcast its content.

NPR reported $99.33 million from programming fees in 2024. It’s unclear if all of that money originated with the CPB, but a large portion certainly did, by NPR’s own admission. The organization’s website stated in 2024 that “federal funding is essential to public radio’s service to the American public,” and the programming fees from the local stations “comprise a significant portion of NPR’s largest source of revenue. The loss of federal funding would undermine the stations’ ability to pay NPR for programming, thereby weakening the institution.”

BIG TIME EXECUTIVE & TALENT PAY

Perhaps NPR and PBS would be less reliant on taxpayer funding if they weren’t making millionaires out of their own employees.

PBS CEO Paula Kerger earns $1,055,135 in salary and $113,526 in “other compensation,” per tax returns. Three other PBS employees make more than $500,000, and another ten make more than $300,000.

Notable among them is Cecilia Loving, who earned $355,186 in base salary and $41,054 in other compensation to serve as Senior Vice President, DEI (Diversity, Equity and Inclusion).

NPR spent $5.18 million on payroll for its officers and key employees. Former CEO John Lansing made $549,701 in salary and $40,551 in other compensation in Fiscal Year 2023. Maher began in her role midway through the year (March 24), so no earnings are reflected, although she and her attorney husband are already multimillionaires.

To read Maher’s CV is to take a tour of progressive institutions from the World Economic Forum to the Atlantic Council.

On the talent side, NPR’s Steve Inskeep is one of four rotating anchors on Morning Edition and morning news podcast Up First. He earned $490,881 in salary and $41,307 in other compensation.

Michel Martin hosts the weekend edition of All Things Considered, and made $444,416 in salary with $41,513 in other comp. Martin also hosts PBS’ Amanpour & Company.

Peter Sagal hosts the comedic news quiz show, Wait Wait…Don’t Tell Me! For which he earned $436,962 in base salary plus $41,516 on top of that.

Scott Simon made $409,037 plus 41,538 in additional comp. He hosts Weekend Edition Saturday and cohosts Up First.

Rachel Martin is “co-creator and host of Wild Card, an interview game show about life's biggest questions. She invites notable guests to play a card game that lets them open up about the memories, insights, and beliefs that have shaped their lives.” For that she made $426,467 plus $23,225 in other compensation.

CONCLUSION

Since the DOGE hearing, the Trump administration has encouraged lawmakers to cancel $1.3 bilion in funding to the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, which in turns funds the TV and radio operations. That would be followed by ending future funding for CPB. In response, NPR is ramping up a letter writing campaign among its stations, urging them to write their members of Congress and report any response they receive.

NPR and PBS each sit on hundreds of millions in assets and have kept receiving public funds despite their ratings or any metrics for content quality. In an age where news consumers have unlimited options, it’s time for them to rise or fall on the merit of their offerings, rather than paying out giant salaries – untethered to performance -- on taxpayers’ dime.

…And a point of order for DOGE opponents seeking to defend Elmo and the Cookie Monster: they moved on from public airwaves for a first-run streaming home on Max, and are currently out seeking a new production contract with the highest bidder.