For the second time in three years, NPR is going back to the well — this time offering voluntary buyouts, with the prospect of layoffs to follow, as President and CEO Katherine Maher works to close an $8 million budget gap created by the loss of federal public media subsidies.
The backdrop is well-known to those who have followed the ongoing tug-of-war between the Trump administration and public broadcasting. In March, a U.S. District Judge permanently blocked a White House executive order directing federal agencies to cease funding for NPR and PBS, ruling it violated the First Amendment by targeting the broadcasters for their editorial choices. What that ruling did not do, however, was restore the roughly $1.1 billion in advance CPB appropriations Congress rescinded last July — money that had funded member stations and, indirectly, NPR’s programming fees.
As first reported by NPR itself, buyouts are being offered to roughly 300 employees, the majority on newsgathering desks, with the network prepared to accept up to 30. Staff who have not taken the offer by May 26 could face targeted cuts.
Two record-breaking private gifts totaling $113 million arrived just ahead of the restructuring announcement, though most of that noteworthy cushion is restricted to technological innovation. “The extraordinary generosity of donors across the nation has really mitigated some of the hardest impacts of the loss of federal funding,” Maher said. “Now it is our responsibility to ensure that we take that gift that they have given us and use this time to get to a place where we are sustainable for the future.”
Alongside the headcount reductions, NPR is restructuring its newsroom desk configuration. The National and General Assignments desks will merge next month, sharpening their focus on deep dives, natural disasters, and news deserts. Culture, education, religion, addiction, and sports coverage will fold into a new society-and-culture desk. Science and climate will be unified under one banner, and the global health team will shift from the Science desk to International.
On the leadership side, Executive Editor Eva Rodriguez is transitioning to a consulting role, with Chief Washington Editor Krishnadev Calamur stepping into the breach. Deputy Dana Farrington will take over the new politics and policy desk. Eric Marrapodi, who currently oversees news programming, will temporarily pivot to lead NPR’s video expansion. Sami Yenigun, executive producer of All Things Considered, will oversee broadcast shows and newscasts, with Courtney Dorning filling his seat on the program.
Separately, NPR continues its search for a Chief Content Officer to oversee both newsroom and programming divisions. That vacancy has remained open since the departure of Edith Chapin last year, after 13 years with the organization.
