Has NPR lost America’s trust?

[Anonymous]

NPR has been a joke for a while’s that’s too bad. Grew up listening to them in long car rides.

Then days of Tom Brokaw, Walter Kronkite and experts giving news are long over.

Now most of it is just in time rush job tweets and insta posts followed up by barely editted online “newspaper articles”. Even NYTimes and the FT are 90% Opinion articles

And as we all know, Opinions are like Aholes, we’ve all got one.

[Anonymous]

Even Wait, Wait, Don't Tell Me has gone south. Last Saturday it was 1 hour of bashing Trump/Republicans.

It's supposed to be a comedy show, not propaganda.

[Anonymous]

I do still generally like NPR, but I find the CONSTANT discussion of race and gay/trans stuff very off putting. There's so much to the world than all this stupid racial/sexual identity crap.

I am not surprised they have lost a big portion of the audience.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I do still generally like NPR, but I find the CONSTANT discussion of race and gay/trans stuff very off putting. There's so much to the world than all this stupid racial/sexual identity crap.

I am not surprised they have lost a big portion of the audience.

It’s not constant.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I do still generally like NPR, but I find the CONSTANT discussion of race and gay/trans stuff very off putting. There's so much to the world than all this stupid racial/sexual identity crap.

I am not surprised they have lost a big portion of the audience.

It’s not constant.

DP here. VERY frequent!!

[Anonymous]

Regardless of those who want to say NPR is just fine, when you lose approximately 1/3 of your listeners in 4 years, you're doing a lot wrong.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I do still generally like NPR, but I find the CONSTANT discussion of race and gay/trans stuff very off putting. There's so much to the world than all this stupid racial/sexual identity crap.

I am not surprised they have lost a big portion of the audience.

Disagree that racial/sexual identity reporting is "stupid crap." I have a bi kid.

But I don't want that to be the lens through which so many damn things are reported. There are so many other povs that are worthy of airtime. Even yours.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Regardless of those who want to say NPR is just fine, when you lose approximately 1/3 of your listeners in 4 years, you're doing a lot wrong.

Basically this. And you can't write it all off as people WFH and not commuting as much, which is NPR's current take on the audience fall-off.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Regardless of those who want to say NPR is just fine, when you lose approximately 1/3 of your listeners in 4 years, you're doing a lot wrong.

Basically this. And you can't write it all off as people WFH and not commuting as much, which is NPR's current take on the audience fall-off.

What % of people WFH now vs 4 years ago?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Regardless of those who want to say NPR is just fine, when you lose approximately 1/3 of your listeners in 4 years, you're doing a lot wrong.

Basically this. And you can't write it all off as people WFH and not commuting as much, which is NPR's current take on the audience fall-off.

What % of people WFH now vs 4 years ago?

I don't know, but they can still turn on the radio!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Regardless of those who want to say NPR is just fine, when you lose approximately 1/3 of your listeners in 4 years, you're doing a lot wrong.

Basically this. And you can't write it all off as people WFH and not commuting as much, which is NPR's current take on the audience fall-off.

I’m in this category. I used to turn on NPR when I was cooking or cleaning at home. I’ve stopped that entirely. It’s tedious and worse, I’ve stopped believing them. I just don’t trust the reporting any more.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Regardless of those who want to say NPR is just fine, when you lose approximately 1/3 of your listeners in 4 years, you're doing a lot wrong.

Basically this. And you can't write it all off as people WFH and not commuting as much, which is NPR's current take on the audience fall-off.

What % of people WFH now vs 4 years ago?

I don't know, but they can still turn on the radio!

+1. Much of NPR programming doesn't even occur during my commute. And I don't need to listen to Up First during a commute, because it's not even really long so I can listen to it while I get breakfast ready. The problem is that there are so many other news options that I trust but don't feel brow-beaten listening to (and I'm the lefty with the bi daughter).

It's actually a problem for society, that we're so fractured into our own news sources. Unfortunately, NPR has become part of this fracturing problem, not part of the solution.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Regardless of those who want to say NPR is just fine, when you lose approximately 1/3 of your listeners in 4 years, you're doing a lot wrong.

Basically this. And you can't write it all off as people WFH and not commuting as much, which is NPR's current take on the audience fall-off.

Without wading into politics, it’s definitely a big part of it. Habits changed. Having it on in the car during a commute was routine, and that disappeared for a lot of people, including me.

Could I turn it on at home? Sure, but I rarely think of it.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:And a story about NPR in the NYT. The comments are particularly interesting. Lots of strong feelings about NPR, most of them not good.

https://www.nytimes.com/2024/04/24/business/media/npr-uri-berliner-diversity.html?unlocked_article_code=1.nE0.6gHu.zNslOwxPSicF&smid=url-share

Thanks for sharing. The comments reflect how I've been feeling about NPR

+1 yep and down 15+ million listeners in 4 years.

I'm one of them. And I don't need "changing my mind by hearing other perspectives" as a pp suggested. I already agree with anti-racism efforts, pro-Palestine and anti Israel killing and starving children (duh). I just want to hear interesting and enlightening news stories without being beat over the head with the woke angle on every single story. So tiresome, boring, and condescending to the listener. ''

If NPR is like my own agency, no one speaks up against poor decisions and wastes of time and money because they are afraid of getting accused of not supporting the woke cause.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Even Wait, Wait, Don't Tell Me has gone south. Last Saturday it was 1 hour of bashing Trump/Republicans.

It's supposed to be a comedy show, not propaganda.

Trump is objectively comical however.