Trump, his administration move to punish outlets during second term

July 15, 2025 | Trump administration, Congress target public broadcasting

June 29, 2025 | Trump says journalists will be forced to reveal sources in pursuit of Iran report leakers

June 3, 2025 | White House asks Congress to repeal $1.1 billion in funding to public media

May 1, 2025 | Trump signs executive order eliminating funding to NPR, PBS

April 14, 2025 | White House plans to formally ask Congress to cut PBS, NPR funding

March 14, 2025 | Trump signs executive order gutting government-funded news outlets

March 14, 2025 | Trump says negative press coverage ‘illegal’ during speech at DOJ

July 15, 2025 | Trump administration, Congress, target public broadcasting

The Trump administration filed a federal lawsuit on July 15, 2025, against the Corporation for Public Broadcasting — which provides funding to NPR, PBS and their local affiliates — in an attempt to oust the three Democratic board members.

Trump had attempted to fire the board members in April, and just days later, on May 1, signed an executive order instructing the private nonprofit corporation to cease federal funding for the public media outlets.

NPR sued to halt the order, calling it “textbook retaliation.” NPR CEO Katherine Maher wrote, “The intent could not be more clear — the Executive Order aims to punish NPR for the content of news and other programming the President dislikes.”

The following month, Trump further targeted government support for the public broadcasters through a rescission request, asking Congress to cancel $1.1 billion in already-approved funding.

The House approved the package in a close vote — 214-212 on June 12.

In a July 10 post on the social platform Truth Social, Trump called on Senate Republicans to grant the request, especially as it pertains to the broadcasters.

“It is very important that all Republicans adhere to my Recissions Bill and, in particular, DEFUND THE CORPORATION FOR PUBLIC BROADCASTING (PBS and NPR), which is worse than CNN & MSDNC put together,” Trump wrote. “Any Republican that votes to allow this monstrosity to continue broadcasting will not have my support or Endorsement.”

The Senate approved the request in a 51-48 vote early morning July 17, despite concerns from members of Congress that it surrendered the legislative branch’s power of the purse, The New York Times reported.

One holdout, Sen. Mike Rounds of South Dakota, voted in favor after he was assured by Trump officials that unspent funds would be used “to continue grants to tribal radio stations without interruption” for next year, according to the Times.

The House gave final approval for the White House’s request early July 18, The Associated Press reported, making it the first successful rescissions request to Congress in decades.

June 29, 2025 | Trump says journalists will be forced to reveal sources in pursuit of Iran report leakers

In an interview with Fox News aired on June 29, 2025, President Donald Trump said that journalists could and should be forced to reveal their sources so that those behind the leaks of classified intelligence on U.S. strikes on Iran could be prosecuted.

Following the airstrikes earlier in June, several news outlets — including CNN, The New York Times and The Washington Post — reported that a preliminary assessment found that the bombings had set Iran’s nuclear program back by months, not “obliterated” it as Trump had been asserting.

Trump doubled down on the claim during his interview with Fox News host Maria Bartiromo on June 27, lamenting the coverage the strikes had received.

“They did obliterate it, it turned out. Then we had to suffer the fake news, where the fake news in CNN and The New York Times was saying, ‘Well, maybe it wasn’t as good as Trump said. Maybe it wasn’t totally obliterated, but it was destroyed,’” Trump said. “You know, just horrible. And I could see it happening and they tried to build that into a story.”

Trump added that those behind the leak should be prosecuted and, when asked whether his administration would be able to identify them, indicated that he has no issue forcing journalists to identify their sources.

“We can find out. If they wanted, they could find out easily. You know, you go up and tell the reporter, ‘National security: Who gave it?’ You have to do that. And I suspect we’ll be doing things like that,” Trump said.

White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt discredited CNN’s reporting on the assessment in a post on the social platform X, writing “FAKE NEWS CNN STRIKES AGAIN.”

“This alleged ‘assessment’ is flat-out wrong and was classified as ‘top secret’ but was still leaked to CNN by an anonymous, low-level loser in the intelligence community,” Leavitt continued.

In a statement to the Post, Leavitt accused the newspaper of “helping people commit felonies by publishing out-of-context leaks.”

Trump’s administrations have routinely sought to punish leakers and have demonstrated a willingness to disregard journalists’ First Amendment protections in order to do so.

June 3, 2025 | White House asks Congress to repeal $1.1 billion in funding to public media

The Trump White House budget office asked Congress on June 3, 2025, to cancel $1.1 billion in funding already approved for public broadcasting, multiple media outlets reported.

The request, drafted in April, calls for the elimination of two years’ worth of funding for the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, which in turn partially funds NPR and PBS. Only a simple majority vote is needed to approve the request.

The Washington Post reported that Russell Vought, head of the Office of Management and Budget, proposed the cuts in a letter to Trump, writing, “federal spending on CPB subsidizes a public media system that is politically biased and is an unnecessary expense to the taxpayer.”

Trump, individuals in his administration and allies in Congress have repeatedly targeted public broadcasters since his return to office in January.

Trump said during a March 25 meeting with U.S. ambassadors that he would “love” to eliminate funding for the public broadcasters. In April, he called on Republicans in Congress to defund and disassociate themselves from “THE RADICAL LEFT ‘MONSTERS’ THAT SO BADLY HURT OUR COUNTRY,” and the White House asserted in an official statement that NPR and PBS are publishing “trash” and have engaged in a “grift.”

In April, Trump attempted to illegally fire three CPB board members and just days later, on May 1, signed an executive order instructing the private nonprofit corporation to cease federal funding for the outlets.

NPR sued to halt the order, calling it “textbook retaliation.” NPR CEO Katherine Maher wrote, “The intent could not be more clear — the Executive Order aims to punish NPR for the content of news and other programming the President dislikes.”

Within Congress, Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene has led a campaign against the broadcasters and Rep. Ronny Jackson introduced a bill to eliminate all direct and indirect government funding for NPR and PBS.

In a statement published when the draft recision request became public, NPR said eliminating funding for CPB would have a devastating impact on communities that rely on public broadcasting each day.

“We serve the public interest,” the outlet wrote. “It’s not just in our name — it’s our mission.”

May 1, 2025 | Trump signs executive order eliminating funding to NPR, PBS

President Donald Trump signed an executive order on May 1, 2025, instructing the Corporation for Public Broadcasting to cease federal funding for NPR and PBS, citing their alleged “biased and partisan news coverage.”

In a news release the following day, the White House accused the news outlets of using “millions of dollars in taxpayer funds each year to spread radical, woke propaganda disguised as ‘news.’”

Patricia Harrison, president and CEO of CPB, issued a statement pushing back against the executive order, citing provisions expressly forbidding government actors from attempting to direct the corporation’s work.

“CPB is not a federal executive agency subject to the President’s authority,” Harrison wrote. “Congress directly authorized and funded CPB to be a private nonprofit corporation wholly independent of the federal government.”

Trump’s executive order came just days after he directed a staff member to email three of CPB’s five board members to alert them that they had been removed from their positions. The board as a whole and the targeted members — Diane Kaplan, Laura Ross and Thomas Rothman — sued Trump on April 29, seeking a judicial declaration that the order is unenforceable, as the president has no power to remove them.

“Put simply, Congress conceived CPB as a vehicle for infusing federal money into public broadcasting without the introduction of government direction or control,” the suit states. “Moreover, Congress protected the CPB from the executive branch by withholding from CPB any form, pure or quasi, of legislative, judicial, or regulatory power.”

White House spokesperson Taylor Rogers dismissed CPB’s assertions in a statement to NPR. “As numerous courts have repeatedly affirmed, the Constitution gives President Trump the power to remove personnel who exercise his executive authority,” Rogers said. “The Trump Administration looks forward to ultimate victory on the issue.”

District Judge Randolph Moss has ordered both sides to file arguments on CPB’s motion, which seeks a temporary restraining order to prevent Trump’s order from taking effect.

Trump’s executive order and attempt to remove CPB board members were the latest attacks on public broadcasting by his administration or allies in Congress. Earlier, the White House drafted a recision request to revoke $1.1 billion in approved funding for the corporation, FCC Chair Brendan Carr launched investigations into PBS and NPR over their advertising and sponsorship practices, and Reps. Ronny Jackson and Marjorie Taylor Greene have demeaned the outlets and threatened their funding.

April 14, 2025 | White House plans to formally ask Congress to cut PBS, NPR funding

The Trump White House plans to formally ask Congress to cancel $1.1 billion in funding already approved for public broadcasting, multiple news outlets reported on April 14, 2025.

According to NPR, the White House has drafted a rescission request that calls for the elimination of two years’ worth of funding for the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, which in turn partially funds NPR and PBS.

The administration intends to send it to Congress when lawmakers return from a two-week recess on April 28. Only a simple majority vote is needed to approve the request.

In a statement published April 14, which did not mention the draft request, the White House asserted that NPR and PBS are publishing “trash” and have engaged in a “grift.”

“For years, American taxpayers have been on the hook for subsidizing National Public Radio (NPR) and the Public Broadcasting Service (PBS), which spread radical, woke propaganda disguised as ‘news,’” the statement said. “As President Trump has stated, taxpayer funding of NPR’s and PBS’s biased content is a waste.”

Trump said during a March 25 meeting with U.S. ambassadors that he would “love” to eliminate funding for the public broadcasters, and in an April 1 social media post called on Republicans in Congress to “DEFUND AND TOTALLY DISASSOCIATE THEMSELVES FROM NPR & PBS, THE RADICAL LEFT ‘MONSTERS’ THAT SO BADLY HURT OUR COUNTRY.”

In a statement published by NPR, the outlet said, “Eliminating funding for the Corporation for Public Broadcasting would have a devastating impact on American communities across the nation that rely on public radio for trusted local and national news, culture, lifesaving emergency alerts, and public safety information.

“We serve the public interest. It’s not just in our name — it’s our mission.”

March 14, 2025 | Trump signs executive order gutting government-funded news outlets

In a late-night executive order, President Donald Trump eliminated all functions not required by law for the United States Agency for Global Media, along with a half-dozen other federal agencies, referring to them as “unnecessary governmental entities.”

The USAGM oversees Voice of America and the office that manages Radio and TV Martí, as well as provides funding for private international broadcasters Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, Radio Free Asia and the Middle East Broadcasting Networks.

Michael Abramowitz, director of Voice of America, confirmed in a March 15 statement on his personal Facebook page that he and nearly the entire staff of the news organization — more than 1,300 journalists, producers and support staff — had been suspended.

“I am deeply saddened that for the first time in 83 years, the storied Voice of America is being silenced,” Abramowitz wrote. “VOA needs thoughtful reform, and we have made progress in that regard. But today’s action will leave Voice of America unable to carry out its vital mission.”

No articles have been published on the VOA website since around 2 p.m. on March 15. The Independent reported that by the following night, many of the employees placed on leave had been fired, including press freedom reporter Liam Scott.

NPR reported that USAGM also severed its contracts with the private international broadcasters it funds.

In a March 15 news release, the White House railed against “The Voice of Radical America,” and said Trump’s executive order “will ensure that taxpayers are no longer on the hook for radical propaganda.”

Elon Musk, head of the new Department of Government Efficiency, had called for the USAGM news outlets to be shut down in early February, writing, “It’s just radical left crazy people talking to themselves while torching $1B/year of US taxpayer money.”

Grant Turner, a former senior executive at USAGM, called the cuts “Bloody Saturday” and told NPR, “It took decades to build this goodwill and an audience of hundreds of millions every week. Seeing arsonists just set fire to it all is awful.”

Steve Capus, the president of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, said in a statement shared with NPR, “The cancellation of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty’s grant agreement would be a massive gift to America’s enemies.”

March 14, 2025 | Trump says negative press coverage ‘illegal’ during speech at DOJ

President Donald Trump called the critical news coverage of his administration “illegal” and “corrupt” during a speech at the Department of Justice on March 14, 2025.

Amid his nearly hourlong remarks, Trump said that many judges, including those on the Supreme Court, “take tremendous abuse” from news outlets, including The New York Times, The Washington Post and broadcast networks, likening the coverage to judicial interference. “It’s truly interference in my opinion and it should be illegal and it probably is illegal in some form,” Trump said.

He went on to claim that CNN and MSNBC are “political arms of the Democrat Party.”

“These networks and these newspapers are really no different than a highly paid political operative and it has to stop, it has to be illegal,” Trump said.

As Trump decried his perceived enemies in the media, justice system and nonprofit sector, he advanced the DOJ as a tool to exact his personal vengeance. He asserted that he is the chief law enforcement officer — which The Associated Press reported is technically Attorney General Pam Bondi — and as such will demand “full and complete accountability for the wrongs and abuses that have occurred.”