Lafayette Reporter

Senator John Kennedy of Louisiana has introduced the Senate version of the No Propaganda Act, aiming to cut federal funding for the Corporation for Public Broadcasting (CPB). This legislation seeks to halt taxpayer money from being used by CPB, which supports National Public Radio (NPR), due to concerns over biased content.

Kennedy stated, "The Corporation for Public Broadcasting should not be funneling Louisianians’ hard-earned tax dollars to outlets with one-sided coverage that clearly aim to promote a leftist political agenda. The No Propaganda Act would make sure that Americans aren’t footing the bill for biased, government media."

In the House of Representatives, Representative Scott Perry from Pennsylvania is championing this bill. Perry remarked, "The American Taxpayer continues to provide handouts through the Corporation for Public Broadcasting to media outlets that have actively pushed Chinese propaganda and have prioritized fighting disinformation over free speech. CPB must be defunded to end the stream of taxpayer funds to biased, anti-American public radio and television stations."

Since 1969, Congress has allocated more than $15 billion in funding to CPB, which distributes these funds primarily to NPR and PBS. According to CPB's mission statement, its purpose is "to educate, inform, foster curiosity, and promote civil discourse essential to American society."

Controversies have surrounded these organizations. In April 2020, a whistleblower revealed NPR's decision not to cover the Hunter Biden laptop story during the 2020 election cycle due to concerns it might benefit then-presidential candidate Donald Trump. Additionally, reports indicated that PBS collaborated with CGTN—a media outlet controlled by China's Communist Party—using taxpayer money for a pro-Beijing film.

The complete text of the proposed bill is available online.