NPR CEO apologizes for Handling of Williams Firing

Politico

 

Vivian Schiller, the NPR CEO who has gotten criticism from all sides about NPR’s decision to fire Juan Williams, apologized to her colleagues Sunday evening for the way the firing was handled.

Among the most problematic aspects of the firing was the NPR’s initial statement suggesting that Williams's statements on “The O’Reilly Factor” were to blame. Schiller later said that Williams had long been in hot water at NPR, and the recent statements were simply the last straw, but the timing of his firing undermined this argument.

In her latest statement, Schiller acknowledges that “reasonable people can disagree about timing” and apologizes for firing Williams over the phone, but doesn’t back down from the decision itself.

The letter:

    Dear Program Colleagues,

    I want to apologize for not doing a better job of handling the termination of our relationship with news analyst Juan Williams. While we stand firmly behind that decision, I regret that we did not take the time to prepare our program partners and provide you with the tools to cope with the fallout from this episode. I know you all felt the reverberations and are on the front lines every day responding to your listeners and talking to the public

    This was a decision of principle, made to protect NPR’s integrity and values as a news organization. Juan Williams’ comments on Fox News last Monday were the latest in a series of deeply troubling incidents over several years. In each of those instances, he was contacted and the incident was discussed with him. He was explicitly and repeatedly asked to respect NPR's standards and to avoid expressing strong personal opinions on controversial subjects in public settings, as that is inconsistent with his role as an NPR news analyst. After this latest incident, we felt compelled to act. I acknowledge that reasonable people can disagree about timing: whether NPR should have ended its relationship with Juan Williams earlier, on the occasion of other incidents; or whether this final episode warranted immediate termination of his contract.

    In any event, the process that followed the decision was unfortunate – including not meeting with Juan Williams in person – and I take full responsibility for that. We have already begun a thorough review of all aspects of our performance in this instance, a process that will continue in the coming days and weeks. We will also review and re-articulate our written ethics guidelines to make them as clear and relevant as possible for our acquired show partners, our staff, Member stations and the public.

    The news and media world is changing swiftly and radically; traditional standards and practices are under siege. This requires us to redouble our attention to how we interpret and live up to our values and standards. We are confident that NPR’s integrity and dedication to the highest values in journalism and our commitment to serving as a national forum for the respectful discussion of diverse ideas will continue to earn the support of a growing audience.

    I stand by my decision to end NPR’s relationship with Juan Williams, but deeply regret the way I handled and explained it. You have my pledge that the NPR team and I will reflect on all aspects of our actions, and strive to improve them in the future.

    Please feel free to share your concerns and suggestions.

    Respectfully,

    Vivian Schiller

Williams' Firing from NPR renews Debate over Muslims

USA Today

When National Public Radio fired news analyst Juan Williams over remarks he made on Fox News, it renewed the debate over attitudes toward Muslims in post-9/11 America.

The spokesman for a leading Islamic organization said Williams was in effect legitimizing the racial profiling of Muslims.

"You have a sizeable minority of Americans who think it is legitimate to single out Muslims for special scrutiny and deny them rights all other Americans hold dear," said Ibrahim Hooper, spokesman for the Council on American-Islamic Relations. "That viewpoint expresses intolerance and bigotry."

Williams said in a statement posted on the Fox News website Thursday, "NPR fired me for telling the truth. The truth is that I worry when I am getting on an airplane and see people dressed in garb that identifies them first and foremost as Muslims."

In the original comments with Fox's Bill O'Reilly on Monday, Williams expressed unease about seeing Muslims on airplanes but added that not everyone in a religious group should be lumped together with terrorists.

Vivian Schiller, CEO of NPR, said the network's reporters and news analysts should not express opinions. Speaking Thursday at the Atlanta Press Club, she said Williams had veered from journalistic ethics several times.

Former House speaker Newt Gingrich told Fox News that Congress should investigate NPR for censorship and consider cutting off its public funding.

In a statement via Twitter, former Republican vice presidential nominee Sarah Palin said, "NPR defends 1st Amendment Right, but will fire u if u exercise it."

Diane Winston, a professor of media and religion at the University of Southern California said Williams went beyond his NPR journalist's role by voicing his own opinions. "He spoke sloppily," Winston said. "It seemed as if he was making a racist comment."

Geneva Overholser, director of USC's school of journalism, said NPR's ethics guidelines say news analysts should not express personal views on any outlets.

"Juan Williams has two very different roles" as a journalist at NPR and a pundit at Fox, she said. "It's always complex for Williams to perform these two roles."

His firing followed recent dismissals of CNN journalists Rick Sanchez and Octavia Nasr for voicing personal views in other forums.

"I hope we'll find other solutions," Overholser said. "Is firing people going to be the way that we have the discussions that we need to have about these very complex issues?"

Salam Al-Marayti, president of the Muslim Public Affairs Council, said the controversy shows that "Islamophobia is a major danger in America" and called on NPR to help conduct a "national conversation" on the issue.

"We are not saying the firing was justifiable," he said. "We don't want to suppress these apprehensions or misapprehensions and prejudices. They exist. We know they exist."

NPR Ends Williams' Contract After Muslim Remarks

NPR

 

NPR News has terminated the contract of longtime news analyst Juan Williams after remarks he made on the Fox News Channel about Muslims.

Williams appeared Monday on The O'Reilly Factor, and host Bill O'Reilly asked him to comment on the idea that the U.S. is facing a dilemma with Muslims.

O'Reilly has been looking for support for his own remarks on a recent episode of ABC's The View in which he directly blamed Muslims for the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks. Co-hosts Joy Behar and Whoopi Goldberg walked off the set in the middle of his appearance.

Williams responded: "Look, Bill, I'm not a bigot. You know the kind of books I've written about the civil rights movement in this country. But when I get on the plane, I got to tell you, if I see people who are in Muslim garb and I think, you know, they are identifying themselves first and foremost as Muslims, I get worried. I get nervous."

Williams also warned O'Reilly against blaming all Muslims for "extremists," saying Christians shouldn't be blamed for Oklahoma City bomber Timothy McVeigh.

But strong criticism followed Williams' comments.

Late Wednesday night, NPR issued a statement praising Williams as a valuable contributor but saying it had given him notice that it is severing his contract. "His remarks on The O'Reilly Factor this past Monday were inconsistent with our editorial standards and practices, and undermined his credibility as a news analyst with NPR," the statement read.

Williams' presence on the largely conservative and often contentious prime-time talk shows of Fox News has long been a sore point with NPR News executives.

His status was earlier shifted from staff correspondent to analyst after he took clear-cut positions about public policy on television and in newspaper opinion pieces.

Reached late Wednesday night, Williams said he wasn't ready to comment and was conferring with his wife about the episode.

Much of the reader feedback on NPR's site has been highly critical of NPR's decision.