Judge rules Trump’s NPR and PBS funding cuts violate First Amendment

A federal judge said the Trump administration can’t enforce the president’s order to ax federal funding for National Public Radio and the Public Broadcasting Service, saying in a Tuesday decision that the White House can’t “extinguish speech” the president dislikes under the First Amendment.

U.S. District Judge Randolph Moss in his ruling said federal agencies can’t enforce the “unconstitutional” executive order signed by President Donald Trump last May, which directed agencies to ​terminate funding to NPR and PBS. It also directed the Corporation for Public Broadcasting to stop funding the networks, but the corporation was dissolved as of January.

The executive order crossed a line drawn by the First Amendment, said Moss, who was appointed to the Washington D.C. federal ⁠court in 2014 by former Democratic President Barack Obama. The judge wrote the executive order crossed a legal line because it did not use neutral criteria for federal funding.

“Instead, it singles ‌out two speakers and, on the basis of their speech, bars them from all ​federally funded programs,” Moss wrote in a 62-page order.

The White House has not commented on whether it plans to appeal, but spokesperson Abigail Jackson said in an email that the administration “looks forward to ultimate victory on this issue.”

“This is a ridiculous ruling by an activist judge attempting to undermine the law,” Jackson said. “NPR and PBS have no right to receive taxpayer funds, and Congress already voted ⁠to defund them.”

An attorney representing NPR, Theodore Boutrous, said the ruling was “a significant victory for the ‌First Amendment and for freedom of the press.”

“As the ‌court expressly recognized, the First Amendment draws a line, which the government may not cross, at efforts to use government power — including the power of the purse — ‘to punish or suppress disfavored expression’ by others,” Boutrous said in ⁠a statement. “The Executive Order crossed that line.”

Unknown impact of the order, as stations face closures

It’s unknown whether the judge’s order will bear much impact, since NPR and PBS stations already are facing the consequences of funding hits across the country with employee layoffs ‌or even full shutdowns, especially rural stations that relied ‌on federal funding to operate.

Across the country, stations have held funding drives and urged communities to make donations in order to stay afloat. But the impact has already started.

In central Pennsylvania, public media outlet WPSU was among the first stations to close and announce a “wind down” ⁠of operations. Free Press, a media advocacy organization, said that as of October, more than 400 public media ​jobs were slashed.

NPR and PBS did not respond ⁠to questions ​of whether the order would have any impact on their operations, but a PBS spokesperson said they were “thrilled” the judge agreed that Trump’s order was “textbook unconstitutional viewpoint discrimination and retaliation.”

NPR’s President and CEO Katherine Maher said that it was a “win for NPR, our network of stations, and our tens of millions of listeners nationwide.”

“The court made clear that the government cannot ⁠use funding as a lever to influence or penalize the press, whether as a national news service or a local newsroom,” Maher said.

Small win for media outlets facing White House pressure

This order comes at a time of increased pressure on media outlets from the Trump administration.

It came soon after another DC ⁠federal judge blocked a separate Trump administration order, which barred news reporters access to the Pentagon. In the lawsuit filed by The New York Times, U.S. District Judge Paul Friedman said the policy violated free speech and due process rights.

In mid-March, Federal Communications Chair Brendan Carr threatened to revoke broadcasting licenses for media coverage of the Iran war. Carr has also ⁠threatened to wield FCC power against ABC over an interview ‌with Democratic Texas Rep. James Talarico on “The View.”

Carr also appeared to threaten licensure of the ​Walt Disney-owned ABC stations if ‌they didn’t suspend Jimmy Kimmel’s late-night talk show, after he faced criticism for comments he made on the deadly shooting of ​conservative commentator Charlie Kirk.

This reporting content is supported by a partnership with Freedom Forum and Journalism Funding Partners. USA TODAY NETWORK-Florida First Amendment reporter Stephany Matat is based in Tallahassee, Fla. She can be reached at SMatat@usatodayco.com. On X: @stephanymatat.

This article originally appeared on USA Today

Reporting by Stephany Matat, USA TODAY NETWORK / USA TODAY

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