NPR chief exec. Katherine Maher is being likened to “the blonde version of Robin DiAngelo” after an exchange between her and a Texas Rep. went viral on Wednesday, revealing old tweets claiming that “America is addicted to white supremacy” and “How white of me.”
Maher appeared flustered as Rep. Brandon Gill (R-TX) confronted Maher with several tweets from before her tenure at NPR during a congressional hearing on Wednesday, one of which where she claimed to have taken time off to read “The Case for Reparations,” a 2014 essay by woke activist, Ta-Nehisi Coates.
When pressed about the contents of the text, Maher appeared flustered and said, “I don’t think I’ve ever read that book, sir.”
“You tweeted about it. You said you took a day off to fully read ‘The Case for Reparations.’ You put that on Twitter in January of 2020,” Gill countered, to which Maher responded, “I apologize. I don’t recall that I did. Okay. I’d no doubt that your tweet there is correct, but I don’t recall that.”
The hearing revealed an extensive backlog of controversial tweets from Maher; when questioned about a tweet claiming “America is addicted to white supremacy,” Maher acknowledged making the statement but claimed, “much of my thinking has evolved over the last half-decade.”
Catching a Liberal White Lady tweeting in 2020 that she took a day off to fully absorb a v. important book about reparations, and making her admit under oath she probably didn’t read it after all is an all-timer of Liberal White Lady moments. https://t.co/ErGUfVVN23
— Mary Katharine Ham (@mkhammer) March 26, 2025
Gill pressed on with Maher’s greatest hits, with Maher doing her best to deflect: “I grew up feeling superior. How white of me” and another supporting reparations that read: “Yes, the North, yes, all of us, yes, America, yes, our original collective sin and unpaid debt, yes, reparations, yes, on this day.”
The exchange intensified when Gill questioned Maher about her views on looting during the 2020 protests. Though she eventually acknowledged looting is “morally wrong,” Maher initially described it merely as “counterproductive” and had previously tweeted, “It’s hard to be mad about protests not prioritizing the private property of a system of oppression.”
NPR receives approximately $30 million annually in federal funding through the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, with taxpayers contributing to an organization now led by an executive whose past statements have raised questions about objectivity in public media.
The congressional hearing revealed Maher appeared unprepared for questions about her digital footprint despite her leadership role at a major media organization.
When confronted with her own words supporting the controversial concept of reparations, Maher attempted to reframe her past advocacy.
“I don’t believe that was a reference to fiscal reparations, sir,” Maher testified when presented with her tweet explicitly supporting reparations.
“What kind of reparations was it a reference to?” Gill pressed.
“I think it was just a reference to the idea that we all owe much to the people who came before us,” Maher responded, prompting Gill to call her explanation “a bizarre way to frame what you tweeted.”
Right-wing commentators praised Gill on X, with Megyn Kelly saying that she “could not love this any more,” and Christopher Rufo dubbing Maher the “the blonde version of Robin DiAngelo.”
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[[{“value”:”
NPR chief exec. Katherine Maher is being likened to “the blonde version of Robin DiAngelo” after an exchange between her and a Texas Rep. went viral on Wednesday, revealing old tweets claiming that “America is addicted to white supremacy” and “How white of me.”
Maher appeared flustered as Rep. Brandon Gill (R-TX) confronted Maher with several tweets from before her tenure at NPR during a congressional hearing on Wednesday, one of which where she claimed to have taken time off to read “The Case for Reparations,” a 2014 essay by woke activist, Ta-Nehisi Coates.
When pressed about the contents of the text, Maher appeared flustered and said, “I don’t think I’ve ever read that book, sir.”
“You tweeted about it. You said you took a day off to fully read ‘The Case for Reparations.’ You put that on Twitter in January of 2020,” Gill countered, to which Maher responded, “I apologize. I don’t recall that I did. Okay. I’d no doubt that your tweet there is correct, but I don’t recall that.”
The hearing revealed an extensive backlog of controversial tweets from Maher; when questioned about a tweet claiming “America is addicted to white supremacy,” Maher acknowledged making the statement but claimed, “much of my thinking has evolved over the last half-decade.”
Catching a Liberal White Lady tweeting in 2020 that she took a day off to fully absorb a v. important book about reparations, and making her admit under oath she probably didn’t read it after all is an all-timer of Liberal White Lady moments. https://t.co/ErGUfVVN23
— Mary Katharine Ham (@mkhammer) March 26, 2025
Gill pressed on with Maher’s greatest hits, with Maher doing her best to deflect: “I grew up feeling superior. How white of me” and another supporting reparations that read: “Yes, the North, yes, all of us, yes, America, yes, our original collective sin and unpaid debt, yes, reparations, yes, on this day.”
The exchange intensified when Gill questioned Maher about her views on looting during the 2020 protests. Though she eventually acknowledged looting is “morally wrong,” Maher initially described it merely as “counterproductive” and had previously tweeted, “It’s hard to be mad about protests not prioritizing the private property of a system of oppression.”
NPR receives approximately $30 million annually in federal funding through the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, with taxpayers contributing to an organization now led by an executive whose past statements have raised questions about objectivity in public media.
The congressional hearing revealed Maher appeared unprepared for questions about her digital footprint despite her leadership role at a major media organization.
When confronted with her own words supporting the controversial concept of reparations, Maher attempted to reframe her past advocacy.
“I don’t believe that was a reference to fiscal reparations, sir,” Maher testified when presented with her tweet explicitly supporting reparations.
“What kind of reparations was it a reference to?” Gill pressed.
“I think it was just a reference to the idea that we all owe much to the people who came before us,” Maher responded, prompting Gill to call her explanation “a bizarre way to frame what you tweeted.”
Right-wing commentators praised Gill on X, with Megyn Kelly saying that she “could not love this any more,” and Christopher Rufo dubbing Maher the “the blonde version of Robin DiAngelo.”
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