Juan Williams Lambastes NPR as Exec Who Fired Him Steps Down
By David A. Patten
Thursday, 06 Jan 2011 06:03 PM
News analyst Juan William contends that National Public Radio (NPR) promotes an “incestuous” organizational culture that is “not open to real news.” Williams’ scathing comments followed an independent review of his firing in October, which in turn led to the resignation of NPR news executive Ellen Weiss on Thursday.
Weiss fired the affable Williams for confessing on Fox News that he sometimes gets nervous when flying with Muslims dressed in traditional garb.
Shortly after the firing, NPR CEO Vivian Schiller said during remarks to the Atlanta Press Club that Williams should have kept his feelings between himself and “his psychiatrist or his publicist.”
On Thursday, Williams told Fox News host Megyn Kelly: “The whole idea was to demean me, and make me to appear as if I was not only a lunatic who needed a psychiatrist, but I was a loose cannon and not a professional news person.”
Schiller later apologized to Williams for what she described as “my thoughtless remark.”
The firing touched off a storm of criticism from conservative leaders who slammed NPR for rampant political correctness and liberal bias.
Among those coming to Williams’ defense: former House Speaker Newt Gingrich, former Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin, and former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee.
Weiss fired the affable Williams for confessing on Fox News that he sometimes gets nervous when flying with Muslims dressed in traditional garb.
Shortly after the firing, NPR CEO Vivian Schiller said during remarks to the Atlanta Press Club that Williams should have kept his feelings between himself and “his psychiatrist or his publicist.”
On Thursday, Williams told Fox News host Megyn Kelly: “The whole idea was to demean me, and make me to appear as if I was not only a lunatic who needed a psychiatrist, but I was a loose cannon and not a professional news person.”Schiller later apologized to Williams for what she described as “my thoughtless remark.”
The firing touched off a storm of criticism from conservative leaders who slammed NPR for rampant political correctness and liberal bias.
Among those coming to Williams’ defense: former House Speaker Newt Gingrich, former Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin, and former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee.
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