NPR Loses $20 Million In Corporate Sponsorships, Implements Hiring Freeze

NPR has been forced to cut $10 million to its budget and freeze hiring over a decline in sponsorship revenue, their chief executive announced in a memo Wednesday.

Chief executive, John Lansing, told staff the company will come to a near “total hiring freeze” so that they can avoid layoffs.

The $10 million budget cut represents approximately 3% of the network’s budget, the outlet reported.

NPR reported:

NPR will need to cut at least $10 million from the current fiscal year ending next Sept. 30, the network’s chief executive, John Lansing, announced Wednesday, due to a sharp drop in revenue from sponsors.

Lansing told staffers in a memo that he intended to avoid layoffs, but would be forced to severely curtail hiring, amounting to what he described as “close to a total hiring freeze.” The network will also sharply cut back discretionary spending and non-essential travel. The $10 million cut constitutes approximately 3% of NPR’s current annual budget.

“As we did during the pandemic, we are prioritizing our staff and not anticipating layoffs at this time,” Lansing wrote. Yet he noted that he recognized the strain that a near-freeze on hiring would put on NPR’s current journalists and their non-newsroom colleagues.

“It means we won’t have the skills and support of the people who would have been in the roles that must remain vacant,” Lansing wrote. “For those working long and stressful hours, that is not good news. But it is a reality we can’t avoid if we are to save jobs.”

Other left-wing media outlets have announced cuts that include layoffs.

CNN Chairman Chris Licht told the network’s staff that long-planned cuts are starting. On-air contributors and full-time employees will be among those who will lose their jobs, he confirmed.

The Washington Post also said it would cease publishing its Sunday magazine on Dec. 25, affecting a staff of 10. Executive Editor Sally Buzbee told staffers in a memo that it would shift some of the most popular content to its Style section. She pointed to the paper’s efforts at digital transformation, though the Post reported that she also invoked “economic headwinds” in speaking to the magazine’s staff about the decision.

Many companies have scaled back advertising in the face of an uncertain economy.