National Public Radio on Thursday explained that it was not covering the Hunter Biden scandal because it was “pure distractions.”
Terence Samuels, NPR’s managing editor, stated his news department’s position in the network’s weekly newsletter.
“We don’t want to waste our time on stories that are not really stories, and we don’t want to waste the listener’s and readers’ time on stories that are just pure distractions,” he said.
He determined it to be “a politically driven event and we decided to treat it that way.”
The declaration from the taxpayer-supported news service drew a swift rebuke from President Trump’s son, Donald Trump Jr.
“Defund NPR. American taxpayer dollars should not be out there being utilized to push false propaganda and cover-up for Joe Biden’s corruption!” tweeted the younger Mr. Trump.
The story gained traction last week when The New York Post revealed emails found on an abandoned laptop computer that allegedly belonged to Hunter Biden.
NPR explained its Hunter Biden blackout shortly after a former Hunter Biden business partner came forward to substantiate some of the allegations against the Bidens.
Tony Bobulinski, who was the CEO of a firm with Hunter Biden, confirmed that Joseph R. Biden was involved in a deal and got a cut of the action from China.
It contradicted claims by Mr. Biden, the Democratic presidential nominee, that he never discussed or joined in his son’s business deals.
What’s more, Mr. Bobulinski said the Chinese business, which has ties to the Chinese Communist Party, was making “a political or influence investment.”
“It wasn’t just Hunter’s business, they said they were putting the Biden family name and its legacy on the line,” he said in the statement, which was first obtained by The New York Post.
For months, NPR ignored allegations of impropriety in Hunter Biden’s sweetheart business deals in foreign countries while his father was vice president.
The network continued to avoid the subject after The Post last week revealed the emails believed to be from Hunter Biden’s laptop computer that suggested his father’s involvement in suspicious deals.
• S.A. Miller can be reached at smiller@washingtontimes.com.
Please read our comment policy before commenting.