radio

NPR and three of its member stations filed suit in federal court Tuesday against President Trump‘s White House over the president’s executive order to block funding for public media.

Trump’s order called for an end to government dollars for the Corp. for Public Broadcasting, the taxpayer-backed entity that provides funding to NPR and PBS. He called the outlets “left wing propaganda.”

The suit says the May 1 action by Trump violated the 1st Amendment.

“The Order targets NPR and PBS expressly because, in the President’s view, their news and other content is not ‘fair, accurate, or unbiased,’” the legal brief said, according to an NPR report.

The suit also says that the funding — currently at around $500 million annually — is appropriated by Congress. The allocation is made two years in advance.

“Congress directly authorized and funded CPB to be a private nonprofit corporation wholly independent of the federal government,” Corp. for Public Broadcasting chief Patricia Harrison told NPR in a statement.

Harrison said that the Corp. for Public Broadcasting is not a federal agency subject to the president’s authority.

“The Executive Order is a clear violation of the Constitution and the First Amendment’s protections for freedom of speech and association, and freedom of the press,” NPR President and Chief Executive Katherine Maher said in a statement.

The order is one of a number of attempts by Trump to limit or intimidate institutions he does not agree with. Targets included law firms, universities and media companies such as CBS, which is being sued for $20 billion over a “60 Minutes” interview with former Vice President Kamala Harris during the 2024 presidential campaign.

NPR filed the suit with three public radio outlets, including Denver-based Colorado Public Radio, Aspen Pubic Radio and KSUT which serves the Four Corners region of Arizona, Colorado, New Mexico and Utah.

Both NPR and PBS have stressed that the bulk of the federal funding they receive goes to stations that provide local news and emergency alerts for their communities.

Outlet is one of several media services whose funding was cut by the Trump administration amid an aggressive downsizing effort.

The European Union plans to step in to help save longtime media outlet Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty (RFE/RL) after United States President Donald Trump’s administration abruptly stopped funding it.

The bloc’s foreign policy chief, Kaja Kallas, told reporters after a meeting of EU foreign ministers in Brussels on Tuesday that 5.5 million euros ($6.2m) will be provided to “support the vital work of Radio Free Europe”.

“It’s short-term emergency funding designed as a safety net for the independent journalism,” she added.

Trump suspended all funding for RFE/RL in March along with other US broadcasters, including Voice of America, to slash government spending.

Critics of the administration said the cuts are also politically motivated and part of a push to control and curb news media that do not hew to its outlook.

Trump earlier this month signed an executive order slashing federal subsidies to two US public broadcasters, PBS and NPR , accusing them of biased reporting and spreading “left-wing” propaganda.

Lawyers for RFE/RL, which has been operating for 75 years, secured an order last month from a US federal judge for the Trump administration to restore $12m that was appropriated by Congress.

The money has not been sent so far as lawyers said the service will have to shut down in June without the funding.

Kallas said on Tuesday that the EU funding would not cover the work of the outlet across the globe but would focus on interests closer to the agenda of the bloc.

“So our focus should be really to help Radio Free Europe to work and function in those countries that are in our neighbourhood and that are very much dependent on news coming from outside,” she said.

The EU’s top diplomat said she hoped the 27 EU member countries would also provide more funds to help Radio Free Europe longer term. Kallas said the bloc has been looking for “strategic areas” where it can help as Washington cuts life-saving foreign aid.

The outlet’s corporate headquarters are in Washington, DC, and its journalistic headquarters are based in the Czech Republic. The service has aired programmes in 27 languages in 23 countries across Eastern Europe, Central Asia and the Middle East and has more than 1,700 staff.

The outlet has been heavily criticised and banned by Russia for its coverage of the war in Ukraine.

Radio Free Europe began broadcasting in 1950 in the early years of the Cold War to several Eastern European nations that had become Soviet Union satellites. Radio Liberty began broadcasting to Russia a few years later. Both were initially funded by the US Congress through the Central Intelligence Agency.

May 19 (UPI) — The National Weather Service in Alabama warned Monday that weather radio broadcasts are offline for routine maintenance as severe storms are forecast to hit the state Tuesday.

The weather service said while all watches and warnings will be released over the next few days, the National Oceanic Atmospheric Administration’s Weather Radio transmitters will be offline during that time. Severe storms are forecast Tuesday for much of Alabama.

“NWS local offices plan to inform listeners both on-air and on their websites when updates are scheduled,” according to the NOAA Weather Radio website. NOAA Weather Radio is a network of stations that broadcasts warnings and weather information from the National Weather Service. The Advanced Weather Interactive Processing System, or AWIPS, went offline Monday and will remain down through Wednesday.

“Our Weather Radio broadcasts have concluded and will remain unavailable until our system updates are complete,” NWS Birmingham wrote Monday in a post on X. “Weather products will continue to be transmitted via the Internet, weather apps and wireless emergency alerts.”

“During the time of the update, forecast operations will be conducted in conjunction with our service back-up office in Peachtree City in Georgia to minimize any potential interruption to services,” the National Weather Service said Monday. “No impacts to our core services of forecast products and weather watches, warnings and advisories are expected during this period.”

The software updates will impact transmitters across northern and central Alabama. The NWS said its forecast office in Birmingham will remain open and staffed during the maintenance.

Approximately 31 million people from Texas, north to Iowa, could see severe storms starting Monday with forecasts showing strong winds, hail and tornadoes. That risk will shift Tuesday to Louisiana and north into Alabama and Indiana.

The NWS is urging Alabama residents to gather several weather sources — the Internet, weather apps and local emergency management — to ensure they receive all severe weather warnings in order to stay safe over the next few days.

Deadly storms and tornadoes over the weekend hit 10 different states, including Texas, Kansas, Missouri and Kentucky, where at least 28 people were killed.

EUROVISION legend Conchita Wurst has revealed she secretly underwent a facelift at the age of 36 – and cleverly hides the scars with her signature beard.

The surprise admission came during a special edition of Scott Mills’ Breakfast Show on BBC Radio 2, broadcast live from Basel, Switzerland, ahead of tonight’s Eurovision Grand Final.

4

Host Scott asked guests Graham Norton and Conchita for a never-before-heard exclusive – and both delivered.

Graham teased: “I’ve a good one. This is my left shoulder’s first appearance on radio. Brand new shoulder… It’s less than two weeks old.”

Showing off the fresh scar, he added: “It feels a bit new, it’s a little oweee, but forgive me I’m on many, many pain medications right now so if I say anything bad, it’s not my fault.”

Conchita responded: “Oh lucky you!” before casually dropping her own bombshell.

She announced: “My facelift. First time on radio!”

A surprised Scott asked, “Is that real?” to which Conchita confirmed: “Yeah.”

Graham joked, “That beard covers a lot of scars,” prompting Conchita to quip: “Yeah. I got the Lindsay Lohan treatment.”

Scott praised the results: “It is good,” to which Conchita replied: “Thank you.”

Scott added: “What we do is celebrate – Graham’s got a new left shoulder and Conchita’s got a new face!”

Conchita Wurst is the stage name and persona of Austrian singer Thomas Neuwirth.

When performing as Conchita, she uses she/her pronouns. As Thomas, he uses he/him pronouns.

Thomas was born November 1988 in Gmunden, Austria, making him 29 years old.

He is a recording artist and drag queen and was part of a short-lived boy band called Jetzt Anders! before creating the Conchita persona in 2011.

Is Conchita Wurst married?

Thomas has created a fictional backstory for Conchita, which includes her marriage to a French burlesque dancer called Jacques Patriaque.

Jacques is a real person and is a friend of Thomas.

Conchita’s backstory helps the singer to keep his real-life relationships private.

When did Conchita win Eurovision?

Conchita was selected to represent Austria in September 2013 at the 2014 Contest.

In May 2014, Conchita travelled to Copenhagen in Denmark for the competition and her song Rise Like a Phoenix was one of 1o favourites to win among bookmakers.

On May 10, Conchita won the Eurovision Contest with 290 points.

It was the first time Austria had won the Contest since 1966.

What is the HIV positive blackmail plot about?

On 16 April 2018, Conchita revealed in a post on Instagram that she has been forced to reveal she is HIV positive after being blackmailed by a former boyfriend.

The bearded performer wrote that she had received medical treatment and that she was feeling healthy and strong.

She wrote that “coming out is better than being outed by a third party”.

She added that her reason for going public was “to encourage (others) and make a step against the stigmatisation of people who through their own behaviour or through no fault of their own were infected with HIV.”

What has Conchita said about her beard?

Conchita’s participation in the 2014 Contest led some to nickname her the ‘bearded lady’.

But speaking on The Graham Norton Show at the time, she said of her beard: “It’s my own truth. It makes me comfortable on stage.

“I love myself and the bearded lady is fun and expresses everything I feel.

“Being a teenager in a small Austrian village was not fabulous.”

• Rylan and Scott are providing Eurovision commentary tonight on Radio 2 and BBC Sounds from 8pm, with Graham on BBC One and iPlayer.

4

4

4