Ballmer gives $80 million to NPR, with strings attached
Connie Ballmer, wife of former Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer and co-founder of the Ballmer Group, has given $80 million to NPR. That's roughly seven years' worth of government funding ($11.2m) after Trump and Congress cut funds for public media, but…
By · April 16, 2026 · 1 min read
This article was originally published by
The Verge
and is republished here under license.
Connie Ballmer, wife of former Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer and co-founder of the Ballmer Group, has given $80 million to NPR. That’s roughly seven years’ worth of government funding ($11.2m) after Trump and Congress cut funds for public media, but only a fraction of NPR’s full annual budget of $300 million. NPR may still cut jobs because the money has strings attached.
The money is specifically “to support the digital innovation that is essential to meeting the needs and serving the interests of public media audiences wherever they are and whenever they seek information,” according to a press release. NPR journalist David Folkenflik writes …
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