NPR lands ‘remarkable’ $113M in gifts from two donors

NPR has secured two significant gifts totaling $113 million that support digital innovation in its journalism and the NPR Network. 

The gifts, announced Thursday, include an $80 million donation from philanthropist Connie Ballmer, co-founder of the Ballmer Group with her husband Steve, who served as CEO of Microsoft for 14 years. The gift is the largest ever to NPR from a living donor. 

The funds will go towards “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 an NPR press release. 

“I support NPR because an informed public is the bedrock of our society, and democracy requires strong, independent journalism,” Connie Ballmer said in the release. “My hope is that this commitment provides the stability and the spark NPR needs to innovate boldly and strengthen its national network.”

An anonymous donor provided a separate $33 million gift to support “sustainability of the NPR Network,” helping NPR build tools that will be shared among public media organizations, according to the release.  

“This remarkable investment will enable NPR to continue to deliver the nation’s finest public service journalism, meeting audiences where they are today and will be in the years to come,” said NPR CEO Katherine Maher in the release. “We are deeply grateful to Connie Ballmer and our anonymous donor for their extraordinary philanthropic leadership and belief in our work. We hope their leadership inspires others to give and ensure public media remains strong for generations to come.”