June 25, 2026, WASHINGTON, D.C. — The Harper's Magazine Foundation, the nonprofit organization that supports and publishes Harper's Magazine, announced that NPR President and CEO Katherine Maher will receive the 2026 James C. Goodale First Amendment Award. The award recognizes individuals who have demonstrated a clear commitment to the principles of a free press and the constitutional protections that sustain it. Maher will be honored at the Foundation's annual awards ceremony on October 26, 2026, in New York City.

"Public media exists to serve the public interest, and I can think of no greater service to the public than the defense of the First Amendment," said Maher. "The freedom, imagination, and initiative of all Americans flourish with its protections, so that we may better understand the world and one another. The compact of citizenship asks that we each step up to defend our constitutional rights if they are threatened. On behalf of NPR and the NPR Network, I am deeply honored to accept this award."

The award recognizes Maher's leadership of NPR and her commitment to the principles of a free and independent press at a pivotal moment for public media. In announcing the honor, the Foundation cited Maher's leadership of NPR, including the organization's defense of its First Amendment rights in response to a 2025 executive order that sought to terminate federal funding for NPR and PBS. The resulting federal court ruling presented a milestone victory for the First Amendment, determining that the government cannot use its funding authority to retaliate against news organizations based on the content of their speech.

Named for the former general counsel of The New York Times who successfully defended the newspaper's right to publish the Pentagon Papers, the James C. Goodale First Amendment Award was established in 2025 as part of the Harper's Magazine Foundation Awards. Maher will be honored alongside acclaimed novelist, essayist, and memoirist John Edgar Wideman, who will receive the Lewis H. Lapham Award for Literary Excellence.

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