NPR Names New Chief

Also announces buyout plan to cut staff

NPR named a new chief on Friday while at the same time announcing a voluntary buyout plan that will aim to cut staff by 10 percent.

Paul G. Haaga, Jr., will succeed Gary Knell as acting president and CEO, effective Sep. 30, until a permanent successor is found. Knell announced last month that he was leaving NPR after less than two years on the job to become president and CEO of the National Geographic Society. 

Haaga has been on NPR's Board of Directors since 2011 and is the retired chairman of the Board of Capital Research and Management Company. He previously served as a senior attorney for the Securities and Exchange Commission.