White House explains why Trump cut funding for Voice of America
Photo: US President Donald Trump (Getty Images)
The White House raised several concerns about the work of Voice of America after funding was halted. Donald Trump’s administration stated that taxpayers would no longer be "on the hook for radical propaganda."
Trump’s administration presented a list of grievances against Voice of America, citing various media outlets that accused the broadcaster of violating journalistic standards and consistently evading accountability.
The White House also noted that several Voice of America reporters had posted comments against Trump on their professional accounts on the social media platform X, despite the policy of impartiality.
Among the grievances raised by Trump’s administration regarding the broadcaster:
- In October 2020, Voice of America reported on a possible Russian role in the scandal involving the laptop of former US President Joe Biden’s son, Hunter Biden, which the Trump administration saw as an attempt to conceal the truth.
- In September 2019, the Daily Caller reported that Voice of America hired a Russian anti-American propagandist.
- In May 2019, Voice of America fired reporters for their role in halting a broadcast mid-air following pressure from the Chinese government.
- In March 2019, Voice of America aired a segment on transgender migrants seeking asylum in the US.
- Voice of America management instructed staff not to label Hamas and its members as terrorists, "except when quoting official statements."
As a reminder, President Trump recently signed an executive order to reduce the size of seven federal agencies, including the US Agency for Global Media, which oversees outlets like Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty and Voice of America.
Reports state that the US government stopped funding Radio Free Europe, and Voice of America employees were placed on leave.
The director of Voice of America confirmed that nearly all staff have been suspended, and the head of the Ukrainian service of Voice of America mentioned that the broadcaster has suspended its operations.
Last week, Ukrainian journalist Ostap Yarysh was fired from Voice of America. The journalist confirmed that he was among those affected by the federal employee reductions within the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), led by Elon Musk.
