Kim Andrew Elliott

USAGM under Kari Lake failed to provide information for an audit, and people have thoughts. Read more here 👇
www.instagram.com/p/DVghfHwjbi...

USAGM, of which Kari Lake seized control without proper authorization, "did not assess the effectiveness of its internal controls over operations, reporting and compliance as required," according to an auditor's report released by State Department's internal watchdog. www.stateoig.gov/report/aud-f..

No matter how much Kari Lake claims that VOA Persian is delivering the president’s message directly to Iran, the reality is that she has crippled our capacity to reach audiences everywhere. #SaveVOA

Interesting juxtaposition on my X feed.

Refers to:

www.stateoig.gov/report/aud-f...

While hundreds of VOA journalists are sidelined, a small crew of ~100 works nonstop with minimal resources—including Persian colleagues worried about family in Iran. We just want to return to full operations and produce journalism, not propaganda.
#SaveVOA @pwidakuswara @spj-posts.bsky.social

Reza Pahlavi to the Iranian people: "If disruptions occur in the internet and satellite broadcasts, I will remain in contact with you via radio."

This will probably be the radio.

x.com/alokeshgupta...

Voice of America is now up to six languages, or seven if each Kurdish dialect is counted separately.

It was 49 languages before March 2025.

x.com/kaedotcom/st...

Fox News, which failed to mention Radio Farda in its report, compensates with this tweet ...

x.com/JenGriffinFN...

"Lay down your weapons or face certain death"

This is probably the first time VOA has broadcast such a message to its audience.

x.com/kaedotcom/st...

"Follow my messages through social media and satellite media. If disruptions occur in the internet and satellite broadcasts, I will remain in contact with you via radio."

[What radio? Which frequencies?]

x.com/kaedotcom/st...

x.com/kaedotcom/st...

Not surprisingly, USAGM touts VOA Persian's role in today's event, while ignoring Radio Farda.

We have a word for this in media history. It's called propaganda.

U.S.-funded international broadcaster sends new round of resignation offers to employees The move comes amid an ongoing lawsuit between Voice of America employees and Trump-appointed CEO Kari Lake.

"VOA employees view the new offer as a sign that Lake may lose in court. 'If they thought they were winning they wouldn’t be bribing us to quit'"

www.politico.com/news/2026/02...

CNN chief media analyst @brianstelter.bsky.social says the news network’s new future owner - Paramount - “will likely bring @cnn.com and @cbsnews.com together.” Could get complicated if you consider that CBS News is also BBC’s partner in the USA #CNN #CBS #media #journalism

What does Kari Lake actually want? A longtime Arizona reporter tried to find out In recent years, few names have been more synonymous with the highs and lows of Arizona politics than Kari Lake. Lake, who once billed herself as “Trump in heels,” has tried and failed twice to win high-profile races.

“And more recently, she's sort of sought to play up what Voice of America and some of these other entities are doing in this space, especially in the wake of American intervention in Venezuela.” Read more ⬇️

USAGM emails VOA staff (who mostly haven’t been allowed to work for nearly a year) offering them deferred resignations, warning of mass terminations (currently on hold due to court action) “as soon as we are able.”

I complain about CBC, because it’s not perfect, and fair criticism is allowed and appropriate. But seriously, thank God for CBC in Canada. It needs to be protected.

“VOA employees view the new offer as a sign that Lake may lose in court. ‘If they thought they were winning they wouldn’t be bribing us to quit,” said a VOA employee on administrative leave and granted anonymity because of fear of recriminations.’”

Atelier des médias - Les ondes courtes de la radio n’ont pas dit leur dernier mot 12 antennes géantes situées au centre de la France diffusent les programmes de RFI en ondes courtes. Ces ondes, qui parcourent des milliers de kilomètres, continuent d’informer des millions d’auditeur...

Ondes courtes, #shortwave
Jérôme Hirigoyen souligne cette permanence stratégique : « Quand on a besoin de communiquer, ça reste un média extrêmement robuste."
www.rfi.fr/fr/podcasts/...

I’m no fan of what the regime has done to muzzle and dismantle VOA, but Pahlavi is a professional dinner party guest and his role in the Iranian opposition is dubious at best. He shouldn’t be ignored but many Americans overweight him because of his title.

x.com/kaedotcom/st...

Yes, VOA Persian should not be the "Reza Pahlavi Show."

But ignoring him, as VOA Persian has done, fails the "comprehensive" requirement of the VOA Charter.

patriotpost.us/opinion/1254...

Funding, Lawsuits, and the First Amendment: Inside VOA’s Defining Moment Foreign Press Podcast · Episode

“In this episode, Patsy Widakuswara, Voice of America's Washington bureau chief, breaks down the lawsuit that bears her name and what it means for the survival of VOA.”

x.com/kaedotcom/st...

@liamjscott.bsky.social

The audience may perceive news as anti-American, pro-American or neutral/balanced.

Too much pro-American, and credibility is lost. The audience tunes elsewhere. USAGM becomes a waste of the taxpayers' money.

But it is pro-American, good enough for this Administration.

Trump Officials Seek to Break Editorial ‘Firewall’ at U.S.-Funded News Agencies

"The administration could have the power to veto [USAGM entities'] new hires for editors in chief, chief executives and members of their boards, and could unilaterally shut down parts of their news operations with a two-week notice"

www.nytimes.com/2026/02/25/u...

NYT - The Trump administration is seeking to limit the safeguards protecting the editorial freedom of federally funded news groups that broadcast overseas, raising concerns that it could undermine an independent source of news in parts of the world with few of them. www.nytimes.com/2026/02/25/us...

That feeling of dread ...

x.com/KariLake/sta...

VOA spent decades building a trusted & popular media network across Latin America. In early 2025, we reached a weekly audience of more than 100 million people in the region, in places where authoritarians have severely restricted the free flow of information. Last year, America’s voice was silenced.