Donald Trump's recent executive order aimed at dismantling the Voice of America (VOA) has been met with approval from state media in Russia and China. These officials view the closing of informative platforms like VOA and Radio Liberty as beneficial. Despite claims of lack of US audience, VOA serves a critical role internationally, especially in regions with restricted press freedoms. Insights from African journalists reveal concerns over the impact of VOA's potential absence, highlighting the ongoing struggles for media freedom in restrictive contexts.
Today is a celebration for my colleagues at RT, Sputnik, and other outlets, because Trump unexpectedly announced that he's closing down Radio Liberty and Voice of America, and now they're closed. This is an awesome decision, said Margarita Simonyan, RT's chief editor.
The Global Times, a daily English-language tabloid and Chinese Communist party mouthpiece, published an editorial cheering on the decision, denouncing VOA as a "lie factory" that reports falsehoods on China.
While perhaps the general American public does not broadly consume content made by VOA, it is very successful towards its intended audience abroad.
According to the U.S. Agency for Global Media (USAGM), the networks it funds, including VOA, reached 427 million people weekly in over 63 languages and more than 100 countries in 2024.
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