Trump shortens funds for VOA and RFA - China's media are happy!

Trump shortens funds for VOA and RFA - China's media are happy!

The recent budget cuts decided by the Trump administration significantly concern the US state media Voice of America (VOA) and Radio Free Asia (RFA). This has been approved in China and in pro-Chinese circles. Al Jazeera reports that the Chinese State Medium Global Times Voa for Washington designated. The former editor Hu Xijin expressed his satisfaction about the restrictions of these facilities.

Criticism of the media organizations also comes from writers like Nurey Vittachi, who described them as "US Propaganda Operative". In addition, the spokesman for the Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Mao Ning, VoA as a "lies factory" has referred to the reporting on China with poor balance sheet. * “Voice of America”* and* Radio Free Asia* have repeatedly challenged the China Communist Party by reporting on sensitive topics such as Taiwan and the Uigures.

budget cuts and their effects

President Trump has severely shortened the financing for several media organizations, including VOA and RFA. Critics describe these measures as "sloppy and ruthless". Around 1,300 VOA employees have been on “vacation” since the end of the budget law, which could have significant effects on the reporting and the ability of the organizations to influence authoritarian states, as a US Congress Member warned. The US Agency for Global Media (USAGM), which is responsible for both organizations and had a budget of $ 886 million for 2024, could significantly weaken these measures.

According to information from ABC , the request of the congress was to be updated and maintained the influence of the United States in authoritarian countries not to interrupt the aggressive narrative of China. Critics underline the fact that the current measures are seriously jeopardizing the ability of the media to provide objective reporting.

The role of VOA and RFA in the global media environment

founded in the 1940s, VoA today has a global audience of around 361 million people in 49 languages. RFA, which was founded in 1996, reaches regions that are difficult to access for western journalists, and reports, among other things, about developments in Tibet and Xinjiang. In 2017, the Uighur service of RFA provided important information about the arrest of Uighers, which led to a Pulitzer award winner. Bethany Allen from the Australian Strategic Policy Institute pointed out that both networks use innovative methods to achieve a readership in China, since internet use is greatly censored.

The media landscape outside the USA still shows great differences, as the Federal Center for Political Education also explains in its report. Here it becomes clear that media freedom is often affected by state control and censorship, especially in countries such as Russia and China. The fate of VOA and RFA is integrated into such contexts, which are tirelessly striving to spread truths and to counteract authoritarian governments, which is increasingly at risk in view of the current budget cuts and political circumstances. According to BPB , the media efforts of the USA have historical roots and aim of providing information to a broad public in authoritarian governments, what in Consideration of the latest developments more urgently than ever.