Kari Lake, the former Arizona TV news anchor turned Trump appointee to lead the U.S. Agency for Global Media, has ignited fierce debate over the future of Voice of America (VOA) and other international broadcasters. During a House Foreign Affairs Committee hearing, Lake declared that the VOA and its sister agencies—Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, the Office of Cuba Broadcasting, Radio Free Asia, and the Middle East Broadcast Networks—are ‘rotten to the core.’ She vowed to ‘scrap the whole thing and start over,’ framing the reforms as necessary to modernize outdated programming and ‘make it effective again.’ Her remarks have sparked bipartisan concern, with lawmakers from both parties warning that her vision risks undermining U.S. soft power and global influence.
Bipartisan criticism has mounted as Lake, who lost her 2022 governor’s race and the 2024 Senate bid, emphasized the need to reduce staffing and reorient the VOA’s mission. Her plan to cut over 600 Global Media employees—many of whom were affiliated with the Persian service—has drawn sharp backlash. Democratic lawmakers, including Rep. Brad Sherman of California, have argued that VOA and similar outlets are essential for countering misinformation and promoting democratic values abroad. Sherman accused the Trump administration of ‘gutting’ U.S. influence, noting that ‘our soft power is more important than an aircraft carrier.’ He warned that diminishing the VOA’s presence in regions like North Korea and Iran would leave the U.S. as ‘the bad guy’ in the eyes of many foreign civilians.
Rep. Young Kim, a Republican from California, concurred with Sherman’s concerns, stating that dismantling Radio Free Asia would cede power to China and North Korea. ‘We have let go of journalists that have spent decades building their credibility and trust with our audiences,’ Kim said, emphasizing the danger of losing long-standing rapport with the communities they serve. Conversely, some Republicans, including Rep. Tim Burchett of Tennessee, dismissed the VOA as a ‘Cold War relic’ no longer relevant in the digital age. Burchett and others have criticized the VOA for its outdated approach, arguing that the rise of social media and digital streaming makes traditional radio and television broadcasts obsolete.
Lake’s proposals have also drawn scrutiny for their potential to serve as a platform for Trump administration messaging. Democratic representatives, including Rep. Madeleine Dean of Pennsylvania, accused Lake of being a ‘propaganda machine for the Trump Administration.’ Dean stated, ‘I see why Mr. Trump put you in this position. He doesn’t want a free press.’ This accusation was echoed by Rep. Pramila Jayapal of Washington, who warned that Lake’s support for former dictators and her history of contesting election results undermined her credibility as a leader of government media. Lake, however, defended her tenure by referencing Trump’s executive order mandating reforms, insisting that her focus was on ‘modernizing’ the agency and ‘making it effective again.’ As Congress prepares to allocate funds for the Global Media agencies, the debate over their future—whether as a critical tool for U.S. influence or a relic of the past—will likely continue to shape legislative priorities in the coming months.