Project 2025 - 8. Media Agencies
The author of this section is Mora Namdar, attorney, former acting Assistant Secretary of State in the State Department under Donald Trump, and author of "Deciphering the Iranian Paradox - It's Not Left Wing, It's Not Right Wing, It's the Right Thing: No Engagement, No War, The Time Has Come to Support the Will of the Iranian People."
Formerly the Broadcasting Board of Governors (BBG), the United States Agency for Global Media (USAGM) oversees six broadcasting networks: The Voice of America (VOA), the Office of Cuba Broadcasting (OCB), Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty (RFE/RL), Radio Free Asia (RFA), Middle East Broadcasting Networks (MBN), and Open Technology Fund (OTF).
Currently, VOA is the largest international broadcaster in the U.S., with 3500 affiliate stations, satellite, cable, FM, mobile phones, social media, podcasts, and broadcast in over 40 languages.
"With the largest audience of all U.S. international media, VOA continues to be a beacon of hope for underserved audiences who yearn for information about freedom of expression, civil society, and change." - VOA
Namdar feels that while the VOA was once very well-received, it is now deteriorating under poor leadership and biased reporting, and includes "[flagrant] political content."
The OCB, headquartered in Miami, is a "multimedia hub of unbiased and objective news, information, and analysis that provide the people of Cuba with interactive programs seven days a week through satellite television, shortwave and AM radio, and digital platforms."
"The Office of Cuba Broadcasting’s mission is to promote freedom and democracy by providing the people of Cuba with objective news and information programming." - OCB
Namdar says the OCB is threatened due to operational constraints, including "empathetic attitudes toward Communist Cuban leadership." She also mentions that the OCB was "threatened with closure," however there seems to be no documentation of this, only a restructuring and layoffs due to historic protests across Cuba in 2022.
RFE/RL is a private, nonprofit, multimedia broadcasting corporation that serves as a surrogate media source for 23 countries in 27 languages, including Afghanistan, Iran, Pakistan, Russia, and Ukraine, reaching 47 million people each week.
"RFE/RL's mission is to promote democratic values by providing accurate, uncensored news and open debate in countries where a free press is threatened and disinformation is pervasive. RFE/RL reports the facts, undaunted by pressure." - RFE/RL
Again, Namdar claims that RFE/RL is caving to "political trends" that do not support or represent America abroad, and says much of what the RFE/RL broadcasts is "redundant" with VOA. Some would disagree, however, awarding them with the Online Journalism Award for their coverage of Russia's invasion of Ukraine in 2022.
RFA brings award-winning, domestic journalism and uncensored content to people in six Asian countries that restrict free speech, freedom of the press, and access to reliable information beyond their borders. RFA also provides educational and cultural programming, as well as forums for audiences to engage in open dialogue and freely express opinions.
"Radio Free Asia’s mission is to provide accurate and timely news and information to Asian countries whose governments prohibit access to a free press." - RFA
Namdar claims that RFA "did not comply with Federal procurement requirements when establishing the Freedom2Connect Foundation. The Foundation's site is no longer viewable, and there doesn't seem to be any information about the issue more recent than 2015. Meanwhile, the RFA continues to win awards for radio, news, and print reporting.
MBN is an Arabic-language multimedia organization that reaches 33.5 million people in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) weekly.
"The mission of the Middle East Broadcasting Networks is to provide objective, accurate, and relevant news and information to the people of the Middle East about the region, the world, and the United States. MBN supports democratic values by expanding the spectrum of ideas, opinions, and perspectives available in the region’s media." - MBN
Namdar appears to have no complaints about MBN.
OTF funds internet freedom technologies at every stage of the development cycle from proof-of-concept, to on-the-ground deployments, to multi-year efforts. This approach ensures that USAGM journalists and audiences have the tools they need right now to safely access the uncensored internet, while investing in innovative solutions to stay ahead of evolving censorship threats.
"The Open Technology Fund works to advance internet freedom in repressive environments by supporting the research, development, implementation, and sustainability of technologies that provide secure and uncensored access to the internet to counter attempts by authoritarian governments to control the internet and restrict freedom online." - OTF
Namdar doesn't have much good to say about the OTF, complaining of its use of open-source technology (available to the public) as a means to be "far less [transparent]," which feels like a contradiction. Referring to it as a "wasteful and redundant boondoggle," (a redundant definition of the word "boondoggle"), Namdar makes mention of whistleblowers and complains of the furnishings and salaries for the OTF team, all of which were reported to Trump-appointed leadership. But in vain. The Biden Administration gave the OTF their full support.
Namdar goes on to discuss the "Firewall Saga," where journalists are given independence and anonymity, so as not to be influenced by any incoming administration. However, she says that an administration should have oversight for "journalistic safety" and to prevent "anti-American propaganda." In other words, the President should see what is being reported first, and have a say as to whether or not it leaves the desk. "[A] White House correspondent was posting content highly critical of, and personally insulting to, the U.S. President." A worst-case scenario, and certainly not the kind of "independent journalism" they're looking for. Instead of reporting information in an "accurate, reliable way that promotes and supports freedom and democracy," Namda says, the agency as a whole is disorganized and ineffective, "rife with waste,” and always "redundancy," code word for "we don't need this department."
"Nepotism is rampant and political gamesmanship protects bad actors."
In 2025 this all feels very ironic. But I digress.
Now come the reforms, the big changes that will reduce independent thought and cushion the President's every plastic-straw-carrying-cultural-heritage-erasing-climate-change-ignoring-flat-Earther-puddle-of-yellowing-retch-in-the-paper-bag-of-American-history. Continuing on.
SECURITY ISSUES
"Nearly 40%" of the workforce performed national-security-sensitive positions with unauthorized suitability for employment, Namdar claims, with access to sensitive federal buildings and information systems.
Mum's the word, DOGE...
"The USAGM must never again be entrusted with delegated authority over its personnel security programs...until such time as it can prove that these failures will not happen again." - Mora Namdar
JOURNALISTS' SECURITY
One must protect agency journalists, Namdar states, on and off American soil. Therefore, despite "resistance from senior career officials" journalists must make their locations known to the agency, in case they "require rescue."
WASTING TAXPAYER DOLLARS
Too expensive, less money. No more "nepotism for pet projects." She wants to reduce the cost of the USAGM from $800 to $700 billion. However, when combined, the current six broadcasting networks only add up to just over $632 billion.
CONSOLIDATION AND REDUCTION OF REDUNDANT SERVICES
Namdar says that while there are several sub-agencies in the USAGM, the VOA speaks Farsi, making the role of the RFE/RL redundant. Except the RFE/RL supports 27 languages, not just Farsi. She also states that the VOA speaks Mandarin, making the RFA redundant. But turns out the RFA supports 9 languages, not just Mandarin. And she wants the OTF gone, replaced by the OIF, giving the President more oversight into the department and all closed-sourced software, cut off from the public.
Then there’s a little something about tightening J-1 visas, bringing back shortwave radio transmission stations, and the biggest concern, personnel.
PERSONNEL
A common thread in Project 2025, the authors want to weed out any opposition to the conservative party in power. This includes attracting "talented" (all-in) staff and letting go of "poorly-performing" (politically-opposite) personnel.
We've arrived at the crux of the matter of government-run media: who is telling the story? Because according to Project 2025 the current administration will "ensure that taxpayer-funded TV, radio, and messaging [will tell] America's story."
The author says foreign-language TV is unreliable, untrustworthy if you will, at telling our story due to independent journalists and opinions that may not directly align with a conservative American President. She also claims that the VOA often airs "foreign adversaries' propaganda," and I wonder which way that pendulum swings?
Namdar concludes that the USAGM has lost its journalistic integrity and what was once unbiased reporting. If this continues, she says, it should be defunded and disestablished. However, if it is reformed (i.e. stands in line with a conservative President's agenda and talking points), it would be "one of the greatest tools in America's arsenal to tell America's story and promote freedom and democracy around the world."
Curious how this reads post-"We will take over the Gaza Strip..."
CORPORATION FOR PUBLIC BROADCASTING
Here, a second author steps forward, Mike Gonzalez, senior fellow at the Heritage Foundation, and former speechwriter for Securities and Exchange Commission Chairman Christopher Cox under George W. Bush.
Gonzalez claims that public funding for domestic broadcasts, such as PBS and NPR is a "mistake," and all Republican Presidents since Richard Nixon have tried to strip public broadcasting of said funding.
"The next conservative President must finally get this done and do it despite opposition from congressional members of his own party if necessary." - Mike Gonzalez
Despite President Lyndon Johnson's original intent to enrich American homes, educate American families, and provide assistance to American classrooms, Gonzalez sees public broadcasting as a "liberal forum." He mentions the trillions of dollars of federal debt, and that we cannot "afford the more than half-a-billion dollars squandered to leftist opinion."
It needs saying here that, yes, public broadcasting does run about $500 million a year, but the U.S. defense budget is 1600 times that at $820 billion, the Russia Space Agency received $8.1 billion in 2024, and even Elon Musk's SpaceX received $3.3 billion over the last 12 months, enough to recuse himself from any decision that could affect his financial interests.
Gonzalez views public broadcasting as a "tyranny," stating that a publicly-funded broadcasting system should not "lean liberal," as evidenced by a 2014 Pew Research study. However, the study only states that the audience leans liberal, not the content, which speaks to if liberal audiences prefer unbiased content vs. conservative audiences. More clarity is needed here to determine if Mr. Rogers and Sesame Street are, indeed, promoting tyranny. And of course, Gonzalez encourages defunding the entire project. He claims, and maybe rightfully so, that these networks could go on without government funding.
The issue at stake here isn't the idea that public broadcasting networks like PBS and NPR would lose the 1% funding provided to them by the government, but what would replace these networks as government-funded media? And what message would they send to the American people, and foreign allies and adversaries? We are fully capable of creating a propagandized story of the "American dream" to keep Americans in line with a conservative President's agenda and to promote nationalism and dissuade dissent. It's been done before in recent history, and we would be wise to sleep with one eye open as decisions are made on the future of government-run media.
Project 2025
Ellie is an author, editor, and owner of Red Pencil Transcripts, and works with filmmakers, podcasts, and journalists all over the world. She lives with her family just outside of New York City, and is represented by Vicki Marsdon at High Spot Literary.
Putin sees VOA as a threat, so Trump dismantles. He says “Yes, Vladdy daddy!”
More ways we abandon soft power. More ways we abandon the average family. Just ridiculous