Musk Advocates for Shutting Down US State Media
Elon Musk has expressed his support for the closure of media outlets funded by U.S. taxpayers, pointing to the financial burden on taxpayers and concerns about bias. Read Full Article at RT.com.
TroibNews 
Elon Musk, the tech billionaire and head of the new Department of Government Efficiency, called for the closure of U.S. state-funded media outlets Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty (RFE/RL) and Voice of America (VOA) on Sunday, claiming that they waste taxpayer money and have lost their relevance.
Established in 1950, RFE/RL aimed to disseminate pro-American and anti-Soviet propaganda in Europe and was initially operated by the CIA. The VOA was created in the 1940s to counter Nazi propaganda and later shifted its focus to the Soviet Union in 1947. Both outlets continue to receive funding from the U.S. Congress, with their management directly overseen by the U.S. government via the U.S. Agency for Global Media.
Musk's comments were a response to Richard Grenell, special envoy for former President Donald Trump, who criticized these media outlets on X, stating, “Radio Free Europe and Voice of America are media outlets paid for by the American taxpayers. It is state-owned media. These outlets are filled with far-left activists. I’ve worked with these reporters for decades. It’s a relic of the past. We don’t need government-paid media outlets.”
In reaction to Grenell's statements, Musk wrote on X: “Yes, shut them down. Europe is free now. Nobody listens to them anymore. It’s just radical left crazy people talking to themselves while torching $1B/year of US taxpayer money.”
Originally called “Radio Liberation from Bolshevism,” RFE/RL was renamed Radio Liberation in 1956 and later adopted its current name, Radio Liberty, to reflect a policy shift that prioritized “liberalization” over “liberation.”
In 2020, Russia designated RFE/RL as a ‘foreign agent’ and banned the broadcaster in 2022, accusing it of disseminating false information regarding the Ukraine conflict. Its subsidiary, Current Time—a collaborative effort with VOA—was also blacklisted by Russia in 2024.
Both Musk and Grenell have been vocal opponents of government funding for media organizations, advocating that taxpayer dollars should not support these outlets. Musk has specifically criticized federal financial support for various media organizations, including PMG, the Associated Press, and The New York Times, and is reportedly moving to eliminate such funding. According to White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt, the government spent over $8 million on PMG subscriptions alone.
Grenell has similarly denounced government expenditure on media subscriptions, aligning with Musk's position that this funding must cease. He stated on X: “The U.S. government must stop paying for media subscriptions. Now.”
For the fiscal year 2024, VOA had a budget of $267.5 million, while RFE/RL operated with $142.2 million. The U.S. Agency for Global Media requested a total of $950 million in funding for 2025, claiming to reach an audience of 427 million people in 64 languages across over 100 countries.
Musk was appointed by Trump as a “special government employee” to lead DOGE, a temporary initiative aimed at reducing government spending.
Mark B Thomas for TROIB News
Established in 1950, RFE/RL aimed to disseminate pro-American and anti-Soviet propaganda in Europe and was initially operated by the CIA. The VOA was created in the 1940s to counter Nazi propaganda and later shifted its focus to the Soviet Union in 1947. Both outlets continue to receive funding from the U.S. Congress, with their management directly overseen by the U.S. government via the U.S. Agency for Global Media.
Musk's comments were a response to Richard Grenell, special envoy for former President Donald Trump, who criticized these media outlets on X, stating, “Radio Free Europe and Voice of America are media outlets paid for by the American taxpayers. It is state-owned media. These outlets are filled with far-left activists. I’ve worked with these reporters for decades. It’s a relic of the past. We don’t need government-paid media outlets.”
In reaction to Grenell's statements, Musk wrote on X: “Yes, shut them down. Europe is free now. Nobody listens to them anymore. It’s just radical left crazy people talking to themselves while torching $1B/year of US taxpayer money.”
Originally called “Radio Liberation from Bolshevism,” RFE/RL was renamed Radio Liberation in 1956 and later adopted its current name, Radio Liberty, to reflect a policy shift that prioritized “liberalization” over “liberation.”
In 2020, Russia designated RFE/RL as a ‘foreign agent’ and banned the broadcaster in 2022, accusing it of disseminating false information regarding the Ukraine conflict. Its subsidiary, Current Time—a collaborative effort with VOA—was also blacklisted by Russia in 2024.
Both Musk and Grenell have been vocal opponents of government funding for media organizations, advocating that taxpayer dollars should not support these outlets. Musk has specifically criticized federal financial support for various media organizations, including PMG, the Associated Press, and The New York Times, and is reportedly moving to eliminate such funding. According to White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt, the government spent over $8 million on PMG subscriptions alone.
Grenell has similarly denounced government expenditure on media subscriptions, aligning with Musk's position that this funding must cease. He stated on X: “The U.S. government must stop paying for media subscriptions. Now.”
For the fiscal year 2024, VOA had a budget of $267.5 million, while RFE/RL operated with $142.2 million. The U.S. Agency for Global Media requested a total of $950 million in funding for 2025, claiming to reach an audience of 427 million people in 64 languages across over 100 countries.
Musk was appointed by Trump as a “special government employee” to lead DOGE, a temporary initiative aimed at reducing government spending.
Mark B Thomas for TROIB News
