US President Donald Trump has signed an Executive Order targeting the Reduction of Funds for an agency responsible for Supporting State-sponsored Propaganda

US President Donald Trump has signed an executive order that aims to significantly curtail operations at the agency responsible for funding state-sponsored news outlets, including Voice of America and Radio Liberty.

This action is part of Trump's broader initiative to eliminate wasteful spending, bureaucracy, and corruption within the federal government. To date, these efforts have led to the cancellation of various programs and notable job reductions within the federal workforce.

The executive order, signed on Friday, affects seven federal agencies, with one being responsible for museum funding and another focusing on homelessness.

The order specifically targets the US Agency for Global Media, which oversees Voice of America and additionally manages Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty and Radio Free Asia. While these organizations assert they provide impartial news to audiences in roughly 100 countries, they are often perceived as propaganda outlets.

Under the new directive, these agencies are required to minimize their operations and staffing to only what is legally necessary. Agency heads now have seven days to present compliance plans detailing which functions are mandated by law.

Trump has been a vocal critic of US-funded media outlets, including VOA, accusing them of bias. In a speech at the Department of Justice on Friday, he described the US media as “corrupt and illegal” and referred to them as “political arms of the Democrat party.” He singled out CNN and MSNBC, alleging they “literally write 97.6% bad about me,” and committed to continuing his efforts to purge “rogue actors and corrupt forces” from the federal government.

Elon Musk, who oversees Trump’s Department of Government Efficiency, has advocated for a complete shutdown of RFE/RL and VOA. In a post on X last month, he called them “radical left crazy people talking to themselves while torching $1B/year of US taxpayer money.” Following this, the Trump administration has reportedly gained near-total control of the USAGM, implemented a 30-day funding freeze, and started layoffs, particularly impacting probationary employees at VOA.

Kari Lake, appointed by Trump as the head of VOA, has expressed support for the cost-reduction measures while suggesting that the agency may still be salvageable. On Thursday, she disclosed plans to terminate expensive contracts with major wire services such as AP, AFP, and Reuters. In a social media post, Lake mentioned she was “finding a lot of nonsense that the American taxpayer should not be paying for.”

Ian Smith for TROIB News