Trump Officials Seek to Break Editorial ‘Firewall’ at U.S.-Funded News Agencies
Two federally funded newsrooms received a draft funding agreement that could give President Trump’s appointees the power to veto their new hires for editors in chief and chief executives.
The Trump administration is seeking to limit the safeguards protecting the editorial freedom of federally funded news groups that broadcast overseas, raising concerns that it could undermine an independent source of news in parts of the world with few of them.
Two of the organizations that President Trump tried but failed to shutter, Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty and Middle East Broadcasting Networks, earlier this month received a draft funding agreement that could give Mr. Trump’s political appointees more control over their operations.
The administration could have the power to veto their new hires for editors in chief, chief executives and members of their boards, and could unilaterally shut down parts of their news operations with a two-week notice, according to a draft of the proposal reviewed by The New York Times and two people familiar with the matter.
Related Knowledge Center: The White House vs. the press
Whether it’s the Des Moines Register’s publication of an unfavorable election poll, a routine edit of a 60 Minutes interview with Kamala Harris, or the Associated Press’s decision in its authoritative stylebook to continue to use “Gulf of Mexico,” Donald Trump and the White House have used executive authority and legal reprisals in an effort to punish and suppress press coverage that runs contrary to the administration’s preferred narratives.
Democracy and politics | Signalgate | The CBS submission | Voiceless America
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The White House vs. the press | Voiceless America