Voice of America bias inquiry sparks concerns of political meddling

The Voice of America embarked this week on a formal review of a chief national correspondent’s social media postings for potential bias against the Trump administration, sparking concerns of a new burst of political interference at the federally funded international broadcaster.
 
Steve Herman was placed on paid “excused absence” and told colleagues he expected to lose his job. He confirmed his status Friday evening but declined comment.

Voice of America is overseen by the U.S. Agency for Global Media. VOA relies on the USAGM for human resources services. In a memo sent to Herman that was reviewed by NPR, the agency cited several policies in explaining the grounds for the review of his work including an executive order by President Trump titled “One Voice for America’s Foreign Relations.” Among the elements of that executive order: “Failure to faithfully implement the President’s policy is grounds for professional discipline, including separation.”

Additionally, on Friday afternoon, VOA shifted a veteran reporter who covers the White House, Patsy Widakuswara, to another beat. Journalists at the network said a clear rationale was not offered.

This account is based on interviews with five people at the network with knowledge of events who asked for anonymity for fear of retribution. A spokeswoman for the U.S. Agency for Global Media did not respond to requests for comment. 

The New York Times first reported on the investigation of Herman, and the reassignment of Widakuswara, who had been the White House bureau chief. 

During the final year of President Trump’s first term in office, political appointees at the U.S. Agency for Global Media similarly investigated Herman for bias. A federal judge found that then USAGM chief Michael Pack acted unconstitutionally in assigning aides to investigate Steve Herman, the national correspondent being reviewed once more.

USAGM also oversees other international broadcasters funded by the federal government, such as Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, Radio Free Asia and Radio Television Martí. The networks are charged with providing straight news for societies where independent news coverage is either repressed or financially unfeasible and with modeling the value of pluralistic political debate within that coverage.

It serves 427 million listeners in 100 countries and 64 languages every week.

This week, USAGM hired two-time unsuccessful Arizona MAGA candidate and former local television news anchor Kari Lake as an adviser. Trump publicly announced she was his choice to lead the VOA but she can’t start until Trump’s nominee to be chief executive of USAGM is approved by the Senate. Lake would then require the approval of a bipartisan advisory board.

Lake has said the network is rife with liberal bias and she simply wants to make it fair to Trump and his views.

The new investigation of Herman does not appear to trigger the legal issues cited by the federal judge, Beryl Howell, back in 2020. She ruled in fall of that year that then USAGM chief Michael Pack — who had promised to “drain the swamp” at the VOA — had violated Herman’s First Amendment rights and breached a firewall set up to protect the newsroom from editorial interference.

A federal investigation found Pack also repeatedly abused the powers of his office, broke laws and regulations, and engaged in gross mismanagement as he turned the agency and the international broadcasters it oversees upside down.

In this instance, by contrast, the investigation was initiated by journalistic leaders at the VOA itself. It is being conducted by John Featherly — who is acting senior programming director — and it received the blessing of VOA’s director, Michael Abramowitz. He is a former veteran editor of The Washington Post and former president of Freedom House, an advocacy and research group dedicated to promoting journalism and free expression.

Abramowitz was named director by then President Joe Biden’s chief of the U.S. Agency for Global Media and is not seen as an ideological figure. 

But journalists at the network said they are fearful of pressures, explicit and otherwise, from Trump administration officials, including Lake.  

In 2020, the White House had objected to several stories prior to the inquiry, which focused on Herman retweeting posts that involved stories that reflected critically on the Trump administration. 

The Voice of America leaders have told associates they are simply basing the review of Herman’s work on journalistic concerns. Similarly, they have internally cited the pace and intensity of Herman’s retweets, which focus primarily on controversies encompassing the Trump administration.

Earlier this year, Ric Grenell, named by Trump to be the interim head of the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, called for Herman to be fired over his tweets relaying news reports of deep cuts in U.S. international aid programs. 

“Why are you working against President Trump’s reform plans for the U.S. budget?” Grenell asked. “It isn’t too much to suggest this is treasonous.”

Lake, who is poised to be the next director of VOA, has repeatedly posted on behalf of the President and his causes — including as recently as Friday.