To save VOA, burn down the ‘firewall’

OPINION:

“Voice of America” is an inspiring brand, but the taxpayer-funded news outlet’s work is neither an inspiring nor an accurate representation of America’s voice.

On Sunday, VOA employees were put on administrative leave “until further notice.” Critics of President Trump expressed outrage, invoking VOA’s storied history of inspiring hope among captive people during World War II and the Cold War.

That was then. Today’s VOA bears a scant resemblance to your grandfather’s VOA.

Back then, VOA’s strategic mission was clear: supporting the goals of U.S. national strategy. After the Soviet Union collapsed, Congress decided this was no longer necessary. The 1994 U.S. International Broadcasting Act erected a “firewall” to detach VOA and other U.S. government-funded media outlets from policy and politics. The law enshrined the virtue of the free press on the taxpayer’s dime.

Instead of guaranteeing editorial independence, the firewall broke VOA by removing any semblance of accountability. VOA became a rogue organization, platforming liberal agendas to the detriment of our nation’s reputation and influence overseas.

I served briefly as deputy director of VOA at the end of the first Trump administration. COVID-19 was in full swing, and only a handful of employees came to work at the headquarters building in Washington. When I asked to meet with the top supervisors, I was greeted with hostility. Many had moved out of state, and no one had answers to my questions about editorial content, potential reach, impressions or sentiment analysis.

At every turn, I was informed with pique that the firewall meant engagement by the political appointees at the top of VOA was verboten. The word “firewall” was raised at nearly every attempt to encourage productivity, professionalism or focus on the mission.

Lacking oversight, VOA staff felt entitled to interpret their taxpayer-funded duties any way they liked. They were able to indulge their political biases, which were completely unconnected to America’s national interests.

One example: In 2023, after the brutal massacre of Israelis by Hamas, VOA adopted an editorial policy not to call Hamas and its members terrorists despite the U.S. designation of the group as a foreign terrorist organization more than two decades earlier. Congressional outrage forced the leadership to walk this back somewhat, but the pro-Hamas bias remained. In February, a VOA story on the Hamas handover of the remains of Israeli children covered up the festival atmosphere and jubilance of the Palestinian spectators.

Another consequence of the editorial autonomy indulged by the firewall is that much of the output is amateurish, late, lazy and focused on news of the weird, which reflects poorly on our country. Production values are substandard, seemingly locked in the 1990s, partly because of jobs filled by nepotism. Content on the VOA website has featured copy-and-pasted wire service copy rather than original reporting. Trump-appointed senior adviser Kari Lake has saved an estimated $53 million by terminating VOA contracts with The Associated Press, Reuters and Agence France-Presse. She has also exposed a wasteful quarter-billion-dollar contract for a gleaming new headquarters building lacking studios.

Eliminating the firewall and bringing accountability back to VOA will refocus the agency on its critical public diplomacy mission. The VOA charter requires the outlet to serve as a consistently reliable and authoritative source of news that is accurate, objective and comprehensive; represent America with a balanced and comprehensive projection of significant American thought and institutions; and present responsible discussion and opinion on the policies of the United States.

VOA was designed to be part of a serious, coordinated, rational effort to promote U.S. national interests by positively messaging U.S. policies, values and culture. Along with other agents of public diplomacy, it was created to bolster the reputation of the United States, counter disinformation and combat adversary propaganda. This worthwhile mission could still be achieved if VOA employees honored their role in support of the country and were directed to do so.

The global information battle space is a tough neighborhood. Russia, China, Iran and other adversary states understand the power of information and are well-organized to push their anti-American narratives.

The hard edge of U.S. soft power cannot be “independent” journalism produced by America-averse skeptics with no sense of mission. VOA must be rebuilt from the bottom up, and this great brand must be resuscitated, reformed and optimized. The first step is to burn down the firewall to start restoring the focus and accountability of this national asset.

• Elizabeth Robbins is vice president for communications at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies, a nonpartisan research institute focusing on national security and foreign policy. She briefly served as deputy director of Voice of America.