USAID: U.S. Government ‘Now Largest Public Donor to Independent Media Development Globally’

The U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) has been quietly sending U.S. taxpayer dollars to fund thousands of ostensibly “independent” journalists, media NGOs and media outlets worldwide.

In a post on X, Wikileaks cited a USAID fact sheet which has now been taken offline that states, in 2023, the agency funded training and support for 6,200 journalists, assisted 707 non-state news outlets and supported 279 “media” non-governmental organizations (NGOs).

This included sending U.S. taxpayer money to Ukraine where 9 out of 10 media outlets rely on international aid with the majority of that funding coming from USAID.

Wow!! https://t.co/6hzSWWQqyE

— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) February 6, 2025

According to a USAID article titled “Press Freedom Is Under Threat” the agency said:

Supporting independent media has been part of USAID’s democracy and governance assistance efforts since the 1980s. The U.S. government is now the largest public donor to independent media development globally.

Many of USAID’s funding activities have come under scrutiny after President Trump ordered a 90 day freeze on billions of dollars in spending to give the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) time to delve into federal spending to weed out waste and fraud.

The organization Reporters Without Borders (RSF) claims that media outlets and organizations around the globe have had to halt some of their activities because of the spending freeze.

RSF complains that without U.S. tax dollars, media outlets may turn to other sources for funding that could result in having to alter their “editorial line and independence” in order to stay in business.

How is that not an admission that these journalist and media outlets are willing to sell their souls in a buyer’s market to keep the money flowing?

Is it any wonder that there is such remarkable uniformity in how media outlets choose to report the news?

🚨🚨 Breaking USAID update🚨🚨

Good old fashioned home cooked propaganda

According to the Columbia Journalism Review, USAID has paid 6,200 journalists, 707 news organizations, and 279 media-focused NGOs across 30 countries. pic.twitter.com/8i5SnFj1nL

— The Irony Machine 🇺🇸 (@chisum48056) February 6, 2025

RSF’s claim that the freeze on USAID funding of politically-aligned media partners has thrown “journalism around the world into chaos” raises some inconvenient questions about why so many media outlets worldwide are dependent upon what is looking like a CIA slush fund.

There’s also the matter of whether the U.S. taxpayer, in any way, agreed to fund media propaganda that is being used to prop up organizations and causes that have nothing to do with the governance of the American people.

That sounds more like taxation without representation than upholding the principles of free speech and a free press.