An advisor to the president of the United States, Donald Trump, announced on Thursday, March 13, that the United States was going to cancel public contracts with the three main global press agencies.
Kari Lake, a former journalist who has become a politician and close to Donald Trump, said in X that the United States “should no longer pay to external press companies to tell us what information is.” In particular, she points to the France-Presse (AFP) agency, Associated Press and Reuters.
Kari Lake became the global media of the United States (USAGM), an American public body that supervises several active media such as Voice of America and Radio Free Europe / Radio Liberty.
“We must produce information for ourselves”
“I intervened today to cancel the expensive and not necessary contracts of the United States agency for global media with press agencies, including tens of millions of dollars with Associated Press, Reuters and the France-Presse agency,” Kari Lake wrote. “We must produce information for ourselves. And if not possible, the American taxpayer has the right to know why,” he added.
The France-Presse agency has been under contract for years with Usagm Media for the supply of offices, photos and videos.
The billionaire Elon Musk, whom Donald Trump has trusted an extracuent mission responsible for cutting public spending, called to “close” the voice of America and the free medium European radio, judging them useless, little listened to and expensive.
President Trump chose Lake Kari in December to lead Voice of America, but has not yet been confirmed in this position.
Source: BFM TV
