Trump says he wants Kari Lake to take over as head of Voice of America

WASHINGTON – President-elect Donald Trump announced Wednesday that he wants his ally Kari Lake to be the next director of Voice of America, a federal network that is part of the U.S. Agency for Global Media.

Trump said on Truth Social that Lake will be nominated to be the next head of the U.S. Agency for Global Media, a choice he will announce “soon.”

Trump said Lake will “ensure that American values ​​of freedom and freedom are spread FAIRLY and ACCURATELY around the world, unlike the lies spread by the fake news media.”

VOA officials did not immediately respond to questions about the procedures for nominating and approving a new director, including what Trump’s announcement might mean for the current director, Michael Abramowitz.

Lake said on X that she was “honored” by Trump’s announcement.

“Under my leadership, VOA will excel in its mission: to chronicle America’s achievements around the world,” she said. “Thank you for trusting me, President Trump. I’m excited to lead the Voice of America and can’t wait to get started.”

The VOA’s stated mission is not to promote America’s achievements; Rather, the website says it is “committed to providing comprehensive coverage of the news and telling the truth to audiences.”

The VOA also emphasizes a “firewall” that, according to its website, “prohibits interference by U.S. government officials in the objective, independent reporting of news, thereby protecting the ability of our journalists to develop content that meets the highest professional standards of journalism.” “free from political interference.”

Lake worked as an Arizona news anchor for KSAZ, the Phoenix Fox affiliate, for more than 20 years. In the years since she left the news industry, she made failed runs for both the Senate and governor of Arizona.

During the election campaign, Lake positioned herself as a loyal ally of Trump and a harsh critic of the industry she once belonged to. She derided journalists as “fake news” and told the Republican National Convention that they had “overstayed their welcome.” She attempted to discredit reporters by arguing that journalists have “spent the last eight years lying about President Donald Trump,” using a baseless right-wing claim.

Lake has also joined debunked voter denialism of the 2020 election and made false claims that the 2022 governor’s race was stolen from her.

According to its website, VOA has a wide international reach, with a global weekly audience of approximately 354 million people and programming in 49 languages.

Trump had previously come under fire for his appointment of Michael Pack to head the U.S. Agency for Global Media in 2020. Pack was accused of undermining the independence of the networks he monitored.

Trump posted about Lake on Truth Social along with a handful of other government announcements. He also said Wednesday evening that he wants Leandro Rizzuto to be ambassador to the Organization of American States, Peter Lamelas to be ambassador to Argentina, Daniel J. Newlin to be ambassador to Colombia and Michael J. Rigas to be assistant secretary of state for management and resources.