Trump’s assault on Voice of America, defined

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Welcome to The Logoff: At present I’m centered on the Trump administration’s efforts to undermine Voice of America, a US-funded information community that brings info to folks around the globe — together with folks dwelling underneath repressive regimes.

What’s the most recent? The administration fired about 600 contractors Thursday who work for the community, greater than a 3rd of the group’s workers.

What about the remainder of the workers? In March, the administration put nearly your entire workers on depart, however they efficiently sued to dam these de facto firings, a minimum of quickly. Litigation is ongoing over whether or not the administration has the authority to chop the company, which is funded by Congress.

Why is the administration doing this? Voice of America is, by legislation, editorially impartial, which means the Trump administration can't management the community’s content material. Which means it generally publishes information that displays poorly on the president or his insurance policies — one thing this administration can't abide.

What’s the massive image? Like every outlet, Voice of America has its shortcomings, and there are professional disagreements over the way it covers the information. However for hundreds of thousands of individuals whose governments block entry to the information, Voice of America and its associates are their greatest likelihood of studying about what’s occurring on the planet round them — together with what their very own governments are as much as. Now, Trump is making an attempt to take that away.

And with that, it’s time to log out…

Right here’s an award-winning Voice of America story about what occurs to accountability right here within the US when native information organizations are pushed out of enterprise. It’s a fantastic piece, however if you wish to put it aside for a non-Friday afternoon, there’s at all times the fantastic livestream of a bald eagles’ nest . Thanks a lot for studying, and I’ll see you again right here Monday.