The US Agency for Global Media (USAGM) announced on Thursday that journalist-turned-politician Kari Lake will join it in the role of special advisor.
Ms. Lake has 30 years of experience in journalism. In December, President Donald Trump said he intended to appoint Ms. Lake as director of the Voice of America.
The official appointment of Ms. Lake to this position must be made by the Executive Director of USAGM, but the candidate nominated by President Trump, conservative political activist and author L. Brent Bozell III - is still awaiting a confirmation hearing in the Senate.
A new bipartisan board is also expected to be selected, which, in collaboration with the new executive director, will appoint or dismiss the heads of various international broadcasting agencies, such as Voice of America and Radio Free Europe, among others.
Lake's appointment as special advisor was announced by Roman Napoli in an email to staff. Napoli currently serves as USAGM's chief executive officer, following the resignation of Amanda Bennett.
Ms. Lake "brings a wealth of experience in television journalism. She has served for two decades as a journalist on well-known television channels in several countries," Mr. Napoli wrote.
Highlighting her achievements, Mr. Napoli said that Ms. Lake has interviewed the country's leaders, including two American presidents, and is the winner of two prestigious 'Emmy' awards for foreign news reporting.
"As a senior advisor to the Trump administration, Kari Lake will help the USAGM agency implement necessary policies and strategies to reorganize and improve the networks it oversees," the email said.
USAGM oversees all of the United States' international public broadcasters dedicated to delivering news and combating censorship, which collectively have a weekly audience of more than 420 million viewers. They include Voice of America, the Cuba Broadcasting Office, Radio Free Europe, Radio Free Asia, the Middle East Broadcasting Networks, the Open Technology Fund, and the Frontline Media Fund.
In addition to overseeing independent networks, USAGM's mission is to "inform, engage, and connect people around the world in support of freedom and democracy."
In his email to staff, Mr. Napoli said Ms. Lake's experience "will be invaluable as we continue our mission to clearly and effectively present the Trump administration's policies around the world."
The USAGM Public Affairs Department did not respond to a request for comment from VOA.
Internal regulations, which protect the way news is gathered and reported, prevent USAGM from interfering in the work of the news agencies it oversees.
Agencies under the USAGM's oversight have been combating disinformation and propaganda since the Voice of America's first broadcasts during Nazi Germany's World War II era. But its coverage over the years has also drawn criticism over allegations of biased coverage, mismanagement, and problems with vetting procedures for hired personnel.
Ms. Lake addressed some of the criticism directed at USAGM in her speech at the Conservative Political Action Conference held last week.
Ms. Lake said that as director of the Voice of America she would focus her work on ensuring that the agency did "accurate and truthful reporting."
“Voice of America has told the world the story of the United States for 83 years. Sometimes the coverage has been extraordinary and sometimes it has been regrettable,” said Ms. Lake. “We are in an information war and there is no better weapon than the truth, and I believe Voice of America can be that weapon.”
Among those who have called for the agency to be shut down is Mr. Trump's special advisor, Elon Musk.
"We're not going to be Trump television," she said, "but we're certainly not going to be the television that bashes Trump all day long, which you can find in abundance on CNN, MSNBC, PBS, '60 Minutes,' The Washington Post, and The New York Times."
After experience in journalism, in recent years Ms. Lake has entered politics.
She was fired from her Arizona television station over what she said was misinformation about the pandemic. Ms. Lake ran unsuccessfully for governor of Arizona and filed a lawsuit, refusing to concede defeat. Her run for a Senate seat was also unsuccessful./ VOA (A2 Televizion)
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