MAGA news network to take over venerable government-funded outlet
Senior presidential adviser Kari Lake announced late Tuesday that she’s struck a deal with One America News to beam its pro-Trump propaganda through Voice of America—making clear her intent to transform the government-funded broadcaster into a mouthpiece for the far-right.
Voice of America is currently off the air, gutted under President Donald Trump. But it may soon return as a vessel for one of his most loyal media allies. Lake said OAN will now provide “newsfeed services” not just to VOA but also to other networks under the U.S. Agency for Global Media, including the Office of Cuba Broadcasting and Radio Martí, a Miami-based station that broadcasts in Cuba.
“USAGM is excited to announce a partnership with One America News Network,” Lake posted on social media, noting OAN was offering its newsfeed “free of charge.”
While Lake admitted she doesn’t have direct editorial control over VOA, she made it clear she intends to funnel MAGA-aligned content into its coverage. To that end, Lake said she plans to “ensure our outlets have reliable and credible options as they work to craft their reporting and news programs.”
However, OAN is anything but credible. The network, founded in 2013, has been dropped by nearly every major cable and satellite provider and was a major promoter of Trump’s false claims about the 2020 election—lies that led to several defamation lawsuits, including one from the voting technology company Smartmatic, which OAN quietly settled in 2024. And one of the network’s current hosts is former Republican Rep. Matt Gaetz of Florida, who resigned in disgrace after allegations of drug use and sex with minors.
While Trump’s allies boost hyperpartisan outlets, they’re also punishing fact-based media outlets. His administration is working to block the Associated Press from covering presidential events, all while reserving briefing room seats for far-right, fringe-friendly allies.
It’s also unclear how this OAN deal squares with Trump’s ongoing legal battles. He’s fighting to uphold a March executive order dismantling USAGM, issued after he accused VOA of bias. That order led to over 1,000 VOA staffers being placed on leave, the termination of 600 contractors, and the suspension of broadcasting for the first time in the agency’s 83-year history.
U.S. District Judge Royce Lamberth blocked the order on April 22, which would have allowed more staff to return. But a federal appeals court—stacked with two Trump appointees—partially stayed the ruling, halting the return of employees while still requiring VOA to fulfill its legal mandate. Lake appears ready to use OAN’s content to meet that mandate, without rebuilding the network as it was. Trump hasn’t commented publicly on Lake’s plan.
Fears of a right-wing reboot of VOA are widespread.
“VOA is not to be the voice of left America nor the voice of right America,” Steve Herman, chief national correspondent for VOA, told The Washington Post. “USAGM cannot dictate [that] VOA run OAN content. It would be a violation of our fire wall and our charter, which are laws.”
Grant Turner, former USAGM chief financial officer, was more blunt, telling NPR, “Kari Lake providing One America News Network to our global audiences makes a mockery of the agency’s history of independent nonpartisan journalism.”
Lake, a twice-failed MAGA candidate for office in Arizona, is a former TV anchor who’s spent years echoing Trump’s lies about election fraud—claims she’s made about her own losses too.
What’s unfolding at Voice of America isn’t just a bureaucratic shakeup—it’s a warning shot. A network initially created to fight propaganda abroad is now at risk of becoming a government-run amplifier of it at home.