Radio Free Asia announced on Friday that it would cease reporting operations due to a cash crunch caused by the U.S. government shutdown and the Trump administration’s actions against government-funded news services.
Since 1996, Radio Free Asia has operated as an independent news source across the region, both online and in broadcast, especially in areas where the free flow of information is suppressed.
it has been Operated by skeleton staff Over the past few months, as the administration has been trying to cut off funding, I have been producing several articles, mostly online. Mr. Trump’s team argues that programs like RFA, Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, and Voice of America are poorly run and a waste of government resources.
“To conserve the limited resources we have and preserve the possibility of resuming operations when stable funding becomes available, RFA is taking further steps to responsibly downsize its already shrinking footprint,” said Bei Huang, RFA’s president and CEO.
Radio Free Asia will begin closing its overseas offices, lay off staff and pay them severance packages, most of whom have been on unpaid leave since March last year, Huang said.
Together with its own journalists and contractors in Asia, RFA has aggressively reported on topics that some governments don’t want to see, such as the repression of Uyghurs in China, the aftermath of the 2021 military coup in Myanmar, and the plight of defectors in North Korea. Outlets were growing. Website visitors increased by 20% between 2023 and 2024.
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RFE/Radio Liberty, like RFA as a private company funded by the government, said its news service is continuing: “We intend to continue to inform our listeners for the foreseeable future,” the organization announced this week. It operates in Eastern Europe, Central Asia and the Middle East. The service includes filed its own lawsuit against the administration.
RFE/Radio Liberty said it received its last federal funding in September. The company is operating on reserve funds and has taken cost-cutting measures such as cutting back on freelancer contracts, cutting back on programs and putting some staff on partial paid leave.
It is not immediately clear why the two organizations, which have essentially the same structure, are taking different approaches to continuing operations at this time.
The Voice of America has been focused on providing news about the United States to audiences in other countries, but since its funding was cut off, it has continued to operate on a very limited basis, effectively shutting down due to the government shutdown. some employees filed a lawsuit to thwart the regime’s plans.
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Associated Press writers Didi Tan and Matthew Lee in Washington contributed to this report. David Bauder writes about media for the AP. please follow him http://x.com/dbauder and https://bsky.app/profile/dbauder.bsky.social
