A high-profile Voice of America journalist is taking an “excused absence” while his employer investigates a post he made about President Trump on social media.
The New York Times reports that VOA Chief National Correspondent Steve Herman was informed of the probe last week by U.S. Agency for Global Media, which is the news agency’s governing body.
Herman is reportedly under scrutiny for “social media activity [that] has undermined VOA’s audiences’ perceptions of the objectivity and/or credibility of VOA and its news operations,” according to a letter sent to Herman.
VOA, which is funded by the federal government, broadcasts to hundreds of millions of listeners worldwide.
The Trump administration is reportedly aggrieved that Herman shared a link to a news story on his X account. It included a quote from an analyst who was unhappy about the move to defund the United States Agency for International Development.
Richard Grenell, a former U.S. ambassador to Germany who is now a special envoy, replied: “Aren’t you a taxpayer funded ‘reporter’ for @voa? Why are you working against President Trump’s reform plans for the US budget?”
Grenell said that “it isn’t too much to suggest this is treasonous.”
“You don’t get to work against the official US government policies while being paid by US taxpayers. You should be immediately fired,” Grenell wrote.
The Times also reported that veteran White House Bureau Chief Patsy Widakuswara was moved to a different beat against her wishes. Some VOA journalists believe that decision was made to placate the Trump administration.
While VOA is indeed government-funded, it functions under the VOA Charter, which mandates that its reporting must be accurate, objective and free from political influence.
The Times also report that VOA staffers are concerned about their respective futures since Trump announced that Kari Lake, a former TV news anchor and a former Republican Senate candidate from Arizona, will lead the broadcaster. Elon Musk and Grenell both say VOA should be dismantled.
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