Kari Lake, a Trump advisor, stated that "executives at VOA (Voice of America) met multiple times with Chinese officials in an attempt to influence the U.S. to report more favorably on China," describing this as part of a larger dynamic that is "harmful" to U.S. global media operations funded by American taxpayer dollars, Just the News reported Tuesday night (the 22nd).

Lake, a senior presidential advisor for U.S. global media agencies, said that the meetings with Chinese Communist Party (CCP) officials in Washington and abroad were discovered as part of an investigation exposing improper foreign influence over VOA operations.

In an interview with Just the News, she said, "In the few months I’ve been here conducting investigations, I’ve learned that the CCP, operating out of their embassy in Washington D.C., was meeting regularly with VOA leadership and directing them on how to report on China."

Lake claimed that reporting was distorted to portray the country in a positive light and that at least one VOA Mandarin service official pledged support to the CCP during one of the meetings.

She stated, "You just can't make this stuff up. It's really absurd. But it got more brazen over the years, and to my knowledge, some of the VOA leadership actually traveled to China to meet with CCP officials."

Lake also confirmed that VOA has employed several Chinese nationals affiliated with Chinese state-run media and sponsored hundreds of visas allowing other foreign journalists to work at USAGM subsidiaries.

The agency used J-1 cultural exchange visas—which are not meant for standard employment authorization—to sponsor over 400 foreign journalists from 2009 through the end of the last administration. About 100 of them were from nations of particular security concern, including at least three Chinese individuals who had worked for state-controlled media organizations under the CCP.

Lake explained, "This agency brought non-Americans, foreigners—a countless number of people, hundreds of people from countries hostile to the United States—into our country to tell the American story."

Lake argued that having Chinese journalists come to the U.S. at taxpayer expense to spread "CCP-backed propaganda," which "harms" the nation, goes against the original purpose of VOA, which was established during World War II to counter Axis propaganda and later used during the Cold War to promote Western and American values abroad.

The senior advisor, who was tasked with dismantling USAGM and VOA, noted that this issue extends beyond China to reporting on Russia as well. She pointed out that such reporting was largely pro-Russian and "anti-American."

Just the News reported Tuesday that the leadership would terminate the J-1 visa program used to recruit and retain foreign journalists.

Confirming this, Lake said that in accordance with an executive order from President Trump earlier this year, they are working to reduce the agency by "85%" in the near future.

She stated that looking ahead, "Our goal, as directed by President Trump, is to shut down the entire agency," adding, "So I am working to eliminate this institution; it is a big job, but I am working hard at it."

U.S. NNP = Representative Reporter Hong Sung-goo info@newsandpost.com