US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo earlier this week in Washington, D.C. Credit: POOL/AFP via Getty Images
New Chief s Ties Shock Radio Free Asia, While Pompeo Visit to VOA Stirs Outcry By
at 3:03 pm NPR
The new president of the federally funded Radio Free Asia network most recently ran a consulting company from Boise, Idaho that has represented foreign governments and interests. Among them is Taiwan.
That connection has startled veterans of the international broadcaster. Are you serious? said Libby Liu, who led Radio Free Asia for 14 years. I don t think it s appropriate for a registered lobbyist for a foreign government to be leading a free-press organization, even democracies we support and admire.
The demotion of a Voice of America White House reporter led to an outcry. And the new head of sister network Radio Free Asia had registered as a lobbyist for Taiwan just days before taking over.