Radio Free Asia (RFA), a media outlet established three decades ago to provide independent news coverage on China and other Asian nations lacking press freedom, has announced it will cease broadcasting due to insufficient funding from the US government.
The broadcaster revealed on Wednesday that it has been forced to shut down most of its operations after severe budget cuts.
More than 90 percent of RFA’s staff have been laid off or placed on unpaid leave, and production has been drastically reduced since the Trump administration eliminated the majority of government funding allocated to US-backed international media outlets in March.
The situation worsened as the partial federal government shutdown, which has lasted nearly a month, caused additional delays in financial support.
RFA stated that it would officially stop producing news content starting Friday, marking the first time the organization has gone off air since its founding in 1996. Remaining employees will also be formally dismissed.
Chief Executive Bay Fang told Agence France-Presse that the organization’s priority had always been to protect its employees for as long as possible. She added that RFA would begin seeking alternative revenue sources to potentially resume broadcasting in the future.
RFA was among the few outlets offering independent reporting in the Uyghur language, free from Beijing’s control. Its shutdown coincides with a scheduled meeting between US President Joe Biden and Chinese President Xi Jinping in South Korea on Thursday.
Sophie Richardson, co-director of the China Human Rights Defenders network, said that the closure represents a “gift to dictators such as Xi Jinping,” especially as Beijing continues its efforts to tighten control over information within the country.
She also noted that the US government has simultaneously halted funding for several non-governmental organizations that monitor and document the evolving human rights situation in China.
Follow the latest news on Google News
