USAID Paid for Ukrainian Media

Nine of 10 media outlets in Ukraine depend on international funding sources, with the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) as their primary donor, according to a new report.

After President Donald Trump's order to freeze billions of dollars in worldwide spending, many of those operations are suspending services or searching for other funding methods, according to Reporters Without Borders (RSB).

Anna Babinets, CEO and co-founder of Slidstvo.Info, told Reporters Without Borders that "80% of our budget is affected" after the spending freeze, shutting down funding to the Kyiv-based outlet.

USAID said on Medium that its 2025 foreign-aid budget includes $268,376,000 that was allocated by Congress in support of "independent media and the free flow of information," but it did not outline how much of that funding went to the Ukrainian outlets.

Supporting independent media sources has been part of the agency's democracy and governance efforts since the 1980s, according to USAID, which acknowledged that the U.S. government "is now the largest public donor to independent media development globally."

According to Reporters Without Borders, which condemned the shutdown, the media outlets could be forced to find other funding sources that harm their editorial line.

"Some media might be shut down or bought by businessmen or oligarchs," Babinets said. "I think Russian money will enter the market. And government propaganda will, of course, intensify."

RSF said that it has already been hit with "propaganda" after the money was frozen, saying that "disinformation" surfaced that "claimed we welcomed the suspension of USAID funding for Ukrainian media — a stance RSF has never endorsed."

Oleh Dereniuha, editor-in-chief of the Ukrainian outlet NikVesti, based in Mykolaiv, a city in Southeast Ukraine, said the U.S. funding suspension is "just the tip of the iceberg."

Independent Ukrainian media outlets, since 2024, have been experiencing a decline in donors, with a recent RSF report noting that the independent Ukrainian media was weakened economically by the Russian invasion in 2022, costing the sources at least $96 million over three years.

Katerina Abramova, communications director for exiled Russian media outlet Meduza, said she fears the funding from USAID may be lost permanently, and other sources could follow.

"Exiled media are even more in a fragile position than others, as we can't monetize our audience and the crowdfunding has its limits, especially when donating to Meduza is a crime in Russia," she said.

Elon Musk, the leader of the Department of Government Efficiency, has referred to USAID as a "criminal organization," and Secretary of State Marco Rubio has suggested the agency's operations would be moved to the State Department.

Trump has accused Democrats in the government of stealing "billions of dollars," at USAID and agencies and using much of the money as a "payoff" to the "fake news media" for good coverage.

But Reporters Without Borders said the funding freeze is "sowing chaos around the world, including in journalism."

"The tragic irony is that this measure will create a vacuum that plays into the hands of propagandists and authoritarian states," the organization stated.

USAID has announced several commitments to independent media, including announcing at the first Summit for Democracy in December 2021 the Media Viability Accelerator, which uses artificial intelligence and other digital tools to help media outlets maximize their profits.

In addition, USAID has spent $20 million with the International Fund for Public Interest Media (IFPIM) to boost global support through grants for independent news organizations.

"USAID's initial seed funding has leveraged an additional $30 million from 15 governments, philanthropies, and corporate entities," the organization said.

The organization has also launched Reporters Shield, which protects journalists and outlets from legal threats meant to silence reporting.