Frenemies at the gate: How U.S. granted security access to China, Iran

[Geee]

Washington Times

Foreign nationals from countries such as China and Iran were granted security clearances by the U.S. government agency in charge of broadcasting, jeopardizing national security, according to officials and internal documents from the U.S. Agency for Global Media.

The global media agency oversees the Voice of America, Radio Free Asia and several other official broadcast outlets focusing on Europe, Russia, Cuba and the Middle East, with an annual budget this year of $637 million.

“U.S. national security is jeopardized any time there is even a single security violation,” said a senior USAGM official, speaking on background. “In this case, an entire agency with daily global reach was permitted to fully inculcate lax, or nonexistent, security procedures.”

The Senate recently confirmed the USAGM’s first chief executive officer, Michael Pack, who uncovered the security failures during a preliminary review, according to officials at the agency.

The security problems appear related to actions by the Broadcasting Board of Governors, a nine-member panel of Republicans and Democrats and the secretary of state as an ex-officio member. The board was renamed in 2018 as the U.S. Agency for Global Media.