Czechs appeal for EU help with Radio Free Europe after Trump cuts

The US president signed an executive order on Friday to stop funding the American global broadcaster, following criticism from Elon Musk.

British Broadcasting CorporationWatch LiveHomeNewsSportBusinessInnovationCultureArtsTravelEarthAudioVideoLiveHomeNewsIsrael-Gaza WarWar in UkraineUS & CanadaUKUK PoliticsEnglandN. IrelandN. Ireland PoliticsScotlandScotland PoliticsWalesWales PoliticsAfricaAsiaChinaIndiaAustraliaEuropeLatin AmericaMiddle EastIn PicturesBBC InDepthBBC VerifySportBusinessExecutive LoungeTechnology of BusinessFuture of BusinessInnovationTechnologyScience & HealthArtificial IntelligenceAI v the MindCultureFilm & TVMusicArt & DesignStyleBooksEntertainment NewsArtsArts in MotionTravelDestinationsAfricaAntarcticaAsiaAustralia and PacificCaribbean & BermudaCentral AmericaEuropeMiddle EastNorth AmericaSouth AmericaWorld’s TableCulture & ExperiencesAdventuresThe SpeciaListEarthNatural WondersWeather & ScienceClimate SolutionsSustainable BusinessGreen LivingAudioPodcastsRadioAudio FAQsVideoLiveLive NewsLive SportHomeNewsSportBusinessInnovationCultureArtsTravelEarthAudioVideoLiveWeatherNewslettersCzechs appeal for EU help with Radio Free Europe after Trump cuts1 hour agoShareSaveLaurence PeterBBC NewsShareSaveEPARadio Free Europe broadcasts from Prague to many listeners in ex-communist countriesThe Czech Republic is pushing for EU support to keep Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty (RFE/RL) running after the Trump administration cut funding for the global broadcaster.

Foreign Minister Jan Lipavsky said RFE/RL, based in Prague, "is one of the few credible sources in dictatorships like Iran, Belarus, and Afghanistan".

In Eastern Europe, the US government-funded outlet reached millions of listeners during the Cold War, helping to spread democratic values while communist authorities tightly controlled local media.

Elon Musk, in charge of cost-cutting under Donald Trump, dismissed RFE/RL as "radical left crazy people talking to themselves while torching $1B/year of US taxpayer money".

But RFE/RL's president and CEO Stephen Capus said axing the broadcaster's grant agreement "would be a massive gift to America's enemies".

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cm2d5gpnv6mo

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