The CEO of the U.S. Agency for Global Media (USAGM), which oversees U.S. government-run news outlets, announced on Monday that those responsible for a segment broadcast in Cuba describing Democratic donor George Soros as a “multimillionaire Jew” will be placed on leave while USAGM investigates how the segment made it on air.
“It was brought to my attention this weekend that the Office of Cuba Broadcasting (OCB), which is overseen by the U.S. Agency for Global Media (USAGM), earlier this year aired a video segment about George Soros that is inconsistent with our professional standards and ethics,” John Lansing, USAGM’s CEO, said in a statement. “USAGM networks’ content is required to adhere to the highest standards of professional journalism.”
“Those deemed responsible for this production will be immediately placed on administrative leave pending an investigation into their apparent misconduct,” he added. “Disciplinary action appropriate under federal law may then be proposed, including the potential removal of those responsible, depending on the outcome of that investigation.”
The segment, aired on Radio Televisión Martí in May, used the conservative Judicial Watch as its main source and called Soros “the multimillionaire Jew of Hungarian origin whose fortune is estimated at $8 billion” and “a non-believing Jew of flexible morals.” The segment painted Soros as a menace to Latin America and democracy who “exploits capitalism and Wall Street to finance anti-system movements that fill his pockets.”
In his statement, Lansing said that Tomás P. Regalado, the director of the Office of Cuban Broadcasting, which more closely oversees Radio Televisión Martí, will assist in making sure employees stick to ethical standards of journalism.
In an earlier statement to Mother Jones, Regalado said that the story did not have “balance” and should have had additional sources. “Judicial Watch is a good source, but having said that, it should not have been the only source,” he said.
