The federally funded Voice of America (VOA) on Friday told its reporters to stop using material from the Associated Press (AP), Reuters and Agence France-Presse, after the government decided to terminate contracts with the wire services. 

The terminations come amid a fraught relationship between the White House and legacy media, after the Trump administration pulled the AP's access to certain areas of the White House, including the Oval Office.

Special Adviser at the U.S. Agency for Global Media Kari Lake, who President Donald Trump tapped to lead the VOA, announced the end of the contracts on Thursday, estimating it would save the U.S. $53 million, per the AP.

“We should not be paying outside news organizations to tell us what the news is,” Lake wrote on X. “With a nearly billion-dollar budget, we should be producing news ourselves. And if that’s not possible, the American taxpayer should demand to know why.”

The news organizations have not commented on the canceled contracts so far.

Lake is serving as a special adviser to the U.S. Agency for Global Media while her nomination to run VOA is being processed. Lake was previously a reporter before she entered Republican politics. She most recently unsuccessfully ran for Arizona governor in 2024. 

Misty Severi is a news reporter for Just The News. You can follow her on X for more coverage.