President of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, Jamie Fly, has announced his resignation. In a message addressed to RFE/RL employees, Mr. Fly noted that a decision on his dismissal was made by a new head of the US Agency for Global Media, Mr. Michael Pack, according to Radio Ozodi.
The heads of four organizations overseen by the US Agency for Global Media (USAGM) were all dismissed Wednesday night.
In what a former official described as a "Wednesday night massacre," the heads of Middle East Broadcasting, Radio Free Asia, Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, and the Open Technology Fund were all ousted, CNN says.
Some US media reports say the move likely to heighten concerns that new Trump-appointed CEO Michael Pack intends to turn the agency into a political arm of the administration.
The New York Times says the move by Michael Pack, an ally of Steve Bannon appointed by President Trump, raised concerns that the news organizations would become partisan.
According to CNN, a source familiar with the situation said at least two of the removals — that of RFE/RL's Jamie Fly and MBN's Alberto Fernandez — were unexpected.
CNN says three sources with knowledge of the changes said that each of the organizations' boards were dissolved, and two of those sources said that one of the incoming board members is an official from Liberty Counsel, a conservative Christian organization.
Hindustan Times notes that the dismissal of Fly and Fernandez attracted criticism, including from Mark Dubowitz, a well-known advocate of the Trump administration’s hawkish policies on Iran. “Poor decision to fire (Fernandez) and (Fly) whose exemplary leadership of MBN and RFE/RL respectively, made America’s public diplomacy more effective, more persuasive and more consistent with American interests and values,” he wrote.
Michael Pack is an American conservative film-maker. He was chosen to be the CEO of the U.S. Agency for Global Media (USAGM) by the Trump administration and assumed office in June 2020.
