'Oh, Please': Dina Titus Claps Back At Kari Lake About VOA Coverage Of One America News

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At a House Foreign Affairs Committee hearing on Wednesday, Rep. Dina Titus (D-NV) questioned Kari Lake about One American News.

Transcript

00:00Senator Titus. Thank you, Mr. Chairman. Before I get to my questions, I'd just like for the

00:05record to show that the U.S. AGM reported to Congress that that so-called swanky building

00:11that you just saw pictures of would actually save the taxpayers $150 million. So let's be

00:18sure we get our facts straight as we try to- Can I respond to that? No, I have some other

00:23questions for you. Thank you. Ms. Lake, do you agree that the U.S. Agency for Global Media

00:30should be a reliable and authoritative news source? Yes, and unfortunately it hasn't been. Well, I'm

00:37glad you say that because it's really not a matter of opinion, it's a matter of law. The law requires

00:43the agency to provide news which is consistently reliable and authoritative, accurate, objective,

00:49and comprehensive. Now you criticize the agency as not doing that, but others think that the agency

00:55was doing that up until the time that Donald Trump took office. We broadcast news to hundreds of

01:01millions of people around the world and provided a crucial counterweight to the propaganda that was

01:06coming from our adversaries. Then President Trump decided to dismantle USAGM with your help and all

01:14its networks. But in my view, the most ludicrous and concerning thing that has been done was to direct

01:21the agency to engage One America News to provide content for Voice of America and your other broadcasters.

01:29So I'd like to ask you, do you think UAN, One America News, is a reliable and authoritarian

01:36news source as the law requires? I think they do a better job than most news outlets. They cover America.

01:42Well, let's look at some of the things that they've said and to tell me that you, if you really think.

01:47And by the way, it was not my idea to do that. We were.

01:49It was under your direction and from your president who you have said is so wonderful.

01:53I'm surprised you're not wearing a MAGA hat here today, but nonetheless.

01:57The Office of Cuba Broadcasting requested that we bring that in.

01:59I can keep talking over you forever, but let's look at some of the things that the OAN did,

02:05which was given the contract and they're doing it whether it's from you or from the president that you'd admire.

02:11So they said they the leadership there told its reporters to, and I'm quoting, minimize coverage

02:19of Russian aggression. Now, do you think that's reliable and authoritative and better than other

02:24news agencies to minimize coverage of Russian aggression?

02:28I don't I'm I'm not making up I'm not making the rundown of what airs on One America's Voice,

02:34but they have to cover or One American News rather. They have to cover what is of interest to them

02:41and to their viewers. But they're the ones who now have the contract to put out the news to all

02:46their these different agencies that are under your direction. Shouldn't you be aware of what kind of

02:51news they're putting out? I don't tell them what to put on the air at Voice of America because of an

02:57editorial firewall. Apparently, the CCP has more say in what goes over the air.

03:02Oh, I think that's a little ridiculous. I don't think China's over here telling OAN what to what they can

03:08recover. I don't think China told them to minimize their coverage of Russian aggression.

03:12Talk to some of the whistleblowers. Let me ask you if you think this is a good coverage.

03:17Their programming for the agency, they were told also minimize coverage of the pope because he has

03:25been making comments about climate change and advocating action. You think that's good coverage not

03:31to cover the pope? You think that's reliable and authoritative?

03:37It's not my decision on what is airing at OAN.

03:40Well, you're in charge. You're in charge.

03:42I'm not in charge of OAN.

03:43You got the contract with these people, so it seems like it's your decision.

03:46Here's something else. The reports say that OAN instructed its employees to report only on good polls

03:54for Donald Trump, only on good polls, and they perpetuated the lie that Donald Trump won the 2020

04:00election. That's the news that we're putting out to the rest of the world under your leadership.

04:05They were one of the only outlets that had the courage to cover elections.

04:08Oh, please, please. You're going to say we're going to only cover good polls for Trump and still continue

04:16to say that the 2020 election was rigged, and that's the news we're putting out to the rest

04:21of the world, and that's the ones who have the contract.

04:23Let me see if I can pull the phone number for the person who runs OAN, and you can have a conversation

04:28about the content. Well, I would hope you have the phone number.

04:29You're the one who's entered into the contracts. I'm worried about the content on Voice of America.

04:32If you're worried about the content, then why aren't you worried about what these

04:35people are saying? They're supposed to be, under the law, authoritative and reliable.

04:41And now, suddenly, after knowing all these details about the number of spies and what the Chinese

04:47are doing, you don't know what OAN is doing, and that's the ones you have the contract with.

04:52I find that either...

04:53We don't have a contract with them. We have an agreement if we want to...

04:56Oh, an agreement. I'm sorry, an agreement. And I can't believe that. I can't believe you know

05:01everything about all these other agreements, but not about the one that's doing the news for us

05:07that's supposed to be reliable and can't cover the pope, can't cover Russian aggression,

05:12which would mean Ukraine, can't cover that the election was legitimate,

05:16can't cover any negative polls for the president.

05:18Congresswoman? I'm shocked.

05:20This is just one option for...

05:20I yield back. I yield back.

05:24It's the best news I've heard all day.

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