News Outlets Reject Accusations of Media 'Payoff'

Several major news outlets including Politico and the Associated Press have rejected unsubstantiated accusations by President Donald Trump and right-wing influencers that the U.S. Agency for International Development paid millions of taxpayer dollars to newsrooms in exchange for coverage favoring the Democratic Party.

Trump wrote on social media on Thursday: 

Prominent Trump supporters, including billionaire Elon Musk, amplified the narrative about USAID directly funding some news outlets including Politico and the New York Times.

Reuters reports The White House and USAID did not immediately respond to a Reuters request for comment about the claims

Trump on Thursday accused Politico, which he referred to as "the left wing 'rag'," of receiving $8 million from USAID. White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt announced a day earlier the government would cancel more than $8 million of subscription expenditure to the news organization.

The NY Times reports Saturday: That wasn’t true. The website had received about $44,000 from U.S.A.I.D. for subscriptions to its premium environmental and energy publication over two years, and more than $8 million in subscription revenue from a variety of agencies, including the Department of Energy.

According to The Times, that set off a round of other misleading claims about USAID granting money to the BBC and The New York Times. (The agency has instead granted money to an independent charity that shares a name with the BBC. The most viral claim about The New York Times was based on an inaccurate search of government records that included grants to unrelated, but similar-sounding groups, like New York University. In a statement, The Times said that the payments it had received were for subscriptions; government data shows it has also received some advertising revenue from the government. In a memo to staff, Politico’s leaders said the publication had “never been a beneficiary of government programs or subsidies.”)

"Government agencies that subscribe do so through standard public procurement processes—just like any other tool they buy to work smarter and be more efficient,” the statement said.

A spokesperson for the Associated Press, which also faced accusations from pro-Trump online accounts that it was funded by the aid agency, said it had not received any money from USAID.

“Our business is providing factual, nonpartisan news and information to customers worldwide,” the spokesperson said.

“The U.S. government has long been an AP customer – through both Democratic and Republican administrations."