Inside the Trump administration’s effort to quickly reach audiences behind media walls in Venezuela, Iran
Exclusive: USAGM chief Kari Lake reveals how the Trump agency expanded coverage during Venezuela operation and Iran protests, reaching millions worldwide.
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EXCLUSIVE: As protests erupted in Iran and a dramatic U.S. operation unfolded in Venezuela, the U.S. Agency for Global Media (USAGM) moved quickly to push information into some of the world’s most tightly controlled media environments, the agency’s head, Kari Lake, told Fox News Digital in an interview.
In the early morning hours of Jan. 3, reports began to trickle out about a law enforcement operation carried out by the U.S. military to remove Venezuelan dictator Nicolás Maduro, prompting USAGM, the agency responsible for broadcasting U.S. news in areas where press freedom is restricted, to take immediate action.
"I found out about the situation in Venezuela, the incredible bravery of our service members who extracted Maduro," Lake said. "And the minute I heard about it, I had the team down in Miami that operates our office of Cuba broadcasting on the phone."
Lake described a rapid expansion of coverage, with the agency ramping up broadcasts, expanding language services and surging personnel within hours to reach audiences via Radio Martí and Martí Noticias out of Miami, broadcasting directly into Cuba, Venezuela, and across Latin America.
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Venezuelans living in Peru celebrate near the Venezuelan Embassy in Lima on Jan. 3, 2026, after President Donald Trump (left) announced that U.S. forces had captured Venezuelan leader Nicolas Maduro. (Getty Images)
"They were immediately deployed into the newsroom, and they started coverage right away, bringing out exactly what was happening," Lake explained. "They were covering it in Spanish to the folks in Cuba, and then we also have affiliates all around the Caribbean. We're taking our broadcast and pushing it in and pumping it in so that more people in Cuba were able to hear it."
"When people in Cuba hear that Maduro has been taken down, it gives them hope that they too can one day have that freedom. What we want to see is the people rising up and saying, we want freedom, we want conditions that are improved. We don't want to live this way any longer. So we've been doing incredible nonstop coverage."
USAGM’s Voice of America carried Trump’s major addresses on Venezuela live while covering the latest developments, congressional reaction, and responses within Venezuela, reaching more than 6.6 million global audience impressions.
