House GOP duo move to bolster foreign-owned media transparency
Two House Republicans, Rep. Marlin stutzman and Rep. Russell Fry, introduced the Foreign Propaganda Openness Act too strengthen transparency requirements for media owned or controlled by foreign entities or proxies distributed in the United States.Building on the Foreign Agents Registration Act (FARA), the bill would require foreign-owned publications and other media- including podcasts, TV, film, and radio-to clearly disclose if they are owned, controlled, financed, or otherwise influenced by a foreign government or entity. Proponents argue that current FARA provisions, particularly the conspicuous Disclaimer, are too vague and do not sufficiently prevent foreign propaganda from influencing Americans. The legislation targets adversaries such as china, Russia, North Korea, and Iran, and would mandate on-air disclosures as well as disclosures in publications. The push reflects concerns about foreign influence in U.S. media and aims to increase transparency so Americans know who is behind the information they consume.
House Republican duo move to bolster foreign-owned media transparency
EXCLUSIVE – State-owned media would have to be more transparent about relationships with foreign entities if a bill being introduced by two House Republicans on Friday is passed into law.
Reps. Marlin Stutzman (R-IN) and Russell Fry (R-SC) are introducing legislation to bolster transparency requirements for publications owned or controlled by foreign entities or proxies that are distributed in the United States.
A one-page summary of the legislation specifically cites China, Russia, North Korea, and Iran, as well as foreign proxies for those countries, as points of concern.
The bill, obtained by the Washington Examiner, would amend the Foreign Agents Registration Act, the current law under which foreign state media entities operate.
FARA requires “informational materials produced by registered foreign agents” to include a Disclaimer known as a “conspicuous statement” that indicates they are being distributed by a foreign government, political party, or interest. However, the Republican lawmakers argue that FARA doesn’t go far enough and that the “conspicuous statement” requirement is too vague.
“If Chinese, Iranian, or any other foreign propaganda is being brought into our country, our citizens have the right to know about it,” Stutzman said in a statement to the Washington Examiner. “Allowing our adversaries to indoctrinate Americans under the façade of their publications being a part of the free press is a catastrophe waiting to happen. This legislation disrupts our adversaries’ infiltration of our media markets and educates Americans on who is distributing the information they are consuming.”
Titled the “Foreign Propaganda Transparency Act,” the legislation would amend FARA to require that foreign-owned publications “clearly disclose” if they are owned, controlled, financed, or otherwise influenced by a foreign government or entity.
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The bill would affect other forms of media as well, including podcasts, TV, film, and radio, and require them to deliver the conspicuous statement on air, according to Stutzman’s office.
“Communist China and our adversaries should not be able to freely indoctrinate Americans with their propaganda,” Fry said in a statement to the Washington Examiner. “Americans deserve to know if the news they are consuming is funded by authoritarian regimes that oppose freedom and silence dissent. Our bill brings transparency to foreign-backed media and helps protect Americans from falling victim to foreign propaganda that undermines our values and national security.”
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