I think the doubters should have a look at USaid operations world wide revealed by DOGE. They'll get a general idea what was up.
This article is written by a very left leaning outlet and criticizes DOGE. However, you can extract very useful information about the scope of influencing USaid did through MSM. USaid is also a donor to BBC :lol:
https://www.cjr.org/the_media_today/usaid-and-the-media-in-a-time-of-monsters.phpWhat they mean with free press and journalism is actually left wing press. They were all dependent on US taxpayer money to exist.
There was a time where the compartmentalization of the world by regions and language could allow US to fund foreign propaganda for overseas audiences. But now even if you were high minded, which they aren't, you couldn't pump out worldwide propaganda without it being consumed by domestic audiences through the internet. And like most government programs, whatever the worst case scenario abuse and exploits possible under its charter were, that's what it became.
I mean hell some of the specific examples he's giving are for countries where we are propping up repressive dictators to suppress democracy and hold fraudulent elections. If it was a case to be made cynically, for our national interests, it would at least have an argument. Framing it from idealism, does not.