WASHINGTON—A dark-funded media organization that has received nearly $473 million in funding from the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) and other government sources has played a significant role in global media development, according to documents published by WikiLeaks.
The organization, Internews Network (IN), has worked with thousands of media outlets worldwide and has alleged ties to initiatives supporting online content moderation and censorship.
Internews has reportedly collaborated with 4,291 media organizations, producing 4,799 hours of broadcasts in a single year and training more than 9,000 journalists, according to figures cited in the report. The organization operates in over 30 countries, with regional headquarters in Kyiv, Bangkok, and Nairobi. While it describes its mission as supporting independent journalism and media literacy, WikiLeaks has suggested that some of its activities may be linked to efforts to influence media narratives and regulate information flow on social media.
The organization is led by Jeanne Bourgault, a former U.S. government official who previously worked at the U.S. Embassy in Moscow in the early 1990s. During her tenure, she oversaw a $250 million budget and was involved in media-related initiatives during political transitions in multiple countries. Bourgault later moved from a six-year tenure at USAID to Internews, where she currently serves as president. Financial disclosures indicate that she earned a salary of $451,000 in 2023.
According to WikiLeaks, Internews’ funding comes almost entirely from U.S. government sources, with records dating back to 2008 showing that over 95% of its budget has been supplied by federal agencies, primarily USAID. The organization also has at least six subsidiaries operating under separate names, including one based in the Cayman Islands. The precise nature of these subsidiaries remains unclear.
Internews’ leadership and board members include individuals with longstanding connections to Democratic political figures and donors.
Public records indicate that Richard J. Kessler, a former Democratic congressional staffer with experience in national security policy, and Simone Otus Coxe, the wife of NVIDIA investor Trench Coxe co-chair its board. Both have been significant donors to Democratic political campaigns.
In 2023, Bourgault launched a $10 million media fund at the Clinton Global Initiative (CGI), an initiative supported by former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton. A webpage featuring Bourgault at the CGI event was later removed from the Internews website, according to WikiLeaks. The reason for the deletion is unknown.
The report also highlights that Internews’ official website recently removed the biographies of key staff members and board members. While no explanation has been provided, archived versions of the website remain accessible through online databases.
A physical address linked to Internews, listed as 876 7th St, Arcata, CA, has also come under scrutiny. WikiLeaks claims that U.S. government contracts and IRS filings still list this location as Internews’ headquarters, despite evidence suggesting that the building was abandoned by late 2024. No official response has been given regarding the status of the organization’s physical operations.
While Internews describes its mission as strengthening independent media worldwide, the extent of its involvement in media regulation, censorship initiatives, and political influence remains a subject of debate. USAID has not publicly commented on the allegations, and Internews has not issued a formal response to the claims made in the WikiLeaks report.
The full extent of Internews’ activities and its influence on global media operations remain unclear.