Sources indicate that the U.N.’s Department of Global Communications, often at odds with the U.S. and Israel, may face reform or funding cuts.

The push for reform follows an executive order signed a month prior, calling for a review of U.N. funding. At that time, Trump stated the U.N. had “tremendous potential” but was “not being well run.”

Last week, U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres cautioned that U.S. funding cuts would make the world “less healthy, less safe, and less prosperous.”

Trump has already halted funding to the United Nations Relief and Works Administration for Palestinian Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA) and withdrew the U.S. from the U.N. Human Rights Council. Additionally, $377 million in grants to the United Nations Population Fund, which provides sexual and reproductive health services globally, were terminated on Feb. 27.

The U.N. media branch, with nearly 700 employees, aims to “leverage the power of communications to tell the United Nations story to global audiences in multiple languages and platforms in order to mobilize action in support of the .”

Anne Bayefsky, Director of the Touro Institute on Human Rights and the Holocaust and President of Human Rights Voices, stated that “the U.S. taxpayer pays the U.N. to hire media experts and do P.R. for the purpose of blasting anti-American and antisemitic trash around the globe” through the Department.

When asked if funding the Department of Global Communications benefits U.S. interests, a U.N. spokesperson said the Department handles media outreach, acts as a newswire, and manages the Dag Hammarskjöld Library.

The spokesperson added that many Department of Global Communications personnel are “based at 59 U.N. Information Centers across the world, which communicate about the U.N. and the collective will of its Member States in local languages, closer to the people that the U.N. serves.”

Former U.S. delegation member to the U.N., Hugh Dugan, suggested that the need for information centers “to lobby its own members on their dime in their countries speaks to the deep state to me.” He noted declining U.S. public support for the U.N. and said the Department of Global Communications “is more than failing in its own backyard in the most consequential country for its future.”

found that 52% of Americans viewed the U.N. favorably as of April 2024, a decrease from 57% in 2023.

Digital inquired of Under Secretary-General for Global Communications Melissa Fleming whether the Department of Global Communications oversees communications for other U.N. entities.

Fleming clarified that her department “does not have oversight, but convenes regular coordination meetings with communication colleagues from across the U.N. system to discuss crisis situations and content plans.” She also confirmed that the Department of Global Communications manages the main United Nations’ social media account.

Hillel Neuer, Executive Director of U.N. Watch, stated that “in terms of its regular communications, whether it’s the Secretary General, or whether it’s various U.N. social media accounts, are routinely engaged in anti-American and anti-Israel, and you could say, to the extent that it’s demonizing the Jewish people, antisemitic messaging.”

U.S. Ambassador-designate to the U.N. recently tweeted that “the days of propping up organizations at the United Nations that run counter to our interests are long gone. We will no longer fund terrorism, antisemitism, and anti-Israel hate.” Stefanik made the remarks at the ADL’s ‘NEVER IS NOW’ summit.

Digital found U.N. Twitter posts promoting a biased view of the Israel-Gaza conflict. These included supporting the UN Relief and Works Administration for Palestine Refugees in the Near East, stating that “Israeli legislation imposes massive restraints on UNRWA’s operations,” while omitting the reasons for Israel’s ban and a rising number of from the terror-tied organization.

A Dec. 27 World Health Organization Tweet stated that a raid on Kamal Adwan Hospital was part of a “systematic dismantling of the health system in Gaza,” but failed to mention the Israel Defense Forces entered the facility to apprehend Hamas and Islamic Jihad members, including the director, who stored weapons inside, a repeated tactic during the war.

Spokespersons from the U.S. State Department, U.S. Mission to the U.N., and the United Nations did not provide Digital with data on the U.S.’s contribution to the Department of Global Communications’ $117.9 million+ budget.

In 2022, the U.S.’s $18.1 billion contribution covered 30% of the U.N.’s total budget. By 2024, U.S. contributions were of the budget and 27% of the peacekeeping budget. The U.N. reports that the U.S. provided over 40% of its 2024 humanitarian aid.

A State Department spokesperson didn’t directly answer whether funding the Department of Global Communications serves U.S. interests, but explained that a 90-day review initiated by a Jan. 20 executive order “is a measure put in place for us to align our ongoing work with the America First agenda. The results of the in-depth review will be communicated transparently.” The spokesperson affirmed the State “Department and USAID take their role as stewards of taxpayer dollars very seriously.
 

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