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This analysis examines the effects of political changes on U.S. soft power institutions.

April 23, 2026Open Access

United States of America: At A Glance

Key Points

This analysis examines the effects of political changes on U.S. soft power institutions.
Evaluated the roles of Voice of America and USAID during and after the Cold War.
Analyzed funding cuts and operational changes in U.S. public institutions.
Investigated implications of the U.S. shift from soft to hard power.
Significant cuts to USAID and Voice of America diminish their global reach.
Congress locked in US$9 billion reductions to foreign aid and international broadcasting.
A shift towards hard power is predicted to dramatically affect the global ECP landscape.

Abstract

For most of the Cold War and its aftermath, the private power underlying American soft power was supported through several key public institutions like Voice of America and USAID. Trump’s first term rattled that consensus and his second has shattered it. USAID has been gutted, Voice of America reduced from a global broadcaster to a rump operation covering four languages, and US9 billion in cuts to foreign aid and international broadcasting locked in by Congress. The US withdrawal and pivot to pure hard power will have dramatic repercussions for the ECP landscape worldwide.

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