The Shadow Funders
How USAID, Soros, and Corporate-Backed NGOs Shape Global Narratives
by Tina Antonis
The United States Agency for International Development (USAID) is just one of many organizations funneling money into initiatives like DEI (Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion), fact-checking groups, and LGBTQ+ rights advocacy. While USAID and the National Endowment for Democracy (NED) often draw attention, they’re far from alone. George Soros’ Open Society Foundations may be a frequent target, but they’re not the only player in this game. A vast network of nonprofits and nongovernmental organizations, often backed by corporate interests, is more than willing to sacrifice the working class for profit. Follow the money, and you’ll see that nearly every cause claiming to help the poor or working people is bankrolled by billionaires. As long as these initiatives align with corporate profits, the funding will keep flowing. Governments and corporations alike are eager to step in, ensuring these programs continue.
Take fact-checking organizations, for example. The Philippine Fact-Checker Incubator was launched with Facebook’s financial support, in partnership with VERA Files and Rappler, both of which have been funded by the United States and Pierre Omidyar’s Omidyar Network. Among its participants are ABS-CBN News & Current Affairs, Manila Broadcasting Company, MindaNews, Philstar.com, PressONE.ph, and Probe Productions. These groups are accredited by the International Fact-Checking Network (IFCN) at the Poynter Institute, which itself receives funding from heavyweights like the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, the National Endowment for Democracy, the Omidyar Network, and Open Society Foundations. Other sponsors include CNN, the Scripps Howard Foundation, Craig Newmark Philanthropies, and the Ethics and Excellence in Journalism Foundation.
In 2022, journalist Alan Macleod exposed that fact-checking organizations like StopFake, VoxCheck, Fact Check Georgia, Demagog, Myth Detector, Lead Stories, Patikrinta 15min, Re:Baltica, and Delfi are largely funded by NATO countries and affiliated organizations. For instance, StopFake receives money from NATO’s Atlantic Council, the British Foreign and Commonwealth Office, the British Embassy in Ukraine, the Czech Foreign Ministry, and the U.S. National Endowment for Democracy. Similarly, VoxCheck is funded by the U.S. Embassy, the Dutch and German governments, George Soros’ Open Society Institute, and the International Renaissance Foundation, among others.
Internews, another major player, has received funding from USAID, the NED, the Kellogg Foundation, the MacArthur Foundation, George Soros, AOL Time Warner, the Knight Foundation, General Electric, the Ford Foundation, Microsoft, and the Rockefeller Foundation. These organizations are deeply embedded in the global media landscape, shaping narratives and influencing public opinion.
One notable example is VoxCheck’s publication of the “Network of Pro-Russian Disinformation in the West,” which included figures like Judge Andrew Napolitano, Chay Bowes, Eva Bartlett, Brian Berletic, Danny Haiphong, Douglas MacGregor, Edward Snowden, Max Blumenthal, Glenn Greenwald, Larry Johnson, Jeffrey Sachs, Jimmy Dore, John Mearsheimer, Ray McGovern, Redacted News, and Scott Ritter. Critics have dismissed the list as a thinly veiled attempt to discredit dissenting voices.
Other fact-checking groups, such as Fact Check Georgia and Myth Detector, are funded by a mix of U.S. and European government-backed organizations, including the German Marshall Fund, the European Endowment for Democracy, and Zinc Network, a shadowy intelligence firm tied to the UK and US governments. Similarly, Demagog in Poland receives funding from the Polish government, the EU, and the European Economic Area, while Lithuanian outlet Patikrinta 15min is sponsored by the Poynter Institute and the NED. Re:Baltica, operating in the Baltics, is funded by the EU, Open Society Foundations, and the Sigrid Rausing Trust, among others.
The list of funders goes on and on, but the pattern is clear: as long as capitalism persists, these front organizations will continue to exploit the working class to serve corporate and governmental interests. The system is designed to ensure that profits come first, no matter the cost to ordinary people.
Sources:
USAID funded ethnic armed groups in Myanmar under the guise of DEI
PH’s PressONE is funded by several US front organizations
Omidyar, Ford and Rockefeller Foundations, VERA Files, Rappler, etc.
Most of the “Fact-Checking” Organizations Facebook Uses in Ukraine Are Directly Funded by Washington
U.S. Helps Pro-Ukraine Media Run a Fog Machine of War + Supporting Front Orgs
Ms. Cat’s Chronicles 