The Trump administration’s new America.gov website, launched at the end of September, has drawn criticism for using stock photographs taken outside the United States.
An analysis by The Daily Beast found that six of the 11 images on the site were shot abroad, including a mother and daughter in Beijing, a couple in Vigo, Spain, a child in Madrid, a person jumping into a lake on Salt Spring Island in British Columbia, a photo in Poland, and another in Estonia.
During the National Design Studio launch event, President Trump praised the platform as revolutionary, describing it as a restoration of America’s founding promise and a reinvention of government for the 21st century. He also lauded Joe Gebbia, the founder of Airbnb and architect of the site, and named 20‑year‑old Edward Coristine as the lead engineer.
The site also sparked headlines after declaring former President Biden the winner of the 2020 election, counter to Trump’s claims. The launch came days after Trump hosted Dario Amodei, CEO of Anthropic, at the White House. The Independent has reached out to the National Design Studio regarding the use of the foreign‑sourced images, which are registered on Stocksy, a company based in British Columbia.
