The word “propaganda” is tricky. It has connotations of being lies, but that isn’t always or even usually the case. Objectively true information can literally be propaganda. The mission of the VoA is to spread American propaganda. That’s why it’s funded. That can be truths that foreign governments want to suppress, it can be spin, or it can be lies. VoA is generally pretty truthful, especially compared to the privately run domestic versions like cable news outlets.

Government officials don’t need to dictate content. As you pointed out, content can be controlled by who is appointed to manage the content. They know the mission.