A federal judge has declared that the effective closure of the VOA last year was against the law and has directed the reinstatement of hundreds of its staff.
Judicial Mandate Sets One-Week Deadline
Federal Judge Royce Lamberth has given authorities one week to put the international broadcaster back on air.
Wartime Roots and Trump-Era Closure
The VOA was first set up in World War Two to counter Nazi disinformation.
Just weeks after returning to office as president, Donald Trump signed an executive order to defund the broadcaster, which his administration accused of left-wing bias. The order also included networks such as Radio Free Europe and Radio Free Asia, stating they should be “eliminated to the maximum extent consistent with applicable law”.
Leadership Shake-Up and Mass Dismissals
President Trump appointed Kari Lake to run the US Agency for Global Media (USAGM), the parent company that manages and finances the VOA and related networks.
Lake then fire the vast majority of the agency's employees—over 1,000 staff at VOA alone—leaving just a small number of employees in their jobs.
Most of the affected staff have been on leave with pay since last year. This even applied to Persian Service reporters who were temporarily|called back to work after Israel attacked Iran last June.
Judge’s Reasoning and Ruling
Last week, Judge Lamberth found that Lake did not have the legal power to suspend the operations of the USAGM workforce, as she had not been confirmed by the US Senate.
In Tuesday's ruling, the federal judge described the decision to sack the journalists as unreasonable and impulsive, adding that the government had not taken into account laws that dictate what languages and regions the VOA must serve.
“The government have provided nothing approaching a principled basis for their decision,” Lamberth stated in his opinion.
Journalists’ Legal Challenge and Response
Three VOA journalists had sued the Trump administration. One of them, Patsy Widakuswara, expressed being deeply grateful for the judge's decision.
“We hope the American people will continue to support our mission to produce journalism, not propaganda,” she said to reporters.
Unclear Next Steps and Wider Context
It is uncertain if Lake's nominated successor, Sarah Rogers—whose appointment requires Senate confirmation—will appeal.
Prior to its shutdown, the VOA broadcast TV, radio, and digital content in almost 50 languages.
Trump's criticisms of the VOA are part of his broader attacks against the US media, which research indicates American news consumers view as highly polarised.
