A US court has declared that the effective shuttering of the VOA last year was unlawful and has directed the reinstatement of many of its staff.
Judicial Order Sets One-Week Deadline
District Court Judge Royce Lamberth has granted the government one week to get the VOA broadcasting again.
Historical Roots and Recent Closure
The VOA was originally established in World War Two with the aim of countering Nazi propaganda.
Only a short time after returning to office as president, Donald Trump signed an presidential directive to shut down the broadcaster, which his administration claimed had left-wing bias. The order also targeted networks such as Radio Free Europe and Radio Free Asia, stating they should be phased out as much as legally possible.
Leadership Changes and Mass Dismissals
President Trump named Kari Lake to run the US Agency for Global Media (USAGM), the oversight body that oversees and funds the VOA and other networks.
Lake proceeded to sack the vast majority of the agency's employees—over 1,000 staff at VOA by itself—leaving just a handful of employees in their jobs.
Most of the affected staff have been on paid administrative leave since last year. This included Persian Service reporters who were temporarily|called back to work after Israel attacked Iran last June.
Judge’s Rationale and Decision
Last week, Judge Lamberth found that Lake lacked the legal power to suspend the operations of the USAGM workforce, as she had not been confirmed by the US Senate.
In this week's decision, the judge described the decision to sack the journalists as unreasonable and impulsive, adding that the government had failed to consider laws that dictate what languages and regions the VOA must serve.
“Defendants have provided no a principled basis for their decision,” Lamberth wrote.
Reporters’ Legal Challenge and Reaction
Three VOA journalists had filed a lawsuit against the Trump administration. One of them, Patsy Widakuswara, expressed being profoundly thankful for the judge's decision.
“We hope the American people will keep support our mission to produce factual reporting, not biased messaging,” she said to the Associated Press.
Unclear Next Steps and Broader Context
It is not clear if Lake's proposed successor, Sarah Rogers—whose appointment requires Senate confirmation—will challenge the ruling.
Before being wound down, the VOA broadcast TV, radio, and digital content in nearly 50 languages.
Trump's attacks of the VOA form part of his wider criticism of the US media, which research indicates American news consumers view as highly polarised.
