An federal court has ruled that the effective shuttering of the VOA last year was against the law and has commanded the reinstatement of hundreds of its journalists.
Court Order Issues One-Week Timeline
District Court Judge Royce Lamberth has given authorities one week to put the international broadcaster back on air.
Historical Roots and Recent Shutdown
The VOA was first created during World War Two to counter Nazi disinformation.
Just weeks after being sworn in again as president, Donald Trump signed an presidential directive to defund the broadcaster, which his officials claimed had left-wing bias. The order also targeted outlets such as Radio Free Europe and Radio Free Asia, calling for them to be “eliminated to the maximum extent consistent with applicable law”.
Management Shake-Up and Widespread Firings
President Trump appointed Kari Lake to lead the US Agency for Global Media (USAGM), the parent company that manages and finances the VOA and related networks.
Lake proceeded to terminate the vast majority of the agency's employees—more than 1,000 staff at VOA alone—leaving just a handful of employees in their jobs.
Most of the dismissed 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.
Court’s Rationale and Decision
Last week, Judge Lamberth ruled that Lake lacked the legal power to suspend the operations of the USAGM workforce, as she had not been approved by the US Senate.
In Tuesday's ruling, the federal judge labeled the decision to sack the journalists as “arbitrary and capricious,”, adding that the government had failed to consider legislation that determine what languages and regions the VOA must serve.
“The government have provided nothing approaching a reasonable basis for their decision,” Lamberth wrote.
Journalists’ Lawsuit and Reaction
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 told the Associated Press.
Unclear Future and Wider Context
It is uncertain if Lake's nominated successor, Sarah Rogers—whose appointment requires Senate confirmation—will challenge the ruling.
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 wider attacks against the US media, which research indicates American news consumers view as highly polarised.
