A US judge has ruled that the effective shuttering of the VOA last year was “illegal” and has ordered the return of hundreds of its staff.
Court Order Issues One-Week Deadline
District Court Judge Royce Lamberth has given authorities seven days to get the VOA broadcasting again.
Wartime Roots and Trump-Era Shutdown
The VOA was first created during World War Two with the aim of countering Nazi disinformation.
Only a short time after being sworn in again as president, Donald Trump signed an executive order to defund the broadcaster, which his administration claimed had political bias. The order also included networks such as Radio Free Europe and Radio Free Asia, calling for them to be phased out as much as legally possible.
Management Shake-Up and Widespread Firings
President Trump named Kari Lake to head the US Agency for Global Media (USAGM), the oversight body that manages and finances the VOA and other networks.
Lake proceeded to terminate the vast majority of the agency's employees—over 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.
Judge’s Rationale and Ruling
Last week, Judge Lamberth ruled that Lake lacked the authority 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 not taken into account legislation that determine what languages and regions the VOA must serve.
“The government have provided no a reasonable basis for their decision,” Lamberth stated in his opinion.
Reporters’ Lawsuit and Reaction
Three VOA journalists had filed a lawsuit against the Trump administration. One of them, Patsy Widakuswara, said she was profoundly thankful for the judge's decision.
“We hope the American people will continue to support our mission to produce factual reporting, not biased messaging,” she said to reporters.
Unclear Future and Wider Implications
It is not clear if Lake's nominated successor, Sarah Rogers—whose appointment requires Senate confirmation—will appeal.
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.
