An federal court has ruled that the effective closure of the Voice of America last year was against the law and has ordered the reinstatement of hundreds of its journalists.
Judicial Mandate Sets 7-Day Timeline
District Court Judge Royce Lamberth has given authorities one week to restore the broadcaster's operations.
Wartime Roots and Trump-Era Closure
The VOA was originally established during World War Two with the aim of countering Nazi propaganda.
Just weeks after returning to office 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 Changes and Widespread Firings
President Trump named Kari Lake to lead the US Agency for Global Media (USAGM), the parent company that oversees and funds the VOA and other networks.
Lake then terminate the vast majority of the agency's employees—more than 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 Rationale and Ruling
Last week, Judge Lamberth found 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 this week's decision, the federal judge described the decision to sack the journalists as “arbitrary and capricious,”, adding that the government had not taken into account laws that dictate what languages and regions the VOA must serve.
“The government have provided no a reasonable basis for their decision,” Lamberth stated in his opinion.
Journalists’ Lawsuit and Reaction
Three VOA journalists had sued the Trump administration. One of them, Patsy Widakuswara, expressed being 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 told reporters.
Unclear Future and Wider Implications
It is not clear if Lake's nominated successor, Sarah Rogers—whose appointment needs Senate confirmation—will challenge the ruling.
Prior to its shutdown, the VOA transmitted TV, radio, and digital content in nearly 50 languages.
Trump's attacks of the VOA form part of his broader attacks against the US media, which research indicates American news consumers view as deeply divided.
