In the US, federal judge Royce Lambert ordered the administration of President Donald Trump to restore the Voice of America after a large part of the broadcaster was effectively shut down a year ago.
Points of attention
- A US federal judge orders the Trump administration to bring back Voice of America following an illegal shutdown initiated by President Trump's executive order.
- The court ruling requires the US Agency for Global Media to develop a plan to resume operations and reinstate nearly 1,000 full-time employees of Voice of America.
US federal court orders Voice of America to resume operations
Lambert gave the US Agency for Global Media one week on March 17 to develop a plan to bring Voice of America back on the air.
A federal judge also ordered the US government to reinstate nearly 1,000 full-time Voice of America employees.
Currently, Voice of America is operating with a minimal staff, since President Trump issued an executive order to close it a year ago.
It is noted that the Voice of America has broadcast news to countries around the world since its inception during World War II. Often, this involved broadcasting to countries that did not have a tradition of a free press.
Before Trump's executive order, Voice of America operated in 49 different languages, reaching 362 million people.
On March 7, federal judge Royce Lambert ruled that the mass layoffs initiated by the administration of US President Donald Trump at the American international broadcaster Voice of America (VOA) in March 2025 were unconstitutional.
According to the judge, Kari Lake's role as head of the United States Agency for Global Media (USAGM) since March 2025, as well as her actions in office, were unconstitutional.
The lawsuit was filed by Reporters Without Borders and several co-plaintiffs against the agency responsible.
