Federal Judge Orders USAGM to Restore 1,042 Voice of America Employees, Finds Kari Lake’s Actions Unlawful
A federal judge, Royce C. Lamberth, ordered the U.S. Agency for Global Media to return 1,042 full-time Voice of America employees to work and ruled that Kari Lake’s actions curtailing VOA were unlawful and "arbitrary and capricious" for failing to consider Congress’s intent in funding the agency. The ruling reverses Lake’s specific steps—canceling Reuters and AP contracts, cutting VOA’s language services from 49 to six, striking a content deal with One America News Network, and reassigning (and planning to fire) VOA Director Michael Abramowitz—and Lake has called the judge an "activist" and said she plans to appeal.
📌 Key Facts
- Federal Judge Royce C. Lamberth ordered the U.S. Agency for Global Media (USAGM) to return 1,042 full-time Voice of America employees who had been put on leave back to work by Monday.
- Lamberth ruled that Kari Lake’s actions were 'arbitrary and capricious,' adding a legal basis that she failed to consider Congress’ intent in funding the agency and the implications of effectively shutting VOA down.
- The ruling reverses several of Lake’s personnel moves, including the reassignment of VOA Director Michael Abramowitz to a small short-wave facility in North Carolina and a planned firing tied to that reassignment.
- The court addressed Lake’s editorial and programming changes at VOA, noting steps such as canceling Reuters and AP contracts, cutting language services from 49 to six, and striking a content deal with One America News Network.
- Lake has publicly labeled Judge Lamberth an 'activist' and said she plans to appeal; neither she nor USAGM immediately responded to NPR about this specific order.
📊 Relevant Data
President Trump issued an executive order to shut down Voice of America, accusing it of being a source of radical propaganda, anti-Trump bias, and a burden to American taxpayers.
The Voice of Radical America — The White House
The President's budget request for Fiscal Year 2026 included $153 million for the U.S. Agency for Global Media to support the orderly shutdown of operations, a significant reduction from prior funding levels.
Budget and Financial Reports — U.S. Agency for Global Media
In the federal workforce, which includes agencies like the U.S. Agency for Global Media overseeing Voice of America, Black employees represent 18.2% of the workforce compared to 13.6% in the civilian labor force.
Federal workforce is generally more diverse than the U.S. population, but gaps persist — Government Executive
Voice of America's programming reached 93.6 million people in sub-Saharan Africa in 2024, representing a key portion of its global audience in regions often lacking free press.
📰 Source Timeline (2)
Follow how coverage of this story developed over time
- Judge Royce C. Lamberth’s order explicitly directs the U.S. Agency for Global Media to return 1,042 full-time VOA employees who had been put on leave back to work by Monday.
- Lamberth adds a fresh legal basis for invalidating Kari Lake’s actions, ruling that she failed to consider Congress’ intent in funding the agency and the implications of effectively shutting VOA down, rendering her moves 'arbitrary and capricious.'
- The article details Lake’s specific steps to reshape VOA’s journalism, including canceling Reuters and AP contracts, cutting VOA’s language services from 49 to six, and striking a content deal with One America News Network.
- Voice of America Director Michael Abramowitz’s job reassignment to a small short-wave facility in North Carolina, and planned firing for refusing that reassignment, are described as among the actions now reversed by the ruling.
- Lake has publicly labeled Lamberth an 'activist' and says she plans to appeal, but neither she nor the agency immediately responded to NPR about this specific order.