The Trump administration has initiated a drastic move to dismantle the Voice of America (VOA), the U.S. government’s international broadcaster, proposing to slash its workforce from approximately 1,000 employees to a mere 18. This dramatic downsizing, outlined in a letter to Congress obtained by The New York Times, follows months of escalating tensions and layoffs after President Donald Trump labeled the outlet “the voice of radical America.”
Kari Lake, a VOA advisor, stated in the letter that the proposed cuts would leave only the “statutory minimum” number of employees. However, critics argue this move would effectively cripple VOA’s ability to fulfill its mandate of providing a “consistently reliable and authoritative source of news globally” to an audience of 360 million weekly.
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Patsy Widakuswara, VOA White House bureau chief and one of several journalists suing to block the cuts, expressed profound concern to the Associated Press.
“You can’t make staff this size produce content for a global audience of 360 million weekly,” Widakuswara said. “It’s comical if it weren’t so tragic. We’re not just losing our jobs and journalism, we are abdicating our voice and influence in the world.”
Lake’s plan reportedly allocates just 11 employees to oversee VOA’s flagship radio and television operations, with two positions each for services aimed at Iran, China, and Afghanistan. This represents less than 2% of VOA’s pre-March headcount.
Roughly a third of VOA’s employees have been on administrative leave since March, when President Trump signed an executive order significantly restructuring the U.S. Agency for Global Media (USAGM), VOA’s parent organization. While a federal judge initially ruled in April that the shutdown violated congressional mandates, an appellate court later determined the lower court lacked the authority to reinstate staff.
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The administration’s justification for the severe cuts hinges on the claim that the skeletal staff would satisfy a “statutory minimum” required by law. However, critics point out that while the law mandates VOA serve as a reliable news source, it does not specify a minimum employee count.
Further signs of the administration’s intent to dismantle VOA’s operations include putting its Washington-area building up for sale and canceling the lease for a new facility. In a controversial move, Lake announced in May that the pro-Trump One America News Network (OAN) would provide content feeds to VOA and other state-run international broadcasting services, though it remains unclear if any OAN programming has been utilized.
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