The Trump administration on Friday issued termination notices to 532 remaining employees at the U.S. Agency for Global Media, the parent agency of Voice of America, the latest blow to the embattled media outlet as it faces a string of destabilizing attacks from President Donald Trump and his officials.
Kari Lake, designated by Trump to oversee the dismantling of VOA and other networks controlled or funded by USAGM, announced the reduction in force in a post to X on Friday night.
“Tonight, the U.S. Agency for Global Media initiated what is known as a reduction in force, or RIF, of a large number of its full-time federal employees,” Lake wrote. “We are conducting this RIF at the President’s direction to help reduce the federal bureaucracy, improve agency service, and save the American people more of their hard-earned money.”
The move is the latest twist in the unfolding saga over the government-backed global media network — originally created to combat Nazi disinformation during World War II — which the Trump administration has targeted as part of its sweeping efforts to cut back on federal spending.
Virtually all VOA staff members were placed on administrative leave in March following an executive order issued by Trump demanding USAGM’s dismantling. Most of VOA’s publishing channels have been effectively dormant since then.
Nearly 600 contractors for VOA were fired in May, and hundreds of the network’s employees received termination notices in June.
A week later, several staff members were informed that their notices had been temporarily rescinded amid administrative errors in some termination notices — but that USAGM still planned to issue another RIF “in the near future.”
Friday’s announcement appeared to make good on that promise.
Still, the move may be challenged in court — Lake and the Trump administration have faced repeated legal tests in their push to hollow out the federally funded news broadcaster’s operations.
Just this week, plaintiffs for VOA notched a win in their fight against the administration.
U.S. District Judge Royce Lamberth on Thursday blocked Lake’s attempted removal of VOA Director Michael Abramowitz from his position, ruling that the Trump official did not have the authority to unilaterally fire the network’s director.
Abramowitz, who had been placed on leave in March along with over 1,000 VOA staff members, was fired earlier this month after refusing to accept a reassignment to a Greenville, North Carolina, transmitting station.
Lamberth also ordered Lake and two aides to testify under oath by Sept. 15, warning that Lake was “verging on contempt of court” for obfuscating her intentions for the future of the global news network.
A group of VOA journalists and other USAGM employees suing Lake and the Trump administration in a different lawsuit issued a joint statement following Friday’s RIF announcement, calling the move “abhorrent” and suggesting that it may be illegal.
“We are looking forward to her deposition to hear whether her plan to dismantle VOA was done with the rigorous review process that Congress requires. So far we have not seen any evidence of that, and as such we will continue to fight for what we believe to be our rights under the law,” Patsy Widakuswara, who was VOA’s White House bureau chief, and other plaintiffs wrote.
Hundreds laid off at VOA parent agency amid legal battle
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