RSF - Reporters sans frontières

03/18/2026 | Press release | Distributed by Public on 03/19/2026 01:17

USA: Victory for RSF and VOA journalists as court orders VOA back to work

A federal judge has ruled that employees of the international public broadcaster Voice of America (VOA) must return to work no later than Monday, March 23 and that broadcasting operations must be resumed. The ruling follows a major decision in a summary judgment the previous week that Kari Lake was unlawfully appointed by President Donald Trump as Acting CEO of the US Agency for Global Media, reversing the government's attempt to dismantle the agency and the media outlets under its supervision, including VOA. Reporters Without Borders (RSF) is gratified by the outcome, which was set in motion by its lawsuit brought together with VOA journalists and their unions against the Trump administration exactly one year ago.

"The federal court has made it crystal clear: the Trump administration's attacks on VOA, including firing virtually all of its employees, were illegal. This is, of course, what we knew to be true all along, and we were very proud to stand alongside VOA journalists in this fight. VOA is a beacon for people all over the world living under authoritarian rule, from Iran to North Korea, by delivering reliable, objective journalism where it is needed most. We will not accept any attempt to dismantle or turn it into a propaganda arm of the Trump White House. The US administration should drop its anti-press vendetta and let VOA's journalists get back to work immediately!"

Thibaut Bruttin
RSF Director General

RSF first launcheda lawsuitalongside its co-plaintiffs to save VOA in March 2025, marking the first time RSF has taken the US government to court. Since then, all of VOA's contractors have been let go, while its more than 500 regular employees have been placed on administrative leave. The Trump administration has sporadically reintroduced some limited broadcasting to suit its political needs, such as Farsi-language programming that explicitly supported the US-Israeli airstrikes in Iran. The US government is expected to appeal this decision, which could delay VOAjournalists from returning to work.

Published on18.03.2026
RSF - Reporters sans frontières published this content on March 18, 2026, and is solely responsible for the information contained herein. Distributed via Public Technologies (PUBT), unedited and unaltered, on March 19, 2026 at 07:18 UTC. If you believe the information included in the content is inaccurate or outdated and requires editing or removal, please contact us at [email protected]