All full-time employees of the largest international broadcaster in the United States have been on leave after Donald Trump ordered government-funded institutions to shrink due to “radical” and “anti-Trump” scale.
US media reported that US media informed 1,300 VOA employees of the decision via email on Saturday.
Staff members told CBS News that employees were blocked from accessing the broadcaster office in Washington, D.C., which means freelancers and stringers around the world have to stop working because payments are now impossible.
American voice director Michael Abramowitz said nearly all of his journalists, producers and assistant staff were suspended, and the broadcaster operating in nearly 50 languages has been paralyzed.
“I feel deeply saddened that the voice of American legend has been silent for 83 years,” Mr. Abramovitz said on LinkedIn.
U.S. director voice Michael Abramowitz says all his employees have been suspended
The U.S. president issued a detailed executive order on Friday, namely the United States Global Media Agency (USAGM) (Voice Agency) and several other government departments.
Usagm also terminated the free European/broadcast free radio grant established during the Cold War and continued to broadcast to Eastern European countries, including Russia and Ukraine.
The order also targets free Asian radio stations, broadcasting to China and North Korea.
A White House statement said the order “will ensure taxpayers are no longer trapped in radical propaganda aspects.”
It includes a link to a report accusing VOA reporters of posting “anti-Trump” content on social media.
The VOA was founded in 1942 to fight back against Nazi propaganda, reaching 360 million people per week. According to a recent report from Congress, as a group, USAGM employed about 3,500 workers in 2024 with a budget of $886 million.
Experts warn that the president’s instructions could destroy an organization designed to be reliable news for the authoritarian country.
“Tell the truth straight”
VOA Seoul Bureau chief William Gallo said on Sunday that he was locked out of all corporate systems and accounts.
“Whatever government I cover, what I once wanted to do is to be honest. If that’s a threat to anyone, then that’s it,” he said on social media.
Czech Foreign Minister Jan Lipavsky said that under totalitarian rule, free Europe is a “beacon” for the population.
He wrote on X: “From Belarus to Iran, from Russia to Afghanistan, the RFE and the United States voices are one of the sources of freedom for the few people without freedom.”
Free Asia president Bay Fang said the cancellation of its funds was “a reward for dictators and dictators, including the Chinese Communist Party, who hope nothing is better than unaffected”.
But Kari Lake, a former news host who was nominated by Mr. Trump as VOA director, issued a statement calling USAGM a “huge decay and a burden on American taxpayers” and said it was “irretrievable.”
Meanwhile, Elon Musk, who led the government as head of government efficiency, wrote on X: “When ending this global government propaganda agency, it has temporarily renamed the “Documentary Department of Publicity” (DOPE).
Broaden your horizons with award-winning British journalism. Unlimited access to our award-winning websites, exclusive apps, currency savings and more, free 1 month of telegram.
