Appeals Court Pauses Reinstatement of VOA Staff
(MENAFN) A United States federal appellate court has temporarily overturned a prior ruling from a lower court that mandated the reinstatement of over 1,000 Voice of America (VOA) staff members.
These employees had been placed on administrative leave during the Trump administration.
The original decision, made on April 22 by District Judge Royce Lamberth, directed the U.S. Agency for Global Media (USAGM)—which oversees VOA—to restore the staff members to their roles.
Judge Lamberth concluded that the disbanding of VOA and its affiliated outlets—Radio Free Asia and the Middle East Broadcasting Networks—was "likely unlawful."
His ruling also aimed to return USD15 million in financial support to the affected organizations.
However, in a split 2-1 judgment, the appellate court determined that Judge Lamberth did not have the appropriate legal authority to enforce the reinstatement.
As a result, the directive has been suspended, at least for the time being.
VOA has remained mostly inactive since March, following an executive order from the Trump administration that effectively dismantled USAGM.
Since then, the agency has not returned to standard operations.
According to several media accounts on Friday, preparations were underway at VOA to restart broadcasts in the coming week.
When contacted for clarification on Saturday, USAGM did not provide a response.
Established during World War II to counteract "Nazi propaganda," Voice of America receives financial backing from Congress and delivers content in 63 languages to audiences across more than 100 nations.
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