Voice of America operations halted as Trump orders agency dismantling

US President Donald Trump

Voice of America (VOA), a pillar of US initiatives to support democracy and openness globally for more than 80 years, has been essentially closed down after an executive order signed by President Donald Trump on Friday. The directive instructs dismantling the federal agency that manages VOA, leading to the abrupt suspension of operations and the temporary leave of hundreds of staff.

Abrupt suspension puts broadcasts in chaos

Days following the executive order, VOA staff, both journalists and executives, were sent on paid leave, stripped of access to email and internal communication. The sudden action put many of VOA's international broadcasts in disarray, according to The New York Times. Asian and Middle Eastern radio frequencies either went off the air or defaulted to playing music, and several world affiliates lost their main source of US news content.

David Z. Seide, a Government Accountability Project lawyer, said, "They have pulled the plug operationally," and signalled possible legal recourse to restore VOA employees. The American Foreign Service Association also vowed to protect the rights of impacted employees.

Impact on global information access

Since its founding in 1942, VOA has been an important tool against propaganda and promoting free flows of information, especially in authoritarian areas. Its broadcasts, covering dozens of languages, reached hundreds of millions of people around the world, including China and Iran, where government-run media holds sway.

VOA's closure undermines this mission, creating a vacuum that, according to critics, might be filled by state-run media from rival countries. The organisation's editorial independence was guaranteed by its founding charter, which asserted balanced reporting and accurate representation of US policies.

Trump administration's media crackdown

The shutdown fits into the Trump administration's larger hostility to critical media sources. The White House has before kept the Associated Press from coverage of certain events and sued news organisations. The administration has called VOA out for peddling "radical propaganda" and criticised journalists for perceived political bias.

In a highly contentious appointment this year, Trump appointed ex-right-wing news anchor Kari Lake to head VOA. The administration's efforts to transform VOA's editorial direction and quash criticism were criticised by federal investigators as weakening journalistic integrity.

Fallout and reactions

Experienced VOA correspondent Steven Herman, who is "on excused absence" in connection with an HR probe following his social media activity, reflected on the closure as a precious loss. "To successfully shutter the Voice of America is to dim a beacon that burned brightly through some of the darkest times since 1942," he said.

With the dismantling taking place, media analysts and human rights activists caution that the move undermines America's soft power and democratic messages, especially in areas where credible information is hard to find. Court cases and lobbying campaigns are being waged to roll back the shutdown and save the future of independent US international broadcasting.