Since his inauguration, Donald Trump has been paying extra attention to reshaping the federal government with the help of Elon Musk’s DOGE. Amid mass termination of the federal workers, he has now shifted his attention to dismantle Voice of America.
This move comes as part of his latest executive order, which he signed on Friday to target the government-funded media networks. He is effectively making cuts to the U.S. Agency for Global Media, which also hosts Radio Free Asia, Radio Free Europe, and six other federal agencies.
On Sunday, VOA’s contractual employees received an email from USAGM informing them that they will be out on leave effective as early as March 31. The email, which was obtained by Al Jazeera, mentioned that the employees working on a contractual basis must “cease all work immediately.” In addition, they have also been instructed not to access any systems or agency buildings.
Misha Komadovsky, the White House correspondent for Voice of America’s Russian-language service, confirmed on X (formerly Twitter), “Contractors, including myself, at Voice of America, have just received an email notifying us that our contracts will be terminated effective March 31, 2025.”
Contractors, including myself, at Voice of America have just received an email notifying us that our contracts will be terminated effective March 31, 2025.
— Misha Komadovsky (@komadovsky) March 16, 2025
Trump’s dismantling of VOA has brought strong disapproval from media freedom advocacy groups such as the Committee to Protect Journalists and Reporters Without Borders. They have described the President’s latest executive order as “dystopian.”
Meanwhile, his administration has justified this move by listing a series of criticisms of the network by conservative media and lawmakers. The White House insisted that it would “ensure taxpayers are no longer on the hook for radical propaganda.”
VOA and other government-funded networks have long been targeted by Donald Trump and his allies. During his first term in office, he accused the network of “speaking for America’s adversaries – not its citizens.” Not too long ago, Elon Musk also attacked US-funded networks, claiming that they were being operated by “radical left crazy people talking to themselves.” the U.S. President himself barred Associated Press from various events after the network refused to use “Gulf of America” as the new name for the Gulf of Mexico.
Today our @AP White House reporter was denied access to the Oval Office because the Associated Press recognizes the international body of water on our southern coastline as the Gulf of Mexico, while acknowledging President Donald Trump’s order to rename it the Gulf of America.…
— Tara Copp (@TaraCopp) February 11, 2025
Meanwhile, following Friday’s executive order, retired VOA bureau chief in South Korea and Indonesia, Brian Padden, lashed out on Facebook.
“In the course of my reporting, I have been shot at, roughed up, and even nearly decapitated by an exploding helicopter in Eastern Ukraine. In 2014, I was harassed by pro-Russian activists or militants in Ukraine who accused me and my VOA TV crew of being agents of pro-American propaganda. Both Musk and the Russian militants are wrong. VOA does not do propaganda. VOA reports the news, which includes the perspective of both proponents and critics of the President.”
Voice of America, which was launched during World War Two to combat Nazi propaganda, is now immensely struggling to stay afloat as many broadcasts have been canceled or replaced by music in regions across the world, including the Middle East and Asia.
Before the ongoing elimination, VOA boasted over 354 million weekly audiences worldwide and operated in more than 40 languages.
