A federal judge on Saturday ruled that Kari Lake, who President Trump appointed a year ago to run the Voice of America, has acted unlawfully.

"Lake satisfies the requirements of neither the statute nor the Constitution," U.S. District Court Judge Royce C. Lamberth wrote in his ruling. "As a consequence, any actions take by her during her asserted tenure acting as CEO between July 31 and November 19, 2025, including but not limited to the August 29 reduction in force effort or actions taken pursuant in the March or July delegations of CEO authority, are void."

Lamberth has been dealing with court challenges over the leadership of VOA since last summer, questioning the government’s arguments about Congress’s role in running the agency, which is in charge of broadcasting news in 49 languages to countries where the free press is endangered. Cuts to the VOA, which runs Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, Radio Free Asia, and the Middle East Broadcast Networks since Lake took over have resulted in only six languages being offered now.

All three networks have legally challenged Lake in court.

Since Lake—a former Arizona gubernatorial candidate—assumed control, she has dismissed contractors and fired almost all permanent network and agency full-time staffers including the director of the Voice of America. She has also contracted with One America Network to carry its right-wing content as well as denied funding to Radio Free Europe and Radio Free Asia. She also cancelled a lease for a new HQ.

Specifically, the judge’s ruling revolved around whether or not Lake had the authority for her actions and whether she had ever been officially appointed. Although President Trump had announced his intentions to nominate Lake to the job before starting his second term, the person designated to run the Global Media agency—which oversees the VOA—was never confirmed by Congress. Since Trump had dismissed most of the board that was in charge of hiring a new director if there was no CEO, Lake’s appointment was held up.

Last summer, the White House named her “acting deputy CEO” which Lake said gave her “95%” of the duties and powers of the CEO.

NPR reported that it has not found any evidence that Lake was every appointed by Trump to the position.

The judge’s decision raised questions as to the viability of Lake’s actions and could result in the reversal of other decisions she has made for the last year.

The Trump administration’s efforts to shut down the Voice of America broadcast network were handed a setback this week when a federal court judge ordered the administration to restore the service.

The shutdown of the U.S. Agency for Global Media (USAGM) was ordered as part of the administration’s DOGE cuts and was termed illegal by VOA at the time it was ordered in March. The executive order to “reduce the performance of their statutory functions and associated personnel to the minimum presence and function required by law,” resulted in more than 1,000 employees being placed on leave and the termination of 600 contracts.

This resulted in the first time since it was founded in 1942 that the VOA had to terminate its broadcasts. The VOA sued the administration, accusing it of taking a “chainsaw approach” to the service. Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty also sued the USAGM “to avoid irreparable harm” to the service. VOA and RFE/RL are both funded by Congress.

U.S. District Judge Royce Lamberth issued a preliminary injunction ordering that the administration “take all necessary steps” to reinstate employees and contractors as well as to restore funding to Radio Free Asia and Middle East Broadcasting Network. Lamberth—who is presiding over a half-dozen lawsuits filed by employees and contractors—is also requiring the broadcasters to file monthly status reports to confirm that USAGM is complying with his order.

The ruling “is a victory for the rule of law, for press freedom and journalistic integrity, and for democracy worldwide,” said Everett Kelley, president for the American Federation of Government Employees. “The Trump administration’s illegal attempt to shutter Voice of America and other outlets under the U.S. Agency for Global Media was a transparent effort to silence the voices of patriotic journalists and professionals who have dedicated their careers to spreading the truth and fighting propaganda from lawless authoritarian regimes. This preliminary injunction will allow these employees to get back to work as we continue the fight to preserve their jobs and critical mission.”

Late last month U.S. District Court Judge J. Paul Oetken issued a temporary restraining order against the Trump administration for taking any further action to shutter VOA.

President-elect Donald Trump has picked Kari Lake to run the Voice of America. Lake had been a popular news anchor for KSAZ-TV Phoenix prior to losing elections for governor of Arizona in 2022 and a U.S. Senate seat in 2024.

A staunch Trump ally, she stirred controversy as an election denier who spread erroneous information about the results of the 2020 and 2022 elections.

“I am pleased to announce that Kari Lake will serve as our next Director of the Voice of America. She will be appointed by, and work closely with, our next head of the U.S. Agency for Global Media, who I will announce soon, to ensure that the American values of Freedom and Liberty are broadcast around the World FAIRLY and ACCURATELY, unlike the lies spread by the Fake News Media. Kari was a beloved News Anchor in Arizona, which supported me by record margins, for over 20 years,” Trump said in a post on his Truth Social platform.

Voice of America (VOA) is the largest U.S. international broadcaster, providing news and information in nearly 50 languages to an estimated weekly audience of more than 354 million people, according to its website.

VOA produces content for digital, mobile, television, and radio platforms. It is also distributed by satellite, cable, FM and MW, and is carried on a network of more than 3,500 affiliate stations.

VoA is part of the U.S. Agency for Global Media (USAGM), the government agency that oversees all nonmilitary U.S. international broadcasting. It is funded by the U.S. Congress. The head of USAGM must be approved by the U.S. Senate. The director of the VOA is appointed by a vote of the seven-member advisory board.

Voice of America will move to a new headquarters in Washington.

For 70 years it has been based at its current location, almost in the shadow of the U.S. Capitol. Now VOA’s parent, the U.S. Agency for Global Media, has awarded a new lease establishing 1875 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW as its own future headquarters and the home of VOA.

The new location is three blocks from the White House in the neighborhood of George Washington University.

“The agency’s move to a modern facility will save taxpayers more than $150 million over the course of its 15-year lease,” the organization said in a press release. “The relocation will begin in the coming months and occur in phases over the next several years.”

USAGM and VOA currently are based in the Wilbur J. Cohen Building, an iconic structure on Independence Avenue a block off the National Mall and across the street from the American Museum of the American Indian. Public studio tours are available.

“The Cohen Building has been home to Voice of America and U.S. international public service broadcasting since 1954, and was recognized by the Society of Professional Journalists as a National Historic Site for Journalism in 2022,” the organization wrote.

“Originally built for the Social Security Administration and listed among the District of Columbia’s Inventory of Historic Sites, the Cohen Building exemplifies the Stripped Classical and Egyptian Revival styles popular at the time of its inception. However, it was never optimized for a modern news organization. Even so, the Cohen Building has served as an international hub for trusted news and information for generations.”

USAGM CEO Amanda Bennett said a new facility with expanded technology capabilities is important for the organization.

“[O]ur work remains critical — particularly in the face of censorship, malign influence and information manipulation at the hands of authoritarian regimes. Ensuring our continued ability to compete is the first and perhaps most vital step in winning the global information war.”

USAGM said the move will allow it to operate more efficiently and save money that can be reinvested in technology and infrastructure. “Further, the move to a more efficient space echoes a broader push to reimagine federal workspaces across Washington, D.C.”

USAGM also oversees the Middle East Broadcasting Networks, Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, Radio Free Asia and the Office of Cuba Broadcasting.

The newly leased site previously housed the Federal Bar, according to its property listing from EastBanc, which offers a virtual tour and goes on to state, “It is centrally located on one of the world’s most recognized boulevards and only three blocks from the White House. 1875 Pennsylvania Ave is an interconnected, three-building complex connecting to the existing buildings at 1801 and 1899 Pennsylvania Avenue, and encompassing the north side of Pennsylvania Avenue between 18th and 19th Streets. The lobby features a dramatic, 150-foot atrium and a sloped fountain, connecting to shallow fountain pools. … Another dramatic feature are the three bridges, completely suspended from one side, which provide access to the neighboring building on the west side.”

This article originally appeared on TV Tech sister brand Radio World.

INDIANAPOLIS—The Society of Professional Journalists has named 330 Independence Ave. SW in Washington, D.C., as a Historic Site in Journalism. The address is the headquarters of the Voice of America, the editorially independent international broadcaster funded by the United States government.

SPJ’s Historic Sites program honors the people and places that have played important roles in American journalistic history.

“For 80 years, the Voice of America has been a source of solid and honest journalism. From its beginning in 1942, despite being a U.S. government agency, through custom, charters and law the editorial independence of VOA journalists has not wavered,” wrote Dan Kubiske, SPJ International Community co-chair. The Community sponsored the proposal to make VOA headquarters a historic site.

On Feb. 24, 1942, VOA went on the air from New York City. Although VOA is funded by U.S. Agency for Global Media, formerly known as the U.S. Foreign Information Service, has, since it’s opening broadcast, remained editorially independent, with its credo emphasizing: “Today, and every day from now on, we will be with you from America to talk about the war. ... The news may be good or bad for us — we will always tell you the truth.” By law, it only broadcasts internationally and does not broadcast directly to the American public.

Its independence was further emphasized in a charter adopted in 1959 when the U.S. Information Agency, the parent agency of the VOA at the time, looked at its practices and created a firewall between its journalists and any political appointees by any U.S. administration. The charter became law as part of the Foreign Relations Authorization Act for the federal government’s fiscal year for 1977, signed into law by President Gerald Ford in 1976, and was reinforced through legislation in 1994 and 2016.

USIA’s headquarters became the VOA headquarters in 1954 shortly after the agency came into existence. A bronze plaque will be placed at 330 Independence Ave. SW to distinguish it as a National Historic Site in Journalism.

WASHINGTON—Michael Pack, whose time overseeing Voice of America has been surrounded by controversy and criticism, officially resigned on Jan. 20 at the request of the Biden administration, NBC News reports.

Pack was appointed the CEO of the U.S. Agency for Global Media by former President Donald Trump in June. The appointment was immediately controversial, as critics claimed that his actions were designed to turn VOA and other networks under his purview more into mouthpieces for the Trump administration than as the independent journalists promoting democracy that their missions dictate.

During his time leading the agency, Pack fired senior executives, refused to renew visas for many foreign journalists and had his actions questioned by a federal judge and Congress.

“I serve at the pleasure of not one particular president, but the office of the president itself,” Pack wrote to staffers in an email obtained by NBC News. “The new administration has requested my resignation, and that is why I have tendered it as of 2 p.m. today [Jan. 20].”

NBC News has more on Pack’s resignation. 

WASHINGTON—Two of The Voice of America’s (VOA) top executives have announced their resignation following the Senate confirmation of Michael Pack, who President Donald Trump has appointed as the new head of the U.S. Agency for Global Media, which oversees the international broadcaster, according to a report from NPR.

VOA Director Amanda Bennett and Deputy Director Sandy Sugawara announced their resignation in a farewell message where they thanked staff members but also raised concerns about the future of editorial independence under Pack.

“Nothing about you, your passion, your mission or your integrity changes,” said Bennett in her message to VOA staff. “Michael Pack swore before Congress to respect and honor the firewall that guarantees VOA’s independence, which in turn plays the single most important role in the stunning trust our audiences around the world have in us.”

Pack is a conservative filmmaker and supporter of President Trump. The president has been a critic of VOA—a publicly-funded broadcaster—and some of its coverage. Critics of the appointment worry that he may jeopardize the broadcaster’s editorial independence and push more favorable coverage of the Trump administration.

The full story is available on NPR’s website. 

Covering the White House is an amazing responsibility for any journalist, never more so than in 2019. Doing it for the Voice of America brings its own challenges and opportunities. The session “VOA at the White House: Covering the Administration” will be presented at The Video Show, a two-day event in Washington, Dec. 4–5.

In the session, Steve Herman, White House bureau chief for the Voice of America, will share his experiences, some of the hard lessons he has learned and how VOA approaches its role in today’s contentious media climate. How do you cram a pool of 22 reporters, videographers, still photographers and audio tech into the Oval Office anyway?

The Video Show caught up with Herman for a minute ahead of the show.

The Video Show:How is your approach to covering the White House different than the other correspondents there?

Steve Herman: VOA broadcasts to the rest of the world in 47 languages, we do not target a domestic U.S. audience. So our focus is quite different on White House issues than most news outlets covering the administration. Stories that have a geo-political angle—something about Russia or Africa, for example—are important to our audiences, who are less interested in West Wing process stories that might be consuming the attention of most White House reporters on any given day.

TVS:What have you found to be the most challenging aspect of the White House beat?

SH: Multitasking, definitely. When I’m in the Oval Office or on the tarmac next to Air Force One with the president, I’m simultaneously recording broadcast-quality audio for all the radio networks as the pool reporter, sending pool reports to those networks, also snapping a few photos or recording a video clip on my iPhone and then tweeting out the gist of what’s happening.

The Video Show will feature more than 100 sessions on nine presentation stages, as well as a dedicated screening room, demo areas, streaming studio and dynamic exhibit floor. Want to hear more about this topic? Visit thewebsiteto learn more and register.

The Broadcasting Board of Governors has updated its brand.

The board, which oversees government-backed international programming services including the Voice of America, is now the U.S. Agency for Global Media (USAGM).

The reboot is meant to convey that the digital age agency now extends far beyond TV and radio to include digital and mobile platforms.

The agency is headed by John Lansing as CEO. Lansing is the former head of CTAM and president of Scripps Networks.

"The term "broadcasting" does not accurately describe what we do," said Lansing. "The new name reflects our modernization and forward momentum while honoring our enduring mission to inform, engage and connect people around the world in support of freedom and democracy."

Lansing said the decision was made in consultation with the Trump Administration, Congress and others. "in a time of shifting politics, challenging media landscapes, and weaponized information," he said. "Our identity and name will now address these realities."

In addition to VOA, USAGM comprises Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty (RFE/RL), the Office of Cuba Broadcasting (Television and Radio Martí), Radio Free Asia (RFA), and the Middle East Broadcasting Networks (MBN).