Over 500 employees of the US Agency for Global Media (USAGM), which oversees Voice of America (VOA) and other international broadcasters, are facing job cuts. This follows a legal battle where a judge blocked the acting CEO, Kari Lake, from removing the VOA director. Lake claims the job cuts will improve the agency's function, but employees argue it's an attack on their agency and violates Congressional mandates. The cuts impact various international broadcasters, potentially jeopardizing their ability to counter authoritarian narratives and impacting the safety of foreign staff who fear repercussions from their home governments.

Prepared by Christopher Adams and reviewed by editorial team.