Reversal: Federal judge voids Kari Lake's actions

A federal judge invalidated Kari Lake’s claim to run the U.S. Agency for Global Media as acting CEO and voided her actions, including mass layoffs. He ordered the agency to name an acting chief and submit a succession plan by Wednesday at 5 p.m. The ruling opens the way for Voice of America journalists, who have been on paid administrative leave for a year, to return.

Lake had moved to lay off virtually all full‑time staff and dismiss contractors, shrinking an organization that once had nearly 2,000 employees to roughly 120 people producing in seven languages. VOA’s website has been frozen since March 15, 2025.

Getting back on air will require rebuilding. Many affiliate carriage deals were terminated, Radio Farda lost access to agency transmitters and had to use commercial vendors, and studio space and wire-service contracts were cut. Restoring operations could take months and likely means a leaner newsroom of around 500 journalists, with current funding at $653 million, down from $867 million in prior years.

AI-synthesized from multiple reported sources