USAGM leadership directed Voice of America to publish White House talking points as news, journalists' lawsuit alleged

On March 23, 2026, a group of Voice of America journalists, joined by press-freedom organizations, filed a federal lawsuit in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia against the U.S. Agency for Global Media, Kari Lake, and acting CEO Michael Rigas. The suit alleges USAGM leadership turned VOA "into a partisan mouthpiece," directing the newsroom to publish White House talking points "nearly word-for-word" as news and to disseminate images of President Trump in a style the complaint compared to state propaganda. "Censorship and propaganda are two sides of the same coin," the complaint states, arguing the conduct violates both the federal statutes governing VOA's editorial independence and the First Amendment.

VOA operates under a statutory firewall, part of the U.S. International Broadcasting Act, requiring the network to produce independent, accurate journalism free of political interference from the government that funds it. The lawsuit is the latest in a running legal fight over VOA's independence: Trump ordered the network cut to its statutory minimum in 2025, and on March 7, 2026, a federal judge ruled that Kari Lake's tenure as acting USAGM head — and the actions she took in that role, including mass layoffs — had been unlawful. Ten days later, on March 17, another federal ruling blocked the administration's effort to dismantle the agency and ordered VOA's full reinstatement, finding Congress requires the newsroom to remain editorially independent.

The complaint alleges that after being blocked in court from shutting VOA down, the administration shifted to controlling its output directly — suppressing coverage of events it wished had not occurred and directing that partisan messaging be presented to audiences as news. As one example, the suing journalists point to VOA's Persian Service, which they say was barred from reporting facts about the U.S.-Israeli war with Iran, including opposition movements, deaths caused by U.S. strikes, and perspectives from foreign leaders critical of the administration. A USAGM spokesperson said Monday that the network's broadcasting "must reflect U.S. policy," without addressing the newsroom's legally required independence.

Lake did not respond to a request for comment on the lawsuit. The archive records this as a case of government leadership compelling the staff of a public institution to produce political messaging in place of independent journalism — the inverse of a free press, using the machinery of a state broadcaster instead of suppressing it outright.