A lawsuit filed late Friday accuses the Trump administration of unlawfully shutting down the Voice of America and asks a federal court to restore the outlet that for decades has supplied news about the United States to nations around the world — including many that lack a free press of their own.
The case, filed in U.S. District Court in New York, was brought by Voice of America reporters, Reporters Without Borders and a handful of unions against the U.S. Agency for Global Media and Kari Lake, the failed Arizona candidate who is President Trump’s representative there.
“In many parts of the world, a crucial source of objective news is gone, and only censored state-sponsored news media is left to fill the void,” the lawsuit said.
Lake has described the broadcast agency as a “giant rot” that needs to be stripped down and rebuilt.
Voice of America dates to World War II as a source of objective news, often beamed into authoritarian countries. Funded by Congress, it is protected by a charter that guarantees its product pass muster for journalistic rigor.
Suit accuses the administration of taking a ‘chainsaw’ approach
The lawsuit charges that the Trump administration has effectively shut it down unlawfully in the past week. Republicans have complained that the news source is infected by left-wing propaganda, a contention its operators say isn’t backed up factually.
Content retrieved from: https://www.firstpost.com/world/federal-lawsuit-accuses-trump-administration-of-unlawfully-shutting-down-voice-of-america-13873495.html.
