[Update 2025-06-20]  Reuters reports that the US Agency for Global Media, parent agency of VOA, has issued termination notices to 639 staff members.  This completes an 85% decrease in VOA's staffing.  Staffing has been cut to the statutory minimum of around 81. Reuters is of the view that this effectively terminates VOA as a broadcaster.  VOA was established in 1942 to counter Nazi propaganda. One may recall that VOA has been in the cross-hairs of Trump since the first Trump presidency in 2017 (see Wiki entry).  This follows a decision on May 3, 2025 by the Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia that blocked the previous ruling.  On May 6, 2025 One America News (OAN), a far right voice-piece for the Trump administration (even more so than Fox) would provide news coverage for VOA.  In June 2025, Wiki reports that several dozen Farsi-speaking staffers were called back to work.  

The Yellowknife Amateur Radio Society is concerned about this development and also concerned about the terminated staff.  More significantly, the Society is concerned by far right propaganda and VOA being used for the propagation of such propaganda.  This is a betrayal of the reason VOA was set up in 1942.  All links to VOA will be discontinued on the Society's website.  

[Update 2025-05-17] NPR reports that a federal judge blocked the Trump administration from dismantling VOA temporarily.  The latest developments as reported by Wiki (up to 2025-05-06) and based on a report from Reuters:

On April 22, 2025, a federal ruling from the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia ordered the Trump administration to restore VOA and return its employees and contractors to work.^[151] On May 3, the Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit blocked the ruling in a 2-1 decision citing a lack of jurisdiction by the district court.^[152]

On May 6, 2025, Kari Lake announced that One America News (OAN), a far-right, pro-Trump network known for promoting conspiracy theories, will provide news coverage for VOA.^[19][20]

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Many an amateur radio hobbyist developed their interest in amateur radio through shortwave listening.  Many stations have come and gone and others have morphed into the Internet of all things.  Shortwave stations are generally expensive to set up and maintain.  Some stations, such as at Sackville, New Brunswick are no more.  It has become increasingly evident in a series of man-made events and politics that the Internet can be shut off such as revolt, revolution, war etc.  Some shortwave transmissions have been re-activated as a result.

Late in the evening of March 14, 2025, President Trump declared a number of entities as no longer necessary:

• This Executive Order eliminates non-statutory functions and reduces statutory functions of unnecessary governmental entities to what is required by law. Affected entities include the Federal Mediation and Conciliation Service, United States Agency for Global Media (USAGM), Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars, Institute of Museum and Library Services, United States Interagency Council on Homelessness, Community Development Financial Institutions Fund, Minority Business Development Agency, and Arctic Research Commission.
• This action builds on an Executive Order President Trump previously signed to reduce unnecessary governmental entities and Federal advisory committees.

NPR radio reports that The Voice of America, Office for Cuba Broadcasting (Radio and Television Marti), Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, Radio Free Asia and the Middle East Broadcasting Networks have all been gutted with full-time staffers (in the range of 1,000 persons) being suspended indefinitely.  Termination notices for grants were signed by Kari Lake, a Trump appointee at the head of the USAGM, whom NPR understands has no statutory authority to exercise such powers. For the American shortwave broadcast station Voice of America (VOA), around 1,300 journalists, producers and staff have been put of leave.  March 15, 2025 is now known by these employees as "Bloody Saturday".  Contractors have also been cut including with the Associated Press (AP), France Presse and Reuters.  Elon Musk's DOGE has been involved.

There may be negative security implications in that programming directed at the United States' and western democracies adversaries (Iran, Russia, Belarus, China, North Korea) has now been cut. The weely progamming reached 420 million people in 63 languages and more than 100 countries.

VOA programming was critical of Trump's COVID-19 response during his first term.  VOA programming ahs also raised the hackles of autocratic leaders in Russia, Hungary, Belarus, Azerbaijan, China etc.

NPR reports that a number of the former staff "spoke on the condition they not be named due to fear of professional retribution."  

The VOA website appears to still be active.  

Sources

• https://www.npr.org/2025/03/15/nx-s1-5329244/bloody-saturday-voiceofamerica-radio-free-asia-europe-trump-kari-lake 
• https://www.voanews.com/ 
• https://www.reuters.com/business/media-telecom/trump-signs-order-gut-voice-america-other-agencies-2025-03-15/ 
• https://www.whitehouse.gov/fact-sheets/2025/03/fact-sheet-president-donald-j-trump-continues-the-reduction-of-the-federal-bureaucracy/#:~:text=ELIMINATING%20WASTE%20AND%20REDUCING%20GOVERNMENT,what%20is%20required%20by%20law.
• https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Voice_of_America 
• https://spectrum.ieee.org/nonverbal-autism
• https://exhibitions.ushmm.org/propaganda/german-radio-the-peoples-receiver
• https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Voice_of_America#cite_note-153