WASHINGTON: A US district judge has temporarily blocked the Trump administration’s attempt to terminate federal funding for Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty (RFE/RL), granting the news organisation a reprieve as it fights the cuts in court.

In his ruling, Judge Royce C. Lamberth issued a temporary restraining order against the US Agency for Global Media (USAGM) and its chief adviser, Kari Lake, preventing them from unilaterally cutting RFE/RL’s funding. The judge found that such a move would violate congressional mandates ensuring financial support for the broadcaster.

“The leadership of USAGM cannot, with one sentence of reasoning offering virtually no explanation, force RFE/RL to shut down — even if the President has told them to do so,” Judge Lamberth wrote.

RFE/RL, which has operated for decades under congressional authorisation, was among several US-funded media outlets facing potential closure after the Trump administration moved to eliminate funding for “non-statutory elements” of government agencies, including USAGM. The agency oversees five US-funded media organizations, including Voice of America (VOA) and Radio Free Asia, and had sought to end federal grants supporting these outlets.

Kari Lake, a former television anchor and staunch Trump ally, was nominated as a special adviser to USAGM in December 2024 and assumed her role in March 2025. A vocal critic of what she describes as “deep state” influence in government-funded media, Lake has argued that USAGM should be significantly downsized.

In a post on her official X account on Tuesday, she vowed to press ahead with her mission despite legal challenges. “President Trump has tasked me with returning these agencies to their mission, reducing them to the statutory minimum, and putting an END to their rampant abuse of taxpayer money,” she wrote. “No amount of fake news and frivolous lawsuits will stop me from accomplishing that goal.”

Meanwhile, VOA journalists have also sued Lake and the Trump administration over the decision, announced earlier this month, to shut down the media outlet. The lawsuit, filed in the Southern District of New York, seeks to restore VOA’s services. The plaintiffs, including Reporters Without Borders and four labor organizations, have named USAGM’s acting CEO, Victor Morales, and Kari Lake as defendants. Neither has commented on the matter.

The ruling marks a significant moment in the broader battle over US government-funded international broadcasting, as the court’s order temporarily prevents immediate funding cuts while the case proceeds.

Published in Dawn, March 27th, 2025