Kari Lake, a Trump friend who has been appointed to a leading position at the US Agency for Global Media (USAGM), where Voice of America is included, says that the layoffs have been long-awaited. She will, together with the Foreign Department, "ensure that the storytelling of the US's history is modernized" and "is in line with the US's foreign policy".
Notice of termination was sent to over 600 employees, after previous offers of voluntary resignations. According to Lake, 1,400 positions have ceased and 250 remain.
It was in March that Trump issued a presidential order to dismantle Voice of America and other US-funded media companies around the world.
Voice of America has existed since 1942 and was during the Cold War an important news source for listeners in the communist countries. Trump has been critical of the activities since his first term.
