March 26, 2025

On March 21, 2025, journalists, federal workers, and their unions sued U.S. Agency for Global Media, its Acting Director Victor Morales, and Special Adviser Kari Lake to challenge the unlawful shuttering of the agency and silencing of global media.

The lawsuit, filed in the Southern District of New York, asserts that the agency has failed to fulfill its legally required functions and violated both the freedom of journalists and separation of powers when it ordered staff not to report to work, suspended contractors, turned off service, and locked the agency’s doors.

“Our firm is honored to represent these clients in this historic fight. The people who gather the news, who write the news, who deliver the news, and who operate the equipment that distributes the news are the lifeblood of a democracy. Without them, the landscape of ideas and information would be a desert. The Voice of America is many, many voices; we are committed to having those voices heard in court — so they can get back to the business of speaking to the world,” said Andrew G. Celli, Jr., a partner at Emery Celli Brinckerhoff Abady Ward & Maazel LLP.

Read the entire complaint here

Press: 

“Voice of America Journalist Sue Trump Officials For Dismantling The Outlet” Washington Post