Protect VOA's editorial independence, boost global messaging capabilities

Voice of America (VOA) has been an invaluable tool for promoting democracy and countering authoritarian propaganda abroad for decades. Its objective reporting in multiple languages has fostered transparency and exposed lies from hostile regimes. However, the Trump administration's actions are silencing this vital American voice and ceding the information battleground to our rivals. The recent gutting of VOA staff, cancellation of broadcasts reaching millions, and severing of partnerships have severely undermined our global messaging capabilities. Even more alarmingly, there are now plans to essentially convert VOA into a propaganda arm by outsourcing content to the pro-Trump network OAN, sacrificing VOA's hard-earned credibility on the altar of the former president's personal interests. This blatant attack on America's strategic communication assets plays directly into the hands of nations like Russia, allowing their sophisticated disinformation operations to proliferate unchecked. At a time when malign foreign influence poses an escalating threat via weaponized social media, we are recklessly abandoning a proven tool for promoting democratic values. For the sake of national security and the integrity of our free press, Congress must urgently intervene to reinstate and reinforce VOA's editorial independence, broadcast capacity, and public service mandate before it is too late.