The Trump administration initiated mass layoffs on Sunday at Voice of America and other U.S.-funded media, signaling its intention to significantly downsize outlets traditionally seen as key to U.S. influence.

Just a day after placing all employees on leave, contract staff received an email informing them that their employment would end by the end of March.

The email, confirmed by multiple employees to AFP, instructed contractors to "cease all work immediately" and barred them from accessing agency buildings or systems.

Contractors constitute a significant portion of VOA’s workforce, particularly in non-English language services, though recent staffing figures were not immediately available.

Many contractors are not U.S. citizens, meaning their visas—and ability to remain in the country—are likely tied to their soon-to-be-eliminated jobs.

While full-time VOA employees, who have greater legal protections, were not immediately dismissed, they remain on administrative leave and have been instructed not to work.

Established during World War II, Voice of America broadcasts in 49 languages worldwide, with a mission to reach audiences in countries lacking media freedom.

On Friday, Trump signed an executive order aimed at the U.S. Agency for Global Media, the parent organization of Voice of America, as part of his broader efforts to downsize the federal government.

In the 2023 fiscal year, the agency employed 3,384 people and had requested a budget of $950 million for the current fiscal year.

With VOA operations in limbo, some of its services have resorted to playing music due to a lack of new programming.

The sweeping cuts have also affected Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, originally created during the Cold War to reach the former Soviet bloc, and Radio Free Asia, which provides independent reporting to China, North Korea, and other countries with heavily restricted media.

Other U.S.-funded broadcasters facing major reductions include Radio Farda, a Persian-language station blocked by Iran’s government, and Alhurra, an Arabic-language network launched after the Iraq invasion to counter critical coverage from Qatar-based Al Jazeera.

In a statement on Saturday, the White House justified the cuts by saying, "Taxpayers are no longer on the hook for radical propaganda." This claim—rarely made about the traditionally neutral VOA before Trump—reflects his long-standing criticism of the media and his questioning of funding for an outlet with a “firewall” protecting its editorial independence.

The cuts come as China and Russia ramp up investments in state-controlled media to challenge Western narratives, with China frequently offering free content to media outlets in developing nations.

Reacting to VOA’s decline, China's state-run Global Times wrote in an editorial that the "monopoly of information held by some traditional Western media is being shattered.”

“As more Americans break free from their information cocoons and gain a broader perspective on the world, the demonizing narratives pushed by VOA will ultimately become a laughingstock,” the editorial added.