It is a joyous day for Voice of America. All of us welcome the news that veteran journalist and VOA Burmese Service contributor Sithu Aung Myint was released on November 30, 2025, from Insein Prison in Myanmar after more than four years of unjust detention.
Sithu Aung Myint was arrested on August 15, 2021, on charges of incitement and defaming the armed forces and state. Afterwards, the military increased his imprisonment multiple times. On October 6, 2022, he was sentenced to three years in prison with hard labor. Then, in December 2022, a special court in Yangon’s Insein Prison sentenced Myint to seven years in prison. This brought his total sentence to 12 years in prison.
Sithu Aung Myint, who began working for VOA in 2014, is well known in Myanmar for his outstanding reporting on government, business and social issues. VOA staff stand with Sithu Aung Myint and all the other journalists who have been unfairly detained for carrying out their duties to provide accurate information to the public and protecting the cornerstone of democracy. We deeply admire his resilience, courage and dedication.
VOA and sister networks still have nine colleagues jailed overseas, including VOA contributors Ulviyya Guliyeva in Azerbaijan and Pham Chi Dung in Vietnam. We will not forget them and call on the U.S. government to do everything in its power to obtain the release of our colleagues.
I am so grateful for Sithu’s release and pray for all those still unlawfully imprisoned. Thank you to our colleagues, especially in the VOA Burmese Service, for their efforts on behalf of Sithu Aung Myint.
With the government shutdown over, the clock has started ticking again for USAGM and its effective head, Kari Lake, to respond to Judge Royce Lamberth’s September 29 order demanding they comply with his April preliminary injunction to restore VOA programming and fulfill its statutory mandate.
That order halted Lake’s mass layoffs of journalists and staff, which had been scheduled to take effect on September 30.
— Patsy Widakuswara, Jessica Jerreat and Kate Neeper
We are extremely gratified by Judge Lamberth’s order suspending the RIF process, which means our termination will not take effect on September 30.
We believe the wholesale silencing of VOA broadcasts and the removal of critical staff and expertise go against what Congress intended. Our colleagues and our lawyers look forward to further proceedings before Judge Lamberth.
— Patsy Widakuswara, Jessica Jerreat and Kate Neeper
Plaintiffs’ described a “good day” in court Monday listening to oral arguments at the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit. A three judge panel is deciding whether to uphold Judge Royce Lamberth’s April preliminary injunction to restore the jobs of employees and contractors. “Two of [the judges] were really active, asking lots of questions,” co-plaintiff Kate Neeper said. Lead plaintiff Patsy Widakuswara said, “We know this is going to be a long and slow process, but I personally feel good about what happened today.”
On the evening of Aug. 29, Kari Lake announced that USAGM has initiated a “large number” of reduction in force notices, giving our colleagues 30 days until our pay and benefits end. This, despite Judge Royce Lamberth of the Washington, DC District Court ruling just days earlier that Lake was “verging on contempt” for ignoring his orders to inform the court of USAGM’s plans regarding VOA and ordering her deposed in the coming weeks. He also ruled that Lake’s attempted termination of our director Mike Abramowitz was illegal.
We find Lake’s continued attacks on our agency abhorrent. We are looking forward to her deposition to hear whether her plan to dismantle VOA was done with the rigorous review process that Congress requires. So far we have not seen any evidence of that, and as such we will continue to fight for what we believe to be our rights under the law.
— Patsy Widakuswara, Jessica Jerreat and Kate Neeper
The named plaintiffs in Widakuswara v. Lake speak at a press conference on Monday after a hearing at the U.S. District Court in Washington.
Judge Royce Lamberth said Lake is “on the verge of contempt” and “clearly hasn’t complied with my order” to restore VOA programming to fulfill its statutory obligations.
“Why is she stonewalling me?” the judge asked a government lawyer, referring to the lack of information Lake has provided to the court despite repeated requests.
This filing offers nothing new of substance in response to the court’s very clear directives. The only new information is a plan to partner with another partisan media outlet, Newsmax. That is contrary to the law and VOA’s mandate to serve as a reliable and authoritative source of news. We will continue to seek VOA’s full restoration to its Congressionally-mandated role.
— Patsy Widakuswara, Jessica Jerreat and Kate Neeper
Judge Lamberth’s order perfectly sums up the frustration we have felt since the government blocked us from doing our Congressionally-mandated independent journalism and kept us in the dark about their plans for VOA. We hope they follow the court’s order for clear answers. Our colleagues, global audiences and the American taxpayers deserve nothing less.
— Patsy Widakuswara, Jessica Jerreat and Kate Neeper
Kari Lake’s decision to publish White House handout material without providing context or balance brings VOA a step closer towards becoming nothing but the administration’s mouthpiece. It is a betrayal of our legally mandated editorial independence and an insult to the journalistic integrity of those of us who covered U.S. administrations since our inception in 1942.
— Patsy Widakuswara, lead plaintiff in Widakuswara v. Lake
This content violates VOA’s charter and AI policies in the following ways:
When covering America, VOA is required by law — its founding charter — to “represent America, not any single segment of American society, and will therefore present a balanced and comprehensive projection of significant American thought and institutions.”
Taking handout video from the White House and publishing it directly violates this law governing all VOA editorial content. Only the White House’s perspective is represented.
The “Founders” series that Ms. Lake discusses also violates the VOA charter for the same reason. It also contains content generated by AI, a violation of VOA’s own AI policy issued in 2023:
“VOA journalists may use generative AI for basic research, for developing story ideas
or for reviewing reports for grammar, style, etc. But AI should not be used to write scripts or articles; passing off such material as a reporter’s original work is plagiarism. Such conduct is subject to disciplinary action up to and including removal.
“AI also may be used for voicing scripts, so long as a human being retains full control over the journalistic content. Furthermore, synthetic voices should never be used to impersonate or duplicate any individuals, including agency employees or public figures. This includes AI-generated content using an individual’s or employee’s likeness, image, and character.
“As for AI-generated images, VOA journalists may use these only when the image is itself the subject of the story, such as debunking fakes. Otherwise, VOA does not permit using them. AI generates images from archives of artists, illustrators and photographers, whose work often is protected by copyright.”
— Barry Newhouse, Acting Director of the VOA News Center
VOA built its reputation on facts, independence, and objectivity. Unfortunately lies and distortion are being used to dismantle it. Despite the many falsehoods aired today, we were encouraged by the many members of Congress who highlighted VOA’s successes and its important role in countering adversarial propaganda. We are counting on bipartisan support to save this American institution of independent journalism trusted by hundreds of millions around the world.
— Patsy Widakuswara, Jessica Jerreat and Kate Neeper, plaintiffs of Widakuswara v. Lake
The named plaintiffs in Widakuswara v. Lake speak at a press conference on Monday after a hearing at the U.S. District Court in Washington. Their lawyers argued that the government has not been complying with District Judge Royce Lamberth’s order to preserve VOA.
The judge gave the administration until Friday to explain its actions at VOA. “What would be the purpose of Voice of America if there was no voice?” Lamberth asked the government lawyers during the hearing.
USAGM has launched its mass layoff of VOA and USAGM staff, including some of our Persian colleagues they called back to work just last week to cover Israel’s war with Iran. Their last day on the payroll will be September 1, Labor Day.
This move follows USAGM’s firing of more than 500 contractors last month. It spells the death of 83 years of independent journalism that upholds U.S. ideals of democracy and freedom around the world.
As our legal team fights for our rights under the law, we call on Congress to continue its long tradition of bipartisan support for VOA. Moscow, Beijing, Tehran and extremist groups are flooding the global information space with anti-American propaganda. Do not cede this ground by silencing America’s voice.
— Patsy Widakuswara, Jessica Jerreat and Kate Neeper
