[Salon] US scrambles to bring back VOA’s Persian service amid Iran-Israel conflict

[Chas Freeman <cwfresidence@gmail.com>]

US scrambles to bring back VOA’s Persian service amid Iran-Israel conflict

President Donald Trump ordered the service to shut down in March.

Voice of America headquarters is seen in Washington on Feb. 14. | Francis Chung/POLITICO

By Ben Johansen

06/13/2025   https://www.politico.com/news/2025/06/13/voa-persian-service-iran-israel-00406092?_hsenc=p2ANqtz--u1kur251hlPbL8zBR6Ap2awx4hi9IE79NtisMkdVzPbbW1eFCSV_U65vvp6kbDY0Or-JtgbyfpF4d7KFcK8DnUYZSEA&_hsmi=366895183

Employees of Voice of America’s Persian-language service who were sidelined by the Trump administration have been hastily called back to duty as Iran and Israel exchange missile strikes in a high-stakes Middle East conflict.

The U.S. Agency for Global Media told employees placed on administrative leave to immediately return to their roles providing counter-programming to Iranian state media as the conflict between the two nations escalated Friday, according to an email seen by POLITICO and three people familiar with the situation.

“Effective immediately, you are recalled from administrative leave,” said the email from USAGM’s human resources department. “You are expected to report to your duty station immediately.”

There are 75 full time employees within VOA’s Persian wing — the language predominantly spoken in Iran — and it’s believed most, if not all, have now been brought back after being put on administrative leave for three months.

VOA’s Persian service had been shut down as a part of President Donald Trump’s March 15 executive order dismantling U.S.-backed global media, which included VOA, among other outlets. Since, the embattled network has been rattled with court orders — and discussions of company-wide reductions-in-force. In the last several weeks, RIFs have begun going out to employees in small doses.

Patsy Widakuswara, one of the lead plaintiffs in VOA’s lawsuit against the Trump administration, said this move is a perfect example of why the entirety of VOA should be brought back.

“After months off the air, we’ve already lost a lot of audience and credibility,” said Widakuswara, the VOA White House bureau chief. “They should bring us all back so we can respond to breaking news in all parts of the world.”

The abrupt decision to recall employees of the Persian service occurs as the conflict appears to be escalating following the overnight strike on Iran directed by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and the Iranian response. VOA would typically heavily rely on contractors for this coverage — but last month the administration terminated a large swath of them.

“It just shows how idiotic they are, consistent with this firing and rehiring pattern that has cost Americans who knows how many millions of dollars,” one VOA employee on administrative leave, said on condition of anonymity to speak candidly. “This is the real fraud, waste and abuse.”