Short answers, pulled from the story.
Voice of America was founded on the 1st of February, 1942, when its first broadcast was transmitted to Germany from 270 Madison Avenue in New York City. The name "The Voice of America" was coined by playwright Robert E. Sherwood, who served as President Roosevelt's speech writer and information advisor.
As of 2022, Voice of America broadcast in 48 languages for affiliate stations around the world. After the March 2025 shutdown, broadcasting was reduced to only four languages - Persian, Mandarin, Dari, and Pashto - down from 49 languages that previously reached 360 million people daily.
The Voice of America firewall refers to two laws that protect its editorial independence: the 1976 VOA Charter, which mandates reporting be "accurate, objective, and comprehensive", and the 1994 U.S. International Broadcasting Act, which prohibits editorial interference by government officials. The agency uses these laws as a legal shield against political influence.
On the 14th of March, 2025, Trump signed an executive order labeling the agency "the Voice of Radical America" and reducing its functions to the statutory minimum, placing more than 1,300 employees on administrative leave. By June 2025, layoff notices had been sent to 639 employees, completing an 85% reduction in USAGM staff. On the 7th of March, 2026, a federal judge ruled Trump's appointment of Kari Lake to lead the agency was illegal, nullifying the mass layoffs.
The Voice of America Jazz Hour broadcast American jazz from 1955 until 2003. Hosted for most of that period by Willis Conover, the program drew 30 million listeners at its peak. It was broadcast in association with State Department-sponsored tours by musicians including Dizzy Gillespie, Louis Armstrong, and Duke Ellington.
As of 2022, Voice of America had a weekly worldwide audience of approximately 326 million, up from 237 million in 2016. It employed 961 staff and operated on an annual budget of $267.5 million.