In Latest Legal Win, US District Court Orders USAGM to Release RFE/RL Funding for June
(WASHINGTON ) — Judge Royce Lamberth of the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia has once again granted Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty (RFE/RL)’s request for a temporary restraining order in its lawsuit against the U.S. Agency for Global Media (USAGM).
In his ruling, the judge ordered USAGM to immediately disburse RFE/RL’s congressionally appropriated funds for the month of June, concluding that USAGM “has no intention of negotiating with RFE/RL or ever distributing the congressionally appropriated funds absent court intervention.”
The ruling comes as RFE/RL marks the 75th anniversary of its first test broadcast to audiences behind the Iron Curtain in Czechoslovakia on July 4, 1950.
RFE/RL President and CEO Stephen Capus said:
“This ruling is the latest in a series of significant legal victories compelling USAGM to release funding necessary for our vital work. RFE/RL’s value has been proven time and again throughout its 75-year history, most recently during the latest crisis in the Middle East, when millions of Iranians flocked to our timely, accurate coverage as hostilities erupted in the region, bypassing Tehran’s state-sponsored propaganda.
We remain ready as ever to enter into direct and constructive discussions with USAGM leadership to ensure that RFE/RL can continue to carry out its congressionally mandated mission.”
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Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty (RFE/RL) is a private, independent international news organization whose programs — digital, television, and radio — reach a weekly audience of more than 47 million people in 23 countries.