Michael Abramowitz takes the helm as new VOA Director

Michael Abramowitz, a prominent journalist and former president of Freedom House, was sworn in on June 24 as the 31st Director of the Voice of America.

“For more than 80 years, the Voice of America has delivered trusted news and information to the world, especially for those living in closed societies and who have no other access to the truth,” Abramowitz said. “This role could not be more important in an age when authoritarian regimes are spreading lies and propaganda with abandon. I look forward to working with VOA’s outstanding journalists and staff in fulfilling its unique mission.”

Abramowitz is an experienced, skilled and respected journalist who most recently served as president of Freedom House, a Washington, D.C.-based non-profit organization providing research and analysis, advocacy, and direct support to journalists and human rights defenders. He previously directed the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum’s Levine Institute for Holocaust Education and led the museum’s genocide prevention efforts.

For nearly 25 years, Abramowitz worked at The Washington Post, rising to national editor and then White House correspondent. At the Post, he won the Aldo Beckman award for excellence in White House coverage and led a team that won the Pulitzer Prize for national reporting about the post 9-11 war on terrorism.

A graduate of Harvard College, Abramowitz is a member of the Council on Foreign Relations and the George W. Bush Institute Advisory Council. He was formerly a Marshall Memorial fellow at the German Marshall Fund and Berlin Prize Fellow at the American Academy in Berlin.

“Michael is a brilliant journalist, who is fiercely passionate about VOA’s mission – which is telling audiences the truth.” said USAGM CEO Amanda Bennett. “I can’t wait to see how his contagious energy and enthusiasm powers this team. I am excited for his leadership, and incredibly grateful to John Lippman and Yolanda Lopez for their service in the interim.”

VOA’s Acting Director of Programming, John Lippman, served as Acting VOA Director since October 2023. Previous VOA Acting Director Yolanda Lopez served from January 2021 until September 2023.

[Source: VOA press release]