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Voice of America (VOA), is the official external radio and television broadcasting service of the United States federal government. This article is about radio broadcasting for other uses see Radio (disambiguation. For the band see Broadcast (band Broadcasting is the distribution of audio and/or Video signals which transmit The federal government of the United States is the central United States Governmental body established by the United States Constitution. Its oversight entity is the Broadcasting Board of Governors (BBG). The Broadcasting Board of Governors (BBG is an independent agency of the United States government responsible for all non-military international broadcasting sponsored by the

VOA broadcasts by satellite and on FM, AM, and shortwave radio frequencies. It is also available through the Internet in both streaming media and downloadable formats at VOANews. com. VOA has affiliate and contract agreements with many radio and television stations and cable networks worldwide.

Contents

Transmission Facilities

One of VOA's radio transmitter facilities was originally based on a 625-acre site in Union Township (now West Chester Township) in Butler County, Ohio, near Cincinnati. West Chester Township, formerly known as Union Township, is a township located in the southeast corner of Butler County in the southwestern part of Butler County is a County located in the state of Ohio, United States. The Bethany Relay Station operated from 1944 to 1994. The Voice of America 's Bethany Relay Station was located in Butler County Ohio 's Union Township about 25 miles (40 km north of Cincinnati Other former sites include California (Dixon), Hawaii, Okinawa, Liberia, Costa Rica, and Belize. California ( is a US state on the West Coast of the United States, along the Pacific Ocean. Dixon is a city in northern Solano County, California, United States, located from the state capital Sacramento. The State of Hawaii ( or həˈwaɪʔiː Hawaiian: Mokuāina o Hawaii) is a state in the United States located on an Archipelago in the is one of Japan 's southern prefectures, and consists of hundreds of the Ryukyu Islands in a chain over 1000 km long which extends southwest from Kyūshū Liberia, officially the Republic of Liberia, is a country on the west coast of Africa, bordered by Sierra Leone, Guinea, Côte d'Ivoire Costa Rica, officially the Republic of Costa Rica ( Spanish: Costa Rica or República de Costa Rica,) is a Country in Belize (bəˈliːz formerly British Honduras, is a country in Central America.

Currently, the VOA and the IBB continue to operate shortwave radio transmitters and antenna farms at two sites in the United States, located at Delano, California and Greenville, North Carolina respectively. Delano is a city in Kern County, California, United States. The population was 38824 at the 2000 census Greenville is the county seat of Pitt County and principal city of the Greenville North Carolina Metropolitan Statistical Area. The Delano site is famous among radio enthusiasts for having a rare installation of a TCI HRS 12/6/1 directional curtain array antenna. They do not use FCC issued callsigns. Other radio stations on US soil are required by FCC rules to have and use callsigns.

Languages

The Voice of America currently broadcasts in 46 languages (TV marked with an asterisk):

The number of languages broadcast and the number of hours broadcast in each language vary according to the priorities of the United States Government and the world situation. Oromo, also known as Afaan borana Oromoo, Oromiffa(a ( Ethiopic: ኦሮሚኛ and sometimes in other languages by variant spellings of these names Albanian (sq ''Gjuha shqipe'' ˈɟuha ˈʃcipɛ is an Indo-European language spoken by nearly 6 million peoplewhile others claim that it derives from Daco - Amharic (አማርኛ amarəñña) is a Semitic language spoken in North Central Ethiopia by the Amhara. The Armenian language (hy հայերեն լեզու hajɛɹɛn lɛzu —, conventional short form) is an Indo-European language spoken by the Armenian Bosnian language (Bosnian bosanski jezik) sometimes referred as Bosniak language or Bosniac language is a South Slavic language native The Burmese language (မြန်မာဘာသာ myà̃mà bàθà MLCTS: myanma bhasa) is the official Language of Burma. A creole language, or simply a creole, is a stable Language that originates seemingly as a nativized Pidgin. Croatian language ( hrvatski jezik) is a South Slavic language which is used primarily in Croatia, by Croats in Bosnia and Herzegovina in neighbouring English is a West Germanic language originating in England and is the First language for most people in the United Kingdom, the United States Special English is a simplified version of the English language first used on October 19, 1959 and presently employed by the United States French ( français,) is a Romance language spoken around the world by 118 million people as a native language and by about 180 to 260 million people Georgian (ka ქართული ენა kartuli ena) is the Official language of Georgia, a country in the Caucasus. Greek (el ελληνική γλώσσα or simply el ελληνικά — "Hellenic" is an Indo-European language, spoken today by 15-22 million people mainly Hausa is the Chadic language with the largest number of speakers spoken as a first Language by about 24 million people and as a second language by about 15 Hindi ( Devanāgarī: hi [[wiktहिन्दी हिन्दी]] or hi [[wiktहिंदी हिंदी]] IAST:, IPA:) is Indonesian or Bahasa Indonesia, based on the Riau version of Malay language, was declared the official language with the declaration of Khmer (ភាសាខ្មែរ or Cambodian, is the language of the Khmer people and the official language of Cambodia. Kinyarwanda (also known simply as Rwanda) is a Bantu language spoken primarily in Rwanda, where it is one of the Official languages of the Kirundi (also written Rundi) is a Bantu language (D62 in Guthrie 's classification spoken by some 6 million people in Burundi and adjacent This article is mainly about the spoken Korean language See Hangul for details on the native Korean writing system The Kurdish language (Kurdish Kurdî or کوردی is a term used for the language spoken by Kurds. Lao or Laotian (BGN/PCGN phasa lao IPA: pʰaːsaː laːw is a Tonal Language of the Tai-Kadai language family Macedonian () is the official Language of the Republic of Macedonia and is a part of the Eastern group of South Slavic languages. Pashto ( Naskh: پښتو‎ pəʂ'to also rendered as Pakhto, Pushto, Pukhto, Pashtu, Pushtu, also known as Portuguese ( or língua portuguesa) is a Romance language that originated in what is now Galicia (Spain and northern Portugal. Russian ( transliteration:,) is the most geographically widespread language of Eurasia, the most widely spoken of the Slavic languages Serbian (sr-Cyrl српски језик sr-Latn ''srpski jezik'' is a South Slavic language, Shona (or chiShona is a Bantu language, native to the Shona people of Zimbabwe and southern Zambia; the term is also used to identify peoples Somali ( Af Soomaali, الصوماليه is a member of the East Cushitic branch of the Afro-Asiatic language family spoken by ethnic Somalis Swahili (called Kiswahili in the language itself is the First language of the Swahili people (Waswahili who inhabit several large stretches Tagalog is one of the major languages used in the Philippines. Thai (th ภาษาไทย, transcription: phasa thai, transliteration:; pʰāːsǎːtʰāj is the national and Tibetan refers to a group of languages spoken primarily by Tibetan peoples who live across a wide area of eastern Central Asia bordering South Asia as well as by overseas Tigrinya ( Ge'ez: ትግርኛ tigriññā) also spelled Tigrigna, Tigrina, less commonly Tigrinian, Tigrinyan, is Turkish ( tr Türkçe IPA) is a language spoken by over 63 million people worldwide making it the most commonly spoken of the Turkic languages. Ukrainian (in Ukrainian украї́нська мо́ва ukrayins'ka mova,) is a language of the East Slavic subgroup of the Slavic languages. Urdu ( ur '''{{Nastaliq اردو}}''' trans Urdū, historically spelled Ordu) is a Central Indo-Aryan language Urdu is a standardised Uzbek ( O‘zbek tili or O'zbekcha in Latin script, Ўзбек тили in Cyrillic script; أۇزبېك ﺗﻴﻠی in Arabic Vietnamese ( tiếng Việt, or less commonly Việt ngữ) formerly known under French colonization as Annamese ( see Annam) In 2001, according to an International Broadcasting Bureau (IBB) fact sheet, VOA broadcast in 53 languages, with 12 televised. [1] For example, in July 2007, VOA added 30 minutes to its daily Somali radio broadcast, providing a full hour of live, up-to-the-minute news and information to listeners. [2]

Overview

The Voice of America has been a part of several agencies:

From 1942 to 1945, it was part of the Office of War Information, and then from 1945 to 1953 as a function of the State Department. The United States Office of War Information (OWI was a US government agency created during World War II to consolidate government information services The VOA was placed under the U.S. Information Agency in 1953. The United States Information Agency ( USIA) which existed from 1953 to 1999 was a United States agency devoted to Public diplomacy. When the USIA was abolished in 1999, the VOA was placed under the Broadcasting Board of Directors, which is an autonomous U. S. government agency, with bipartisan membership. The Secretary of State has a seat on the BBG. [3].

VOA's parent organization is the presidentially-appointed Broadcasting Board of Governors (BBG). The Broadcasting Board of Governors (BBG is an independent agency of the United States government responsible for all non-military international broadcasting sponsored by the The BBG was established as a buffer to protect VOA and other U. S. -sponsored, non-military, international broadcasters from political interference.

History

American private shortwave broadcasting before World War II

Before the Second World War, all American shortwave stations were in private hands. [4]. The National Broadcasting Company's International, or White Network, which broadcast in six languages,[5] the Columbia Broadcasting System, whose Latin American international network consisted of sixty-four stations located in eighteen different countries, [6] as well as the Crosley Company in Cincinnati, Ohio, had shortwave transmitters. The National Broadcasting Company ( NBC) is an American Television network headquartered in the GE Building in New York City's CBS Broadcasting Inc ( CBS) is an American radio and Television network. Experimental programming began in the 1930s. There were less than 12 transmitters, however. [7]

In 1939, the Federal Communications Commission set the following policy:

A license of an international broadcast station shall render only an international broadcast service which will reflect the culture of this country and which will promote international goodwill, understanding and cooperation. Any program solely intended for, and directed to an audience in the continental United States does not meet the requirements for this service. [8]

Washington observers felt this policy was to enforce the State Department's Good Neighbor Policy but many broadcasters felt that this was an attempt to direct censorship. The "Good Neighbor" policy was the Foreign policy of the administration of United States president Franklin D [9]

In 1940, the Office of the Coordinator of Interamerican Affairs, a semi-independent agency of the U.S. State Department headed by Nelson Rockefeller, began operations. Nelson Aldrich Rockefeller ( July 8, 1908 January 26, 1979) was the forty-first Vice President of the United States, the forty-ninth Shortwave signals to Latin America were regarded as vital to counter Nazi propaganda. Nazi propaganda is the term that describes the psychologically powerful Propaganda within Nazi Germany, much of which was centered around Jews consistently [10] Initially, the Office of Coordination of Information sent releases to each station, but this was seen as an inefficient means of transmitting news. [11].

World War II: VOA Begins

In January, 1942[12] , the U. S. government leased 15-minute blocks of time on each station, calling the program "The Voice of America," which included the Yankee Doodle interval signal. " Yankee Doodle " is a well-known US song, often sung Patriotically today [13].

VOA was organized in 1942 under the Office of War Information with news programs aimed at areas in Japan and the south Pacific and in Europe and North Africa under the occupation of Nazi Germany. The United States Office of War Information (OWI was a US government agency created during World War II to consolidate government information services For a topic outline on this subject see List of basic Japan topics. The Pacific Ocean theater was one of four major naval theatres of war of the Second World War that pitted forces of the Japan against those of the United North Africa or Northern Africa is the Northernmost Region of the African Continent, separated by the Sahara from Sub-Saharan Belligerent military occupation occurs when the control and authority over a territory passes to a hostile army. Nazi Germany and the Third Reich are the common English names for Germany under the regime of Adolf Hitler and the National Socialist German Workers VOA began broadcasting on February 24, 1942. The initial announcement of the VOA stated, “Daily at this time, we shall speak to you about America and the war. The news may be good or bad. We shall tell you the truth. ”[14] The Office of War Information took over VOA's operations when it was formed in mid 1942. The VOA reached an agreement with the British Broadcasting Corporation to share medium-wave transmitters in Britain, and expanded into Tunis in North Africa and Palermo and Bari, Italy as the Allies captured these territories. The OWI also set up the American Broadcasting Station in Europe [15].

Asian transmissions started with one transmitter in California in 1941; services were expanded by adding transmitters in Hawaii and, after recapture, the Philippines. [16].

By the end of the war, VOA had 39 transmitters and provided service in 40 languages. [17]. Programming was broadcast from production centers in New York and San Francisco, with more than 1,000 programs originating from New York. Programming consisted of music, news, commentary, and relays of U. S. domestic programming, in addition to specialized VOA programming. [18]

About half of VOA’s services, including the Arabic service, were discontinued in 1945. [19].

The Cold War

In 1947, Voice of America started broadcasting in Russian with the intent to counter more harmful instances of Soviet propaganda directed against American leaders and policies. Russian ( transliteration:,) is the most geographically widespread language of Eurasia, the most widely spoken of the Slavic languages [20] Soviet Union responded by initiating aggressive, electronic jamming of VoA broadcasts on 24 April 1949. Events 1479 BC - Thutmose III ascends to the throne of Egypt, although power effectively shifts to Hatshepsut (according to Year 1949 ( MCMXLIX) was a Common year starting on Saturday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar. [20]

The Arabic service resumed on January 1, 1950, with a half-hour program. This program grew to 14. 5 hours daily during the Suez Crisis of 1956, and was 6 hours a day by 1958. [21].

In 1952, the Voice of America installed a studio and relay facility aboard a converted U.S. Coast Guard cutter renamed Courier whose target audience was Russia and its allies. USCGC Courier (WAGR/WAT-410 was a cutter in the United States Coast Guard. In Marketing and Advertising, a target audience, or target group is the primary group of people that something usually an Advertising campaign, is aimed The Courier was originally intended to become the first in a fleet of mobile, radio broadcasting ships (see offshore radio) that built upon U.S. Navy experience during WWII in using warships as floating broadcasting stations. Offshore radio refers to the practice of Radio broadcasting from ships or fixed maritime structures usually in International waters. However, the Courier eventually dropped anchor off the island of Rhodes, Greece with permission of the Greek government to avoid being branded as a pirate radio broadcasting ship. Rhodes ( Greek: Ρόδος - Ródos) is the principal city of the Greek island of Rhodes, in southeastern Aegean Sea and The Politics of Greece takes place in a large parliamentary representative democratic Republic, whereby the Prime Minister of Greece is the The term pirate radio usually refers to illegal or unregulated radio transmissions This VOA offshore station stayed on the air until the 1960s when facilities were eventually provided on land. The Courier supplied training to engineers who later worked on several of the European commercial offshore broadcasting stations of the 1950s and 1960s.

Control of the VOA passed from the State Department to the U.S. Information Agency when the latter was established in 1953. The United States Information Agency ( USIA) which existed from 1953 to 1999 was a United States agency devoted to Public diplomacy. [22] to transmit worldwide, including to the countries behind the Iron Curtain and to the People's Republic of China (PRC). In the 1980s, the USIA established the WORLDNET satellite television service, and in 2004 WORLDNET was merged into VOA.

During the 1950s and 1960s, VOA broadcast American jazz, which was highly popular, world wide. For example, a program aimed at South Africa in 1956 broadcast 2 hours nightly, along with special programs such as “The Newport Jazz Festival”. The Newport Jazz Festival is a music festival held every August in Newport Rhode Island, USA. This was done in association of tours by U. S. musicians, such as Dizzy Gillespie, Louis Armstrong, and Duke Ellington, sponsored by the State Department. John Birks "Dizzy" Gillespie ( October 21 1917 &ndash January 6 1993) was an American Jazz Trumpeter Louis Armstrong (August 4 1901 &ndash July 6 1971 nicknamed Satchmo or Sachimo and Pops, was an American Jazz Trumpeter Edward Kennedy "Duke" Ellington (April 29 1899 &ndash May 24 1974 was an American Composer, Pianist, and Bandleader. [23]

Throughout the Cold War, many of the targeted countries' governments sponsored jamming of VOA broadcasts, which sometimes led critics to question the broadcasts' actual impact. For example, in 1956s, Poland stopped jamming VOA, but Bulgaria continued to jam the signal through the 1970s. and Chinese-language VOA broadcasts were jammed beginning in 1956 and extending through 1976. [24] However, after the collapse of the Warsaw Pact and the Soviet Union, interviews with participants in anti-Soviet movements verified the effectiveness of VOA broadcasts in transmitting information to socialist societies. [25] The People's Republic of China diligently jams VOA broadcasts[26] (see Firedrake). Firedrake, in Teutonic Mythology, is a fire-breathing reptilian Creature, occasionally winged Cuba has also been reported to interfere with VOA satellite transmissions to Iran from its Russian-built transmission site at Bejucal. Bejucal is a municipality and city in the La Habana Province of Cuba. [27]David Jackson, director of the Voice of America, noted "The North Korean government doesn't jam us, but they try to keep people from listening through intimidation or worse. But people figure out ways to listen despite the odds. They're very resourceful. "[28]

In the 1980s, VOA also added a television service, as well as special regional programs to Cuba, Radio Martí and TV Martí. The Republic of Cuba (ˈkjuːbə or) consists of the island of Cuba (the largest and second-most populous island of the Greater Antilles) Isla de la Radio Martí is a radio and television broadcaster based in Miami Florida, financed by the United States government ( Broadcasting Board of Governors) TV Martí was created by the US government to provide news and current affairs programming to Cuba. Cuba has consistently attempted to jam such broadcasts and has vociferously protested U. S. broadcasts directed at Cuba. In 1985, VOA Europe was created as a special service in English that was relayed via satellite to AM, FM, and cable affiliates throughout Europe. With a contemporary format including live disc jockeys, the network presented top musical hits as well as VOA news and features of local interest (such as "EuroFax") 24 hours a day. VOA Europe was closed down without advance public notice (even to its own audience) in January, 1997, as a cost-cutting measure. Today, stations are offered the VOA Music Mix service.

Post Cold War (1991 – present): Changes in services

In 1994, the Voice of America became the first[29] broadcast-news organization to offer continuously updated programs on the Internet. Content in English and 44 other languages is currently available online through a distributed network of commercial providers, using more than 20,000 servers across 71 countries. Since many listeners in Africa and other areas still receive much of their information via radio and have only limited access to computers, VOA continues to maintain regular shortwave-radio broadcasts.

The Arabic Service was abolished in 2002 and replaced by a new radio service, called the Middle East Radio Network or Radio Sawa, with an initial budget of $22 million. Radio Sawa offered mostly Western and American popular music with periodic brief news bulletins.

Laws governing VOA-IBB's activities

Under United States law (Section 501 of the Smith-Mundt Act of 1948), the Voice of America is forbidden to broadcast directly to American citizens. Law is a system of rules enforced through a set of Institutions used as an instrument to underpin civil obedience politics economics and society The US Information and Educational Exchange Act of 1948 (Public Law 402 popularly referred to as the Smith-Mundt Act, specifies the terms in which the United States The original intent of this section of the legislation was to protect the American public from propaganda actions by its own government. Legislation (or " Statutory law " is law which has been promulgated (or " Enacted quot by a Legislature or other Governing

Although VOA does not broadcast domestically, Americans can access the programs through shortwave and streaming audio over the Internet. Shortwave Radio operates between the frequencies of 3000 KHz (3 Internet radio (also known as web radio, net radio, streaming radio and e-radio) is an audio Broadcasting service transmitted via

Internal policies

The VOA Charter

Under the Eisenhower administration in 1959, VOA Director Harry Loomis commissioned a formal statement of principles to protect the integrity of VOA programming and define the organization's mission, This principle was issued by Director George V. Allen as a directive in 1960 and was endorsed in 1962 by USIA director Edward R. Murrow[30]. George Venable Allen ( November 3 1903 – July 11 1970) was a United States Diplomat. Edward R Murrow (born Egbert Roscoe Murrow; April 25 1908 &ndash April 27 1965) was an American journalist On July 12, 1976, the principles were signed into law on July 12, 1976, by President Gerald Ford. Gerald Rudolph Ford Jr (July 14 1913 December 26 2006 was the thirty-eighth President of the United States, serving from 1974 to 1977 and the fortieth Vice President It reads:

The long-range interests of the United States are served by communicating directly with the peoples of the world by radio. To be effective, the Voice of America must win the attention and respect of listeners. These principles will therefore govern Voice of America (VOA) broadcasts. 1. VOA will serve as a consistently reliable and authoritative source of news. VOA news will be accurate, objective, and comprehensive. 2. VOA will represent America, not any single segment of American society, and will therefore present a balanced and comprehensive projection of significant American thought and institutions. 3. VOA will present the policies of the United States clearly and effectively, and will also present responsible discussions and opinion on these policies.

"Two-Source Rule"

An internal policy of VOA News to build reliability is that any story broadcast must have two independently corroborating sources or have a staff correspondent actually witnessing an event, according to former VOA correspondent Alan Heil. [31] This rule was confirmed by Ted Iliff, Associate Director for Central Programming for VOA. [32]

Broadcasting Board of Governors services

The Broadcasting Board of Governors (BBG), a bipartisan panel of eight private citizens appointed by the President of the United States and confirmed by the U. The President of the United States is the Head of state and Head of government of the United States and is the highest political official in United States by S. Senate (the U.S. Secretary of State is an ex officio member of the Board), is the oversight body for official U. The United States Secretary of State (commonly abbreviated as SecState) is the head of the United States Department of State, concerned with Foreign affairs A B S. international broadcasts by both federal agencies and government-funded corporations. International broadcasting is Broadcasting that is deliberately aimed at a foreign rather than a domestic audience In addition to VOA, these include the Office of Cuba Broadcasting (OCB, which includes Radio and TV Marti) and grantee corporations: the Middle East Broadcasting Network (MBN, which includes Radio Sawa and Al Hurra television in Arabic); Radio Farda (in Persian) for Iran; Radio Free Europe / Radio Liberty and Radio Free Asia, which are aimed at the ex-communist states and countries under oppressive regimes in Asia. Radio Sawa is an Arabic language radio station funded by the United States government. Alhurra ( Arabic: الحرّة strict transliteration al-Ḥurra ɛ̈l ħʊrrɛ̈ "The Free One" is a United States -based satellite TV Arabic (ar الْعَرَبيّة (informally ar عَرَبيْ) in terms of the number of speakers is the largest living member of the Semitic language Radio Farda is a Persian language Radio station based in Prague and Washington D For a topic outline on this subject see List of basic Iran topics. This article is about the radio broadcast service For the REM Radio Free Asia (RFA is a private radio station funded by the United States Congress that broadcasts in nine Asian languages Communist state is a term used by many Political scientists to describe a Form of government in which the State operates under a one-party system In recent years, VOA has expanded its television coverage to many areas of the world.

Many Voice of America announcers, such as Willis Conover, host of Jazz USA, Pat Gates, host of the Breakfast Show in the 1980s, and Judy Massa became worldwide celebrities, although not in the United States. Willis Conover ( October 18, 1920 &ndash May 17, 1996) was a Jazz producer and broadcaster on the Voice of America A celebrity is a widely-recognized or famous person who commands a high degree of public and media attention

The Voice of America headquarters is located at 330 Independence Avenue SW, Washington, DC, 20237, USA. Independence Avenue may refer to Independence Avenue (Washington D Washington DC ( formally the District of Columbia and commonly referred to as Washington, the District, or simply D

Urdu Service

The Voice of America program Beyond the Headlines is telecast in Pakistan by GEO TV, VOA's affiliate and one of the country's most popular stations. Pakistan () officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan, is a country located in South Asia, Southwest Asia, Middle East and Geo TV or GEO Television is a Pakistani Television network founded by Mir Shakil ur Rehman in May 2002 This half-hour program features reports on politics, social issues, science, sports, culture, entertainment, and other issues of interest to Pakistanis.

Comparing VOA-RFE-RL-RM to other broadcasters

In 1996, the USA's international radio output consisted of 992 hours per week by VOA, 667 hpw by RFE/RL, and 162 hpw by Radio Marti.

Estimated total direct programme hours per week of some external radio broadcasters
Broadcaster 1950 1960 1970 1980 1990 1996[1]
Flag of the United States VOA, RFE/RL & Radio Marti 497 1,495 1,907 1,901 2,611 1,821
Flag of the People's Republic of China China Radio International 66 687 1,267 1,350 1,515 1,620
Flag of the United Kingdom BBC World Service 643 589 723 719 796 1,036
Flag of Russia Radio Moscow / Voice of Russia[2] 533 1,015 1,908 2,094 1,876 726
Flag of Germany Deutsche Welle 0 315 779 804 848 655
Flag of Egypt Radio Cairo / ERTU 0 301 540 546 605 604
Flag of Iran Islamic Republic of Iran Broadcasting 12 24 155 175 400 575
Flag of India All India Radio 116 157 271 389 456 500
Flag of Japan NHK World Radio Japan 0 203 259 259 343 468
Flag of France Radio France Internationale 198 326 200 125 379 459
Flag of the Netherlands Radio Netherlands 127 178 335 289 323 392
Flag of Israel Israel Radio International 0 91 158 210 253 365
Flag of Turkey Voice of Turkey 40 77 88 199 322 364
Flag of North Korea Radio Pyongyang / Voice of Korea 0 159 330 597 534 364
Flag of Bulgaria Radio Bulgaria 30 117 164 236 320 338
Flag of Australia Radio Australia 181 257 350 333 330 307
Flag of Albania Radio Tirana 26 63 487 560 451 303
Flag of Romania Radio Romania International 30 159 185 198 199 298
Flag of Spain Radio Exterior de España 68 202 251 239 403 270
Flag of Portugal Radiodifusão Portuguesa Internacional 46 133 295 214 203 226
Flag of Cuba Radio Havana Cuba 0 0 320 424 352 203
Flag of Italy Radio RAI International 170 205 165 169 181 203
Flag of Canada Radio Canada International 85 80 98 134 195 175
Flag of Poland Radio Polonia 131 232 334 337 292 171
Flag of South Africa Radio RSA / Channel Africa 0 63 150 183 156 159
Flag of Sweden Sveriges Radio International 28 114 140 155 167 149
Flag of Hungary Magyar Rádió 76 120 105 127 102 144
Flag of the Czech Republic Radio Prague[3] 119 196 202 255 131 131
Flag of Nigeria Voice of Nigeria[4] 0 0 62 170 120 127
Flag of Yugoslavia Radio Belgrade 80 70 76 72 96 68

Source: International Broadcast Audience Research, June 1996

The list includes about a quarter of the world's external broadcasters whose output is both publicly funded and worldwide. This article is about the radio broadcast service For the REM Radio Martí is a radio and television broadcaster based in Miami Florida, financed by the United States government ( Broadcasting Board of Governors) China Radio International (CRI, (Chinese 中国国际广播电台 Pinyin Zhōng Guó Guó Jì Guǎng Bō Diàn Tái the former Radio Beijing and originally Radio Voice of Russia is the Russian government's international radio broadcasting service owned by the All-Russia State Television and Radio Company. Deutsche Welle ('Welle' pronounced with a 'v' sound IPA /'vɛlə/ or DW, is Germany's international broadcaster. Islamic Republic of Iran Broadcasting, or IRIB, ( Persian سازمان صدا و سيمای جمهوری اسلامی ايران Sāzmān-e Sedā va Sima-ye Jomhūrī-ye All India Radio (abbreviated as AIR) officially known as Akashvani ( Devanagari: आकाशवाणी ākāshavānī ( Urdu: اکاشوانی NHK World is the international broadcasting service of NHK (Nippon Hōsō Kyōkai or Japan Broadcasting Corporation Japan's public broadcaster. Radio France Internationale (RFI was created in 1975 as part of Radio France by the Government of France to serve as a broadcast vehicle for French Equatorial Radio Netherlands Worldwide ( RNW, short for Radio Nederland Wereldomroep in Dutch) is a public Radio and Television network based Israel Radio International (קול ישראל Kol Yisrael is the official International broadcasting station of Israel. Voice of Turkey ( Turkish: Türkiye'nin Sesi Radyosu) is the international service of Turkish state radio on Shortwave. Voice of Korea ( Korean: 조선의 소리 is the International broadcasting service of North Korea. The Radio Bulgaria ( Bulgarian: Радио България Radio Balgariya; BNR) is the official International broadcasting station of ABC Radio Australia is the international broadcasting and online service operated by the Australian Broadcasting Corporation, Australia 's public broadcaster Radio Televizioni Shqiptar (RTSH translated in English as Albanian Radio and Television (ART is the public broadcaster in Albania, founded in 1938 and Radio România Internaţional ( Romanian: Radio România Internaţional, or RRI) is a Romanian radio station owned by the Romanian public es Radio Nacional de España (RNE (National Radio of Spain is Spain 's national public radio service Rádio e Televisão de Portugal SA, commonly known as RTP and Rádio e Televisão de Portugal ( Portuguese for "Radio and Television of Portugal" Radio Havana Cuba ( Spanish: Radio Habana Cuba, RHC) is the official government-run International broadcasting station of Cuba Radio Canada International ( RCI) is the International broadcasting service of the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (CBC Polish Radio External Service (till January 2007 as Radio Polonia) (Polskie Radio dla Zagranicy is the official International broadcasting station of Poland Radio RSA The Voice of South Africa was the International broadcasting service of the Republic of South Africa. Channel Africa is the International broadcasting service of the South African Broadcasting Corporation. SR International - Radio Sweden ( Swedish: Sveriges Radio International) is the official International broadcasting station of Sweden. Magyar Rádió ( MR, The Hungarian Radio Corporation, also known internationally as Radio Budapest) is Hungary 's publicly funded radio broadcasting Radio Prague (Český rozhlas 7 - Radio Praha is the official International broadcasting station of the Czech Republic. The Voice of Nigeria (VON is the official International broadcasting station of Nigeria. Radio Belgrade ( Радио Београд / Radio Beograd) is a state-owned and operated radio station in Belgrade, Serbia. Among those excluded are Taiwan, Vietnam, South Korea and various international commercial and religious stations.

Notes:

  1. 1996 figures as at June; all other years as at December.
  2. Before 1991, broadcasting for the former USSR.
  3. Before 1996, broadcasting for the former Czechoslovakia.
  4. Nigeria's external service is now off air.

Programming

Voice of America's central newsroom has hundreds of journalists and dozens of full-time domestic and overseas correspondents, who are employees of the U. S. government or paid contractors. They are augmented by hundreds of contract correspondents and part-time "stringers" throughout the world, who file in English or in one of the VOA's 44 other radio broadcast languages, 25 of which are also broadcast on television. A part-time job carries fewer hours per week than a Full-time job and usually pays less than a full-time job

In late 2005, VOA shifted some of its central-news operation to Hong Kong where contracted writers work from a "virtual" office with counterparts on the overnight shift in Washington, D. C. But this operation was shut down in early 2008.

Many of the radio and television broadcasts are available through VOA's website at www. VOANews. com.

Controversy

National sovereignty

The Cuban government and allied critics have suggested that the U. S. government violates national sovereignty by broadcasting and operating in their countries. Sovereignty is the exclusive Right to control a Government, a country, a people or oneself [33] This argument has been used to justify open attempts, by the Cuban government, to jam VOA broadcasts,[34][35][36] as well as respond with equally powerful shortwave transmissions of English-language political broadcasts and communiques directed at the United States. Time interval signals identical to those used by Radio Havana Cuba have also been detected in coded numbers station broadcasts that are allegedly linked to espionage activity in the U. Radio Havana Cuba ( Spanish: Radio Habana Cuba, RHC) is the official government-run International broadcasting station of Cuba Numbers stations are Shortwave radio stations of uncertain origin S. [37]

Paying for appearances

Recently, news media have reported that VOA has for years been paying mainstream media journalists to appear on VOA shows. "Popular press" redirects here note that the University of Wisconsin Press publishes under the imprint "The Popular Press" According to El Nuevo Herald and the Miami Herald, these include: David Lightman, the Hartford Courant's Washington bureau chief; Tom DeFrank, head of the New York Daily News' Washington office; Helle Dale, a former director of the opinion pages of the Washington Times; and Georgie Anne Geyer, a nationally syndicated columnist. El Nuevo Herald is a McClatchy Newspaper published daily in Spanish in Miami Florida, in the United States. The Miami Herald is a daily Newspaper owned by The McClatchy Company headquartered in Downtown Miami Florida. The Washington Times is a daily Broadsheet Newspaper published in Washington D Georgie Anne Geyer (born April 2 1935) is an American Journalist and Columnist for the Universal Press Syndicate. Inccom defines a syndicated columnist as " person hired by publications or broadcast organizations to produce written or spoken commentary about specific feature subjects [38]

In response, spokesmen for the Broadcasting Board of Governors told the newspaper El Nuevo Herald that such payments do not pose a conflict of interest. A conflict of interest is a situation in which someone in a position of trust such as a Lawyer, Insurance adjuster, a Politician, executive or director "For decades, for many years, some of the most respectable journalists in the country have received payments to participate in programs of the Voice of America," one of the spokesmen, Larry Hart, told El Nuevo Herald. [38]

Mullah Omar interview

In late September 2001, VOA aired a report that contained brief excerpts of an interview with then Taliban leader Mullah Omar Mohammad, along with segments from President Bush's post-9/11 speech to Congress, an expert in Islam from Georgetown University, and comments by the foreign minister of Afghanistan's anti-Taliban Northern Alliance. The Taliban ( طالبان, also anglicised as Taleban; translation "students" is a Sunni Islamist, predominately Mullah Mohammed Omar ( Pashto: ملا محمد عمر (born c State Department officials including Richard Armitage and others argued that the report amounted to giving terrorists a platform to express their views. Richard Armitage may refer to Richard Armitage (actor, English actor Richard Armitage (politician, American politician In response, reporters and editors argued for VOA's editorial independence from its governors. Editorial independence is the freedom of editors to make decisions without interference from the owners of a publication The VOA received praise from press organizations for its protests, and the following year in 2002, it won the University of Oregon's Payne Award for Ethics in Journalism. The Payne Awards for Ethics in Journalism were created at the University of Oregon 's School of Journalism & Communications in 1999

Abdul Malik Rigi interview

On April 2, 2007, Abdul Malik Rigi, the head of Jundullah, a group identified internationally as a "terrorist organization" linked to al-Qaida appeared on Voice of America. Events 68 - Galba, Governor of Hispania, names himself legatus senatus populique Romani, breaking the line of Year 2007 ( MMVII) was a Common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar in the 21st century. Abdolmalek Rigi (also spelt Abdul-Malek Rigi or Emir Abdulmalik Rigi) ( Persian: عبدالمالک ریگی) is the leader of Jundallah Jundallah ( Army of Allah) ( Arabic: جندالله) (also known as Iranian People's Resistance Movement) is a terrorist Sunni Islamic Many organizations that are accused of being a terrorist organization deny using Terrorism as a Military tactic to achieve their goals and there is no international Al-Qaeda, alternatively spelled al-Qaida, al-Qa`ida or al-Qa`idah, ( Arabic:; ar-Latn ''al-qāʿidah'' Translation: The VOA introduced Rigi as "the leader of popular Iranian resistance movement". The misleading and incorrect description of the leader and his Junduallah terrorist group resulted in public condemnation by Iranian-American communities in the U. Iranian Americans are American citizens of Iranian ethnicity or heritage S. [39][40][41]

Ethiopia VOA Crisis

In the 1980s VOA Ethiopian service was mostly used as a rare opposition voice against the marxist leader Mengistu's government. Mengistu Haile Mariam (መንግስቱ ኃይለ ማርያም məngɨstu hi lə maryam (born 1937 a repression campaign against the Ethiopian People's Revolutionary Party and Due to Mengistu's alliance with the Soviet Union, VOA was often accused of becoming a propaganda voice supporting the militant opposition EPRP, which carried out a guerrilla insurgency against Mengistu's pro-Soviet regime. The Ethiopian People's Revolutionary Party (EPRP was a prominent Marxist organization in Ethiopia during the 1970s [42][43] After Ethiopian rebels overthrew Mengistu's regime in 1991, since EPRP and similar groups still were not able to gain power, VOA mostly became a voice against the newly formed Ethiopian government. [44] The extremeness of the bias went as far as anti-government VOA reporters wanting to fabricate a death of the Ethiopian Prime Minister. [45][46] However, according to the critics of the Ethiopian government, since the service has an audience of millions in Ethiopia, it can play an important role. They argue that due to the stifling of press freedom in Ethiopia, the VOA remains one of the very few media outlets the Ethiopian public relies on for balanced information. On the other hand, supporters of the government accused VOA of allowing armed groups to spread propaganda that often helps recruit dissidents to take arms against the authorities. [47][48] As a result, some pro government Ethiopians living in America also started to hold demonstrations against VOA. [49] Accordingly many of them wrote petitions, as well as holding more rallies against what they call the biased and often provocative reporting of VOA's Amharic language section. [50][51]

Currently, there are still noticeable issues being reported, and a former VOA manager once condemned the Amharic language version of VOA, calling it a "virtual takeover of the service by Ethiopia opponents. Amharic (አማርኛ amarəñña) is a Semitic language spoken in North Central Ethiopia by the Amhara. "[52] Even the Tigrayan language VOA service (the language of most pro-government Ethiopians) is often controlled by pro-Eritrean government Tigrayan speakers who often spread propaganda against the Ethiopian government. Ethiopian government officials continue to accuse VOA Ethiopian reporters, who are often exiled politicians, of utilizing "Dirty Tricks in Broadcasting", which appear objective in general but contain anti-government messages as well as interviews with anti-government militant leaders. [53]

Most recently, the Horn of Africa service of the Voice of America was condemned for censorship of news. [54] According to one blogger, that section of VOA concealed news that portrayed some anti-government Diaspora Ethiopian politicians in a bad light. The term Diaspora (in Greek, διασπορά &ndash " a scattering or sowing of seeds " refers any population sharing common ethnic It claimed that the age-old VOA crisis regarding its broadcasts to Ethiopia has not diminished. [55][56]

In January 2008, Ethiopia was accused of jamming the VOA Amharic and Oromifa programs. [57] The government denied the accusations claiming technical difficulties as the cause of radio disruptions. As jamming in Ethiopia continued, VOA was also accused of censoring news about death of civilians at the hand of the opposition. According to critics of VOA, the Amharic language VOA program "systematically excluded" news about the armed group ONLF's killing of numerous Ethiopian civilians near the end of 2007. The Ogaden National Liberation Front ( ONLF) (ኦጋደን፡ ብሔራዊ፡፡ነጽነት፡ግንባር( Somali: Jabhadda Wadaniga Xoreynta Ogaadeenya [58]Pro-Ethiopian government critics of VOA will honor and remember "the bravery" of Annette Sheckler - the former head of the Horn of Africa VOA service who was fired after complaining against her bosses at the VOA executive management. [59]

See also

References

  1. ^ International Broadcasting Board (IBB) Fact Sheet, Voice of America , 1942-2002 ; The World's Source for News
  2. ^ VOA Press Release, VOA Expands Broadcasts to Somalia
  3. ^ Rugh 2006, 14
  4. ^ Berg, Jerome S. VOA Indonesia is the Indonesian service of the Voice of America (VOA Firedrake, in Teutonic Mythology, is a fire-breathing reptilian Creature, occasionally winged This article is about the radio broadcast service For the REM Deutsche Welle ('Welle' pronounced with a 'v' sound IPA /'vɛlə/ or DW, is Germany's international broadcaster. Radio Free Asia (RFA is a private radio station funded by the United States Congress that broadcasts in nine Asian languages The Pentagon Channel is a TV channel broadcasting military news and information for the 2 American Forces Network (or AFN) is the brand name used by the United States Armed Forces Radio and Television Service (AFRTS for its entertainment Voice of Russia is the Russian government's international radio broadcasting service owned by the All-Russia State Television and Radio Company. Radio Canada International ( RCI) is the International broadcasting service of the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (CBC Radio Netherlands Worldwide ( RNW, short for Radio Nederland Wereldomroep in Dutch) is a public Radio and Television network based Radio Taiwan International (RTI is the international radio service of the Central Broadcasting System (CBS ( Chinese: 中央廣播電台 Pinyin: Zhōngyāng-guǎngbō-diàntái China Radio International (CRI, (Chinese 中国国际广播电台 Pinyin Zhōng Guó Guó Jì Guǎng Bō Diàn Tái the former Radio Beijing and originally Radio Border Crossings is an all-request music-oriented radio show that airs world-wide on the Voice of America. Press TV is an English language international Television News channel which is funded by the Iranian government, based in Tehran On the Short Waves, 1923-1945: Broadcast Listening in the Pioneer Days of Radio. 1999, McFarland. ISBN 0786405066, page 105
  5. ^ Library of Congress. "NBC Resources Held by the Recorded Sound Section". http://www.loc.gov/rr/record/recnbc.html
  6. ^ Chamberlain, A. B. "CBS International Broadcast Facilities". Proceedings of the IRE, Volume 30, Issue 3, March 1942 Page(s): 118 - 129, abstract at http://ieeexplore.ieee.org/Xplore/login.jsp?url=/iel5/10933/35681/01694449.pdf
  7. ^ Dizard, Wilson P. Inventing Public Diplomacy: The Story of the U. S. Information Agency 2004, Lynne Rienner Publishers, ISBN 158826288X, p. 24
  8. ^ Rose, Cornelia Bruère. National Policy for Radio Broadcasting. 1971, Ayer Publishing. ISBN 0405035802. Page 244
  9. ^ Time magazine. "NABusiness". Monday, Jul. 24, 1939. http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,771673-1,00.html
  10. ^ Dizard, ibid, p. 24
  11. ^ Berg, Jerome S. On the Short Waves, 1923-1945: Broadcast Listening in the Pioneer Days of Radio. 1999, McFarland. ISBN 0786405066, page 105
  12. ^ Sterling, Christopher H. , and John M. Kittross. Stay Tuned: A History of American Broadcasting. 2002, Lawrence Erlbaum Associates. ISBN 0805826246. Page 263
  13. ^ Berg, op. cit, p. 105
  14. ^ Rugh, William A. American Encounters with Arabs: The "Soft Power" of U. S. Public Diplomacy in the Middle East. 2006, Greenwood Publishing Group. ISBN 0275988171, page 13.
  15. ^ Dizard, ibid, p. 24-25
  16. ^ Dizard, ibid, p. 25
  17. ^ Dizard, ibid, p. 25
  18. ^ Sterling and Kittross, op. cit. , p. 263
  19. ^ Rugh 2006, op. cit. , 13
  20. ^ a b Cold War Propaganda by John B. Whitton, The American Journal of International Law, Vol. The American Journal of International Law is an English-language scholarly journal focusing on International law and International relations. 45, No. 1 (Jan. , 1951), pp. Year 1951 ( MCMLI) was a Common year starting on Monday. Events of 1951 January 151–153
  21. ^ Rugh 2006, op. cit. , 13
  22. ^ Rugh 2006, op. cit. , 13
  23. ^ Appy, Christian G. Cold War Constructions: The Political Culture of United States Imperialism. 2000, University of Massachusetts Press; ISBN 1558492186, page 126.
  24. ^ Broadcasting Yearbook, 1976 and 1979 editions
  25. ^ Conference Report, Cold War Impact of VOA Broadcasts, Hoover Institution and the Cold War International History Project of the Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars, Oct. 13-16, 2004
  26. ^ Bihlmayer, Ulrich (2006-09-12). Year 2006 ( MMVI) was a Common year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar. Events 1213 - Albigensian Crusade: Simon de Montfort 5th Earl of Leicester, defeats Peter II of Aragon at the Fighting the Chinese Government “Firedragon”- Music Jammer AND “Sound of Hope” Broadcasting (SOH), Taiwan (PDF). IARU Region 1 Monitoring System. Retrieved on 2008-01-15. 2008 ( MMVIII) is the current year in accordance with the Gregorian calendar, a Leap year that started on Tuesday of the Common Events 588 BC - Nebuchadrezzar II of Babylon lays siege to Jerusalem under Zedekiah 's reign
  27. ^ U.S.: Cuba Jamming TV Signals To Iran - Local News Story - WTVJ. Retrieved on 2008-01-15. 2008 ( MMVIII) is the current year in accordance with the Gregorian calendar, a Leap year that started on Tuesday of the Common Events 588 BC - Nebuchadrezzar II of Babylon lays siege to Jerusalem under Zedekiah 's reign
  28. ^ Jackson, David. "The Future of Radio II". World Radio TV Handbook, 2007 edition. 2007, Billboard Books. ISBN 0823059979. p 38.
  29. ^ The Voice of America: First on the Internet. Retrieved on 2008-01-15. 2008 ( MMVIII) is the current year in accordance with the Gregorian calendar, a Leap year that started on Tuesday of the Common Events 588 BC - Nebuchadrezzar II of Babylon lays siege to Jerusalem under Zedekiah 's reign
  30. ^ Rugh 2006, 13 - 14
  31. ^ Columbia University Press. Interview with Alan Heil, author of Voice of America
  32. ^ George Washington University Center for the Study of Globalization. Whose News? Implications of the Global Media Panel discussion, held April 5, 2005.
  33. ^ Karen Wald. "Cuba Battles for Sovereignty of the Airwaves", Latin America Press.  
  34. ^ IBB Fact Sheet. Retrieved on 2008-01-15. 2008 ( MMVIII) is the current year in accordance with the Gregorian calendar, a Leap year that started on Tuesday of the Common Events 588 BC - Nebuchadrezzar II of Babylon lays siege to Jerusalem under Zedekiah 's reign
  35. ^ OCB Fact Sheet. Retrieved on 2008-01-15. 2008 ( MMVIII) is the current year in accordance with the Gregorian calendar, a Leap year that started on Tuesday of the Common Events 588 BC - Nebuchadrezzar II of Babylon lays siege to Jerusalem under Zedekiah 's reign
  36. ^ "Harr, Radio and TV Marti". Retrieved on 2008-01-15. 2008 ( MMVIII) is the current year in accordance with the Gregorian calendar, a Leap year that started on Tuesday of the Common Events 588 BC - Nebuchadrezzar II of Babylon lays siege to Jerusalem under Zedekiah 's reign  
  37. ^ Miami New Times, Espionage Is In The Air, February 8, 2001
  38. ^ a b Casey Woods. "Report: U.S. paid many other journalists", Miami Herald.  
  39. ^ VoA interviews Iranian terrorist culprit in a sign of backing. Press TV. Retrieved on 2008-01-15. 2008 ( MMVIII) is the current year in accordance with the Gregorian calendar, a Leap year that started on Tuesday of the Common Events 588 BC - Nebuchadrezzar II of Babylon lays siege to Jerusalem under Zedekiah 's reign
  40. ^ گفتوگوي صداي آمريکا با قاتل مردم بلوچستان! (Persian). Retrieved on 2008-01-15. 2008 ( MMVIII) is the current year in accordance with the Gregorian calendar, a Leap year that started on Tuesday of the Common Events 588 BC - Nebuchadrezzar II of Babylon lays siege to Jerusalem under Zedekiah 's reign
  41. ^ Iranian speaker says U.S. supports "terrorists" - swissinfo. Retrieved on 2008-01-15. 2008 ( MMVIII) is the current year in accordance with the Gregorian calendar, a Leap year that started on Tuesday of the Common Events 588 BC - Nebuchadrezzar II of Babylon lays siege to Jerusalem under Zedekiah 's reign
  42. ^ EPRP and VOA journalism issues & dillemas
  43. ^ # Sheckler, Annette C, Evidence of Things Unseen: Secrets Revealed at the Voice of America Horn of Africa Journal, Vol. XVI, Dec. 1998, pp. 31-51.
  44. ^ EPRP vs. EPRDF
  45. ^ VOA issues and bias reportings
  46. ^ problems in reporting on Ethiopia by VOA
  47. ^ VOA accused of assisting a terrorist organization by giving air time for covert recruiting
  48. ^ VOA faces impartiality issues
  49. ^ Supporters of EPRDF (the ruling party in Ethiopia) in US criticize VOA Amharic service of stirring conflict
  50. ^ PETITION ON VOA'S AMHARIC PROGRAM
  51. ^ Protesters in US rally against VOA Amharic broadcasts
  52. ^ former VOA management team says VOA took over by opponents
  53. ^ # Sheckler, Annette C, Evidence of Things Unseen: Secrets Revealed at the Voice of America Horn of Africa Journal, Vol. XVI, Dec. 1998, pp. 31-51.
  54. ^ VOA and censorship issues on its coverage of Ethiopia
  55. ^ Ethiopian VOA crisis is said to continue
  56. ^ former VOA manager denounces VOA on partiality
  57. ^ Ethiopia accused of jamming VOA and DW programs
  58. ^ VOA Amharic accused of "systematically" censoring negative news about Ethiopian opposition
  59. ^ Ethiopians honor Annette Sheckler

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