Abstract: The regime that controls Iran is the world’s leading sponsor of terrorism, the world’s fourth-largest oil producer, and close to acquiring a nuclear weapon. Controlled by this regime are 74 million Iranians, 60 percent of which are under age 30,…
Congress should undertake much overdue oversight of the management practices and structures of the Broadcasting Board of Governors (BBG). U.S. international broadcasting needs professional management and a transparent structure and does not have it at the moment. Consistently Inconsistent …
Abstract: On October 1, 2011, Voice of America’s (VOA) Chinese radio service will go silent, as U.S. international broadcasting abandons the airwaves and moves to the Internet. In the burgeoning age of new media, many, including the management…
Proponents of U.S. international broadcasting to China got some reason for hope last month when a group of congressmen, led by Representative Dana Rohrabacher (R–CA) produced a letter in support of continued funding for communication to the vast Chinese populace. The congressmen propose to fence off a portion of the…
The global reaction to the death of al-Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden must have taken the Obama Administration by surprise. While not 100 percent positive, the reaction to the terrorist mastermind’s killing by U.S. Navy SEALs has been one of great international relief. The presidential decision not to release the…
Recent strategic decisions by the Broadcasting Board of Governors (BBG) on Voice of America (VOA) broadcasts to China suggest that the time has come for Congress to take a serious look at the way the U.S. government manages its international broadcasting services. Even Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, in her…
One of the mysteries surrounding U.S. international broadcasting is why more money spent each year is buying less and less airtime. Even as the budget for such operations continues to grow, U.S. broadcasting services are being cut back—and, no less, in parts of the world that are of immense strategic…
With the proliferation and fragmentation of traditional news sources, what do most people identify as the medium they trust most for information? According to a new poll by Ofcom, the independent regulating authority of the British communications industries, the answer is radio. Of the poll’s 1,824 respondents, 66 percent said…
Last week, an exhausted, retreating Georgian soldier was overheard asking, "Where are our friends?"[1] Given that only days before the conflict--and for the first time in over 60 years of broadcasting--the Voice of America's (VOA) Russian-language radio programming fell silent, this was a legitimate question. Russian is the principle language in…
Controversy has swirled around the Smith–Mundt Modernization Act since it passed mark-up as an amendment to the House...…
Kudos to the House Appropriations Committee for protecting U.S. international broadcasting against the eviscerating cuts...…
Depending on Russian government-funded media to broadcast news from Voice of America (VOA) is about as brain-dead as...…
If you sup with the Russian government, you’d better bring a long spoon. While some U.S.–Russian cooperation appears...…
The Broadcasting Board of Governors (BBG) recently released its 2013 budget request, which slashes Voice of America...…
President Obama’s use of drone strikes to target terrorists is depleting U.S. intelligence on al Qaeda and making...…
More than 30 years have passed since Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn wrote about the “Soft Voice of America” in an article that...…
Of the countries that present the greatest foreign policy challenges to the U.S. and will do so in the decades to...…
Tibetan spiritual leader the Dalai Lama arrived in the nation's capital for a 10-day Buddhist ritual known as the...…
The White House finally ended its boycott of Voice of America (VOA), the government’s own international broadcasting...…