On February 1, 1942, Voice of America (VOA) made its first broadcast to Europe using BBC transmitters. They began speaking beyond country borders from cramped studios in New York with no name or guidance except "to tell the truth no matter what it is." Within a year and a half, VOA had grown and found a new home and by 1944, there were VOA broadcasts in 40 languages.
Today, 4 more languages are added to that number, so that the approximately 1,500 hours of weekly multimedia broadcasts contain 44 languages. The programs include information on international news, culture, and much more. This scope is made possible by many technological elements such as the largest integrated digital audio system in the world and involved website.
In 1976, Gerald Ford established the VOA Charter which "protects the independence and integrity" of VOA broadcasts. This is in keeping with VOA's mission to "broadcast accurate, balanced, and comprehensive news and information to an international audience." The BBG or Broadcasting Board of Governors oversees Voice of America since it is the official external broadcast institution of the United States.
*Their organizational chart
I wonder how they raise money to operate, because nowhere on their site did I find a "Donate" button... if it's paid for by corporations, can we really rely on them to provide fair & balanced information?
ReplyDeleteDo they plan on adding even more languages? and are they trying to locate more places to integrate this program into?
ReplyDelete