VOICE ONE:
February Twenty-Fourth marks the sixtieth anniversary of thefirst broadcast on the Voice of America. This year, VOA will behonoring its past and looking forward to its future. I’m Sarah Long.
VOICE TWO:
And I’m Steve Ember. The history of the Voice of America is ourreport today on the VOA Special English program, THIS IS AMERICA.
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VOICE ONE:
The world has changed much since the first VOA broadcast sixtyyears ago. When listeners first heard VOA on that February day inNineteen-Forty-Two, the United States had recently entered World WarTwo. The country was fighting against Germany and Japan. At thetime, Germany was broadcasting radio programs to gain internationalsupport for its position.
American officials believed they should answer the Germanbroadcasts with the truth about world events. The first VOAbroadcast was a short report in the German language. It began withthese words: “Here speak voices from America. Everyday at this timewe will bring you the news of the war. The news may be good. Thenews may be bad. We shall tell you the truth.”
That first broadcast was prepared by just a few people working inthree small offices in New York City. Within a week, other VOAannouncers were broadcasting in Italian, French and English.
VOICE TWO:
Since then, the Voice of America has expanded to include morethan one-thousand employees. They produce more than one-thousandhours of programs every week. VOA broadcasts in fifty-threelanguages.VOA uses satellites to send its broadcasts around theworld. Radio stations in Asia, Europe and Latin America arebroadcasting VOA programs over F-M and medium-wave frequencies.
As many as ninety-one million people around the world listen tothe Voice of America each week. People can also hear programs andread stories on the Internet Web site, w-w-w-dot-voanews-dot-com.VOA also produces television programs that are broadcast bysatellite.
VOICE ONE:
However, VOA almost did not survive beyond World War Two. Whenthe war ended in Nineteen-Forty-Five, some Americans felt that VOA’spurpose also had ended. Many members of Congress believed agovernment radio service was not needed in peacetime.
Before anyone took steps to close the agency, however, a newdevelopment took place. The United States and the Soviet Union –former allies – became enemies.
Many American politicians saw a new need for the Voice ofAmerica. They wanted to reach listeners in the Soviet Union, whichhad no independent press. In Nineteen-Forty-Seven, VOA beganbroadcasting programs in the Russian language.
VOICE TWO:
In those early years, VOA also began adding something new to itsbroadcasts: music. In Nineteen-Fifty-Five, music expert WillisConover broadcast his first jazz show on the program called “MusicU-S-A.” American jazz was not permitted in eastern Europe and theSoviet Union at that time. Willis Conover’s programs became hugelypopular.
In fact, many observers believe he helped create an importantjazz movement in eastern Europe. For forty years, he brought thejazz music of performers like Louis Armstrong, Duke Ellington andCharlie Parker to millions of listeners.
VOICE ONE:
In Nineteen-Fifty-Nine, VOA added another new kind of program toits broadcasts. VOA officials knew that many listeners understoodsome English. But the listeners did not know enough to completelyunderstand normal English-language broadcasts. So, VOA officialsinvented a simpler kind of English. It uses aboutone-thousand-five-hundred words. And, it is spoken slowly. Ofcourse, you are listening to it now: Special English.
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VOICE TWO:
VOA has reported many major news events during the past sixtyyears. For example, in July of Nineteen-Sixty-Nine,four-hundred-fifty-million people listened as an American spacevehicle landed on the moon. VOA broadcast the words of AstronautNeil Armstrong as he stepped onto the surface of the moon.
As the years passed, VOA continued to provide news of majorevents. In August, Nineteen-Ninety-One, VOA Russian languagebroadcasters reported the attempted ouster of Soviet leader MikhailGorbachev. On December Thirty-First, VOA reported ceremonies markingthe end of the Soviet Union. Reporters told the story from RedSquare in Moscow.
VOICE ONE:
In Nineteen-Ninety-Four, VOA became the first internationalbroadcaster to offer its material on the Internet. VOA also startedits first telephone call-in program, Talk to America.” The programpresents experts discussing important issues. People around theworld call the program and ask questions or give their comments.
Also in Nineteen-Ninety-Four, the Mandarin Chinese languageservice launched “China Forum.” It was VOA’s first radio andtelevision program broadcast at the same time. The program isbroadcast by satellite, shortwave and medium-wave radio to people inChina.
In Nineteen-Ninety-Eight, VOA joined an international effort toend the disease polio. VOA broadcast to Africa, South Asia, CentralAsia and the Middle East in sixteen languages. Reported new cases ofpolio in affected countries dropped ninety-nine percent byTwo-Thousand-One.
VOICE TWO:
Today, VOA “News Now” broadcasters present the latest news andinformation in English twenty-four hours a day. News Now includesreports from VOA correspondents in the United States and around theworld. It also includes stories about sports, science, business andentertainment.
Last September, VOA told the world about the terrorist attacks onthe United States. Reporters provided news from the targeted areasin New York City and near Washington, D.C. They followed therecovery efforts at the World Trade Center and the DefenseDepartment headquarters. The Dari and Pashto language services ofVOA are continuing to report to Afghanistan during the current waron terrorism.
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VOICE ONE:
A major test for VOA news came during the Watergate politicalcrisis. Watergate was the series of events that led PresidentRichard Nixon to resign in Nineteen-Seventy-Four. For months, VOAbroadcast all the news about charges of illegal campaign activitiesby White House officials. Some Administration officials objected tothe broadcasts.
Later, there were demands for a clear legal statement of whatVOA’s purpose should be. Congress answered by writing a new law.President Gerald Ford signed it in Nineteen-Seventy-Six.
VOICE TWO:
The law contains a statement of what the Voice of America mustdo. The statement has three parts. First, it says, VOA will presentnews that is truthful, fair and complete. Second, VOA will present abalanced picture of all sides of American life. And third, VOA willpresent the policies of the United States government, as well asopinions supporting and opposing those policies.
Official policies are broadcast in short messages called”editorials.” Writers in an office separate from the newsroomproduce the editorials.
VOICE ONE:
However, the law did not end debate about the purpose of VOA. Thedebate continues today, as VOA reports about the war on terrorism.Some people say VOA should not broadcast stories containing materialcritical of the United States. Other people say listeners wouldreject pro-government programs as propaganda. And they say suchprograms would violate the law that says programs must be truthfuland balanced.
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VOICE TWO:
During sixty years of broadcasting, people in many countries havewritten to VOA to tell how it has affected their lives. For example,a farmer in China says VOA agriculture programs helped him learnwhat crops to plant. He says his harvests have improved. A womanborn in India says she learned English by listening to VOA. She wasable to continue her education with this increased language ability.She became a doctor.
For years, the military government of Burma has restricted theactivities of opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi. One of thefreedoms Aung San Suu Kyi has demanded is her right to listen to theVoice of America.
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VOICE ONE:
This program was written by Jerilyn Watson. It was produced byCaty Weaver. I’m Sarah Long.
VOICE TWO:
And I’m Steve Ember. Join us again next week for another reportabout life in the United States on the VOA Special English program,THIS IS AMERICA.