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| Voice of America: Press 'Mute' for Iran | |
| 2013-09-21 | |
Voice of America (VOA) is on track to eliminate all of its Persian-language editorial broadcasts to Iran if its supervisory board's 2014 budget recommendation is approved by Congress, according to an internal memo obtained by the Washington Free Beacon.
Congress mandated in 1998 that VOA broadcast editorials reflecting the U.S. government's position as part of its public diplomacy mission. The policy office's editorials, which provide the government's stance on human rights and current foreign affairs issues, have long been a source of contention inside VOA and the International Broadcasting Bureau. Critics argue that the editorials detract from VOA's efforts to appear objective. The Office of Policy, a five-person department at the International Broadcasting Bureau (IBB) that produces the official U.S. government editorials aired on VOA, would have its budget slashed by nearly half if the Broadcasting Board of Governors' proposal goes forward. The proposed cuts would "gravely impair" VOA's ability to fulfill its public diplomacy mission, gut the office staff, and potentially violate federal law, according to a May 31 memo sent from IBB's Office of Policy Director Charles Goolsby to IBB Director Richard Lobo. When contacted by the Washington Free Beacon, Goolsby said he was not allowed to discuss the memo or how the proposed cuts would impact the policy office. A spokesperson for the Broadcasting Board of Governors said she would not comment on internal correspondence. "[Goolsby] has one perspective on the budget as opposed to the larger agency," spokesperson Letitia King said. "We have advised him not to discuss an internal memo." IBB Director Richard Lobo said in a statement to the Washington Free Beacon that the funding would not violate VOA's congressional mandate. Lobo said "The proposed reduction in funding for the Office of Policy in the President's FY14 budget request would not prevent VOA from meeting its legal requirements and is a component of the reductions in positions being proposed across the agency, including offices throughout the IBB.". | |
| Posted by:Pappy |
| #1 sounds like they're on the NPR/BBC path - want to be gubbamint-funded yet free to be |
| Posted by: Frank G 2013-09-21 08:53 |