Politics make strange....
Click here: Head of VOA agency defends his record - Nation/Politics - The Washington Times, America's Newspaper
Exactly why I do not know, but there is intense and sometimes swinish politics played about America's international broadcasting efforts.
I have known Rebecca and Ken Tomlinson for many years. They are splendid and honorable people.
Ken was a Member of the Reagan-appointed Board of Radio Free Europe and Radio Liberty. So were my colleague Michael Novak and I.
Two of the other Members were the quite liberal author, James Michener, and AFL/CIO President Lane Kirkland.
When Frank Shakespeare (Chairman of "The Radios") and I (the non-statuatory "Vice-Chairman") approached Lane to ask him to serve he said: "That's the only appointment from this administration I would accept."
He did. His presence did much to gain support from Congressional Democrats.
The Radios were very contentious during the Cold War.
Today is it generally acknowledged that they played a huge role in peacefully ending the global threat of the USSR. Dissidents (Walesa, Havel, Sakharov) would listen, despite intense Soviet jamming efforts.
The Radios kept hope alive.
And so it came to be that Radio Free Asia (originally to be called Radio Free China ) came into being. Democrat Sen. Joe Biden was a prime mover.
These are "surrogate" stations. They specialize in broadcasting what would be on the air if the nations were free: News, history, culture, etc.
Other programming, also needed, are national services, like the Voice of America.
Needed, but not as neccessary.
Ben
Exactly why I do not know, but there is intense and sometimes swinish politics played about America's international broadcasting efforts.
I have known Rebecca and Ken Tomlinson for many years. They are splendid and honorable people.
Ken was a Member of the Reagan-appointed Board of Radio Free Europe and Radio Liberty. So were my colleague Michael Novak and I.
Two of the other Members were the quite liberal author, James Michener, and AFL/CIO President Lane Kirkland.
When Frank Shakespeare (Chairman of "The Radios") and I (the non-statuatory "Vice-Chairman") approached Lane to ask him to serve he said: "That's the only appointment from this administration I would accept."
He did. His presence did much to gain support from Congressional Democrats.
The Radios were very contentious during the Cold War.
Today is it generally acknowledged that they played a huge role in peacefully ending the global threat of the USSR. Dissidents (Walesa, Havel, Sakharov) would listen, despite intense Soviet jamming efforts.
The Radios kept hope alive.
And so it came to be that Radio Free Asia (originally to be called Radio Free China ) came into being. Democrat Sen. Joe Biden was a prime mover.
These are "surrogate" stations. They specialize in broadcasting what would be on the air if the nations were free: News, history, culture, etc.
Other programming, also needed, are national services, like the Voice of America.
Needed, but not as neccessary.
Ben
posted by Ben Wattenberg at 11:29 AM
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