Voice of America

Voice of America, broadcasting service of the United States Information Agency, est. 1942. Originally set up as a means of fighting the cold war, the Voice of America produces and broadcasts radio programs in English and foreign languages to other countries in order to promote a favorable impression of life in the United States. Programming includes news reports from correspondents on the scene and analysis of events from Washington, D.C., presentation of conflicting views on topical issues, feature programs, and music. The Voice of America, WORLDNET television services, and the Office of Cuba Broadcasting (Radio Martí and TV Martí) are overseen by the International Broadcasting Board of the United States Information Agency.

---

Voice of America

Radio broadcasting network of the U.S. government. Its function is to promote understanding of the U.S. and spread democratic values. Its daily broadcasts include news reports, editorials, and discussions of U.S. political and cultural events. Its first broadcast, in German, took place in 1942 to counter Nazi propaganda. By the end of World War II, it was broadcasting 3,200 programs in 40 languages every week. During the Cold War it focused its message at the communist countries of eastern and central Europe. It became part of the U.S. Information Agency when that agency was formed in 1953.

---

Voice of America 

radio program of the US government, broadcasting to foreign countries since 1942.

The Voice of America is part of the US Information Agency. In 1970 it was broadcasting in 38 languages with a volume of approximately 850 hours a week, through 109 transmitters, of which 68 were located abroad. The most powerful broadcasting centers, in the early 1970’s, were located in Great Britain, the Federal Republic of Germany, Greece, Morocco, Liberia, Thailand, South Vietnam, Ceylon (Sri Lanka), the Philippines, and on the island of Okinawa (Japan). The programs consist of news, international commentaries, music, and literary discussions. The Voice of America programs often attract émigrés and deserters from the countries toward which the broadcasts are directed. The Voice of America is a component of American imperialist propaganda, directed against the USSR and the other socialist countries and often enlists the services of émigrés in conducting the programs broadcasted to their former native countries. The content of broadcasts in large measure reflects the anti-Soviet attitudes of reactionary circles that oppose the relaxation of international tension.