Voice of America (
VOA) is a U.S.
[1] multimedia agency which serves as the United States government institution for non-military, external broadcasting. It is the largest U.S. international broadcaster. VOA produces digital, TV, and radio content in 47 languages which it distributes to affiliate stations around the globe. It is primarily viewed by foreign audiences, so VOA programming has an influence on public opinion abroad regarding the United States and its people.
[2]
VOA was established in 1942,
[1] and the VOA charter (Public Laws 94-350 and 103-415)
[3] was signed into law in 1976 by
President Gerald Ford.
VOA is headquartered in Washington, D.C., and overseen by the
U.S. Agency for Global Media, an independent agency of the U.S. government.
[4] Funds are appropriated annually by Congress under the budget for embassies and consulates. In 2016, VOA broadcast an estimated 1,800 hours of radio and TV programming each week to approximately 236.6 million people worldwide with about 1,050 employees and a taxpayer-funded annual budget of US$218.5 million.
[2][5]
Some commentators consider Voice of America to be a form of
propaganda.
[6][7] However, VOA's Best Practices Guide claims that "The accuracy, quality and credibility of the Voice of America are its most important assets, and they rest on the audiences’ perception of VOA as an objective and reliable source of U.S., regional and world news and information."
[8][
third-party source needed] Surveys show that 84% of VOA's audiences say they trust VOA to provide accurate and reliable information, and a similar percentage (84%) say that VOA helps them understand current events relevant to their lives.
[9][
third-party source needed]
In response to the request of the United States Department of Justice that RT register as a foreign agent under the Foreign Agents Registration Act, Russia's Justice Ministry labeled Voice of America and Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty as foreign agents in December 2017.[10][11]
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