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Voice of America: the story on HearLore | HearLore
— Ch. 1 · Origins And Wartime Launch —
Voice of America.
~6 min read · Ch. 1 of 6
On the 1st of February 1942, a broadcast began from the San Francisco office of the Foreign Information Service. It was transmitted via General Electric's KGEI station to the Philippines in English. This marked the first official transmission that would become known as Voice of America. The program opened with the Battle Hymn of the Republic and included a pledge to tell the truth regardless of whether news was good or bad for the United States. President Franklin Delano Roosevelt approved this initiative after recommendations from Colonel William J. Donovan and Robert E. Sherwood. Sherwood coined the term Voice of America to describe the shortwave network operating from 270 Madison Avenue in New York City. Before World War II, all American shortwave radio stations were privately owned entities like CBS and NBC. These private networks had fewer than twelve transmitters in operation during the early 1930s. The U.S. government initially used these commercial stations on a voluntary basis to counter Nazi propaganda before taking direct control. By the end of the war, VOA operated thirty-nine transmitters and provided service in forty languages. Programming originated from production centers in New York and San Francisco with over one thousand programs created annually.
Cold War Propaganda Battles
Foy Kohler directed VOA from 1949 to 1952 and believed the agency played a vital role in fighting communism. He noted that listenership numbers reached 194,000 regular listeners in Sweden and 2.1 million in France. Kohler received thirty thousand letters monthly from listeners worldwide along with hundreds of thousands of requests for broadcast schedules. An analysis of letters sent in 1952 and 1953 suggested letter writing indicated successful persuasion efforts. Practically all defectors during Kohler's tenure stated that VOA broadcasts influenced their decision to defect from communist regimes. The Soviet Union responded by initiating electronic jamming of VOA broadcasts on the 24th of April 1949. Edward R. Murrow observed that Russians spent approximately $125 million annually just to jam the Voice of America signal. Between 1952 and 1960, VOA used a converted U.S. Coast Guard cutter named Courier as its first mobile broadcasting ship. From 1955 until 2003, the agency aired American jazz through the Voice of America Jazz Hour hosted by Willis Conover. This program attracted thirty million listeners at its peak and featured musicians like Dizzy Gillespie and Louis Armstrong. During the Hungarian Revolution of 1956, VOA broadcasts were deemed controversial because refugees believed Western aid might arrive soon.
Technological Evolution And Reach
In 1983, VOA began a $1.3 billion rebuilding program to improve technical capabilities across global transmission facilities. The agency added television services starting in the early 1980s alongside special regional programs for Cuba known as Radio Martí and TV Martí. By 2014, most English-language transmissions to Asia were cut along with shortwave transmissions in Azerbaijani, Bengali, Khmer, Kurdish, Lao, Uzbek, and Greek languages. In 1994, Voice of America became the first broadcast news organization to offer continuously updated programs on the Internet. As of 2022, the agency reached an audience of approximately 326 million people weekly compared to 237 million in 2016. The organization employed 961 staff members with an annual budget totaling $267.5 million. VOA Radiogram was an experimental program running from March 2013 until June 2017 that transmitted digital text and images via shortwave radiograms. This service produced two hundred twenty editions using analog transmitters decoded by basic AM receivers or mobile applications like TIVAR. In 2021, VOA launched fifty-two documentary films published weekly through its streaming app called VOA Plus. These films average ten to fifteen minutes and include captions in Russian, Persian, Mandarin, Urdu, and English.
Legal Firewalls And Editorial Policy
The 1976 VOA Charter mandates that reporting must be accurate, objective, and comprehensive according to federal law. The 1994 U.S. International Broadcasting Act prohibits editorial interference by government officials creating what the agency calls a firewall. Under the Eisenhower administration in 1959, Director Henry Loomis commissioned a formal statement of principles protecting programming integrity. George V. Allen issued this directive in 1960 which Edward R. Murrow endorsed in 1962. Any story broadcast requires either two independently corroborating sources or witness testimony from a staff correspondent. From 1948 until its amendment in 2013, Voice of America was forbidden to broadcast directly to American citizens under Section 501 of the Smith-Mundt Act. The intent of this legislation protected Americans from government propaganda while avoiding competition with private companies. The act was amended via the National Defense Authorization Act for 2013 allowing citizens access to VOA content online. Despite these protections some employees emphasized how their work served U.S. government goals rather than pure journalism. One employee stated they always kept best U.S. interests in mind when explaining official policies to foreign audiences.
Political Interference Under Trump
On the 14th of March 2025, President Trump signed an executive order labeling the agency as the Voice of Radical America and reducing functions to minimum legal requirements. The next day all employees could not access VOA headquarters and many foreign language broadcasts replaced news with music automation. More than thirteen hundred Voice of America employees were placed on administrative leave simultaneously. Kari Lake announced that One America News would provide news coverage for VOA starting the 6th of May 2025. On the 20th of June 2025, layoff notices were sent to six hundred thirty-nine employees effectively shutting down most operations. Only about one hundred staff members remained working across four languages including Persian, Mandarin, Dari, and Pashto. In February 2025, Elon Musk called for shutting down both VOA and Radio Free Europe following suggestions from other government officials. Richard Grenell called a chief correspondent's comments treasonous in a post on X social media platform. Lawsuits filed against the administration resulted in court orders requiring restoration of employees and contracts by the 14th of October 2025. Despite these rulings, the district court noted concerning disrespect shown toward earlier orders suggesting potential civil contempt trials.
Global Reception And Regional Conflicts
In January 2016 Russian authorities detained and deported Jeff Shell despite his valid visa without explanation. Voice of America was deemed a foreign agent under Russian law in December 2017 after new legislation passed by the State Duma. By March 2022, VOA broadcasts were blocked in Russia alongside BBC and Deutsche Welle following the invasion of Ukraine. Ulviyya Ali worked with the Azerbaijani Service from 2019 until her arrest in May 2025 after accreditation revocation in February. She authored over one thousand news pieces focusing on political trials and human rights violations under President Ilham Aliyev. On the 19th of April 2017, VOA Mandarin Service interviewed Chinese real estate tycoon Guo Wengui about corruption allegations before abruptly halting the broadcast. Four U.S. Congressmen requested an investigation concluding that leadership decisions followed journalistic best practices rather than external pressure. In June 2021, Mail & Guardian reported that Ethiopian security services harassed all major foreign news services except VOA during the Tigray War. Instructions emailed to staff forbade using terms like civil war or war when reporting on conflicts in Ethiopia.
When did Voice of America begin its first official broadcast?
Voice of America began its first official transmission on the 1st of February 1942 from the San Francisco office of the Foreign Information Service. This initial program aired via General Electric's KGEI station to the Philippines in English and opened with the Battle Hymn of the Republic.
Who coined the term Voice of America for the shortwave network?
Robert E. Sherwood coined the term Voice of America to describe the shortwave network operating from 270 Madison Avenue in New York City. President Franklin Delano Roosevelt approved this initiative after recommendations from Colonel William J. Donovan and Robert E. Sherwood.
What was the impact of VOA broadcasts during the Hungarian Revolution of 1956?
VOA broadcasts were deemed controversial during the Hungarian Revolution of 1956 because refugees believed Western aid might arrive soon based on their reporting. The agency also faced electronic jamming initiated by the Soviet Union on the 24th of April 1949 which cost approximately $125 million annually to maintain.
How many staff members work at Voice of America as of 2022?
As of 2022, the agency employed 961 staff members with an annual budget totaling $267.5 million. This workforce reached an audience of approximately 326 million people weekly compared to 237 million in 2016.
When did Voice of America become subject to government shutdown orders in 2025?
On the 14th of March 2025, President Trump signed an executive order labeling the agency as the Voice of Radical America and reducing functions to minimum legal requirements. Layoff notices were sent to six hundred thirty-nine employees on the 20th of June 2025 effectively shutting down most operations.