VOA might close
26/03/2014 00:00
Tear gas and water cannons amid the clashes in the DP opposition protest which ended after three hours in Tirana 26/11 21:13
The programs of Voice of America in Balkan languages might come to an
end. The Board of Broadcasting Governors, an agency of the United States
government that supervises Voice of America, published the budget
proposition for 2015 in which they plan to eliminate spending in Balkan
and increase them in Asia and Africa.
The Board of Broadcasting Governors asked 721 million USD from the Congress for the budget of 2015. 10 million USD less than the budget of 2014.
The program service for Albania, Bosnia-Herzegovina, Macedonia and Serbia will be eliminated, while those for Azerbaijan, Georgia, Iran and Uzbekistan will be reduced. Broadcasts in Cuba will also face cuts. The proposition for the budget of 2015 foresees closure of Voice of America offices in Jerusalem and Houston.
Dave Allison, Chairman of the Union that represents many of the Voice of America employees, says that VOA is abandoning its historic mission that started in 1942.
He said that the Balkan program employees had tears in their eyes after learning that their services would be stopped.
The request for the Budget 2015 includes initiatives for broadcasting platforms with videos for youth, and digital platforms for Cambodia, Vietnam and Burma.
The Board of Governors has planned to increase the usage of social media in China, and the programs against internet censorship. The board plans creating a new satellite channel and a radio station in the Sahel region, Northern-Central Africa. A new service will open in Lingala for the Democratic Republic of Congo.
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