VOA Marks 70th Year of US Broadcasts to China

Washington, D.C. — December 27, 2011
The Voice of America is celebrating the 70th anniversary of the first U.S. radio broadcasts to China, which began the 28th of December 1941, just weeks after the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor and the start of World War Two.

Voice of America was still months away from being officially established when the first Chinese language shortwave broadcasts were transmitted from studios in San Francisco. U.S. government broadcasting operations to China were eventually moved to New York and then Washington under the Voice of America.
VOA Director David Ensor hailed the distinguished line of journalists who have worked at the service and transformed it into a modern multi-media platform. "Because of the professionalism and creativity of our journalists, the Voice of America is a trusted source of news to the people of China and the world," Ensor said. "As we move forward, we plan to make VOA programming even more vibrant and dynamic."

Earlier this month, U.S. Congressman Dana Rohrabacher (R-CA) hosted a reception to honor VOA's China Branch journalists. Congresswoman Ileana Ros-Lehtinen (R-FL), who chairs the House Foreign Affairs Committee, issued a statement congratulating Voice of America for "70 years of outstanding broadcasts to China."
VOA programs in Mandarin, Cantonese and Tibetan are delivered on radio, television, the Internet, mobile platforms, satellite, and by proxy servers designed to circumvent Chinese Internet blocking. VOA English language teaching programs, including the social media sensation, OMG! Meiyu, enjoy a large audience in China.

(VOA Press Release)

VOA Chinese cuts deferred

From: Raymond K.Y. Yam
To: Save Voice of America Radio to China
Sent: Thursday, September 29, 2011 8:32 PM
Subject: [Save Voice of America Radio to China] This just in. Email from David Ensor, Director...
This just in. Email from David Ensor, Director of VOA

Colleagues in the China Branch,

I want to take this opportunity to share information with you about the FY 2012 budget and its possible impact on the Mandarin and Cantonese Services. I have been working closely with other senior agency managers on developments relating to VOA China programs and can confirm for you today that the proposed reductions to the VOA Mandarin and Cantonese Services will not take place on October 1.
These reductions were not included in either the Senate Full Committee or House Subcommittee Draft Funding Bills and no FY 2012 funding bill has been acted on by Congress.
I can assure you that I will continue to be actively engaged in this process and will keep you apprised.

Regards,
David Ensor

(Via Facebook )

Radio Silence in China: VOA Abandons the Airwaves

On October 1, 2011, Voice of America’s (VOA) Chinese radio service will go silent, as U.S. international broadcasting abandons the airwaves and moves to the Internet. In the burgeoning age of new media, many, including the management at Voice of America, seem to be questioning the continued relevance of shortwave radio.

Read the full story here :
http://www.heritage.org/Research/Lecture/2011/09/Radio-Silence-in-China-VOA-Abandons-the-Airwaves