Obama (Finally) Talks to Voice of America

Helle Dale / June 24, 2011

The White House finally ended its boycott of Voice of America (VOA), the government’s own international broadcasting service, on Wednesday, hours before the President’s speech on U.S. troop withdrawal from Afghanistan.

Though every President since VOA’s creation in 1942 had appeared on air with VOA, Barack Obama had not; Obama preferred to reach the world via BBC World Service, Al-Arabaya, and others. Given the fact that the Administration has requested $767 million for international broadcasting, this omission was odd, to say the least. (more…)