Country | United States |
---|---|
Headquarters | Washington, D.C. |
Owner | U. S. federal government |
Parent | Voice of America |
Established | July 2003[1] |
Launch date | 18 October 1994 (TV) 22 November 1979 (Radio) |
Former names | VOA Persia Service[1] |
Budget | $23.78 million (FY2010)[1] |
Official website | Official website |
Language | Persian |
Voice of America Persian News Network (VOA-PNN) is a governmental international broadcaster of the United States of America in Persian language. Its headquarters are in Washington D.C. It started to broadcast its programs on 18 October 1994 with a one-hour television program. Its radio programs started on 22 November 1979 with 30 minutes broadcasting per day.
The first manager of the VOA-PNN was Ahmadreza Baharloo. Later managers were Kambiz Mohammadi, Shila Ganji, Behrouz Abbassi, Behrouz Souresrafil, James Glassman, Hida Fouladvand and Ramin Asgard. The current manager of the VOA-PNN is Setareh Derakhshesh.[2]
As of July 2007, VOA-PNN broadcast 1 hour of radio programming a day, 7 hours a day of original programming for television, and a website.[1]
In April 2007, VOA-PNN conducted a phone interview with Abdolmalek Rigi, the leader of Jundallah (which was later designated as a Foreign Terrorist Organization in 2010 by the U.S.)[3] and introduced him as the leader of the "popular resistance movement".[4][5] Following the event, Iran accused the U.S. of supporting terrorists by giving them the opportunity to speak.[6] The New York Times Magazine quoted Mehdi Khalaji as "[VOA administrators] do not seem to be able to distinguish between journalism and propaganda. If you host the head of Jondollah and call him a freedom fighter or present a Voice of America run by monarchists, Iranians are going to stop listening".[7] The act resembled the "hallmark of ideological objectivity" in VOA, and was criticized as an "irresponsible American embrace of violent regime change", according to Suzanne Maloney.[8]