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VOA Debuts Two New Radio/Tv Simulcasts to China President Megawati Sukarnoputri Grants Exclusive First Interview VOA Expands Broadcasts to
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IN WAKE OF U.S. AIR STRIKES Washington, D.C., Oct. 7, 2001 – In the wake of today’s air strikes against the Taliban regime by the U.S. and Britain, the Voice of America will again expand it broadcasts to Afganistan, starting Oct. 8. In the second such expansion since last month’s terrorist attacks in New York and Washington, VOA will add 30 minutes to its Dari and Pashto language broadcasts, bringing each to a total of 2 hours and 15 minutes daily. Pashto will add a half hour from11:00 PM to 11:30 PM Kabul time, and Dari will add a half hour from 11:30 PM to midnight Kabul time. Research conducted last year showed that 80% of Afghan males listen to VOA broadcasts regularly. VOA’s Farsi and Arabic broadcasts were on the air as the U.S. announcement of the attacks came on Sunday afternoon and were able to cover President Bush’s remarks live in simultaneous translations, along with a live interview with State Department spokesman Richard Boucher. VOA also interviewed Andrew Natsios, administrator of the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) about humanitarian aid for the Afghan people. VOA Farsi continued broadcasting until 3:30 PM EDT (midnight Kabul time) in order to cover unfolding events (speakers of Dari are able to understand Farsi). As the Farsi broadcast came to an end, VOA added a special half-hour of broadcasting in Dari in order to continue its coverage of the military action. In addition to its correspondents in Islamabad, Pakistan, VOA is moving two reporters into northern Afghanistan from other areas of the world. VOA reporters will meanwhile continue their coverage of the White House, Capitol Hill, the Pentagon and the State Department. For additional information, please contact the Office
of External Affairs at (202) 619-2538 or send email to pubaff@voa.gov.
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