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Additional News Releases

Washington, D.C., Sept. 19, 2001 – In order to cover more thoroughly the unfolding events following last week’s terrorist attacks, the Voice of America (VOA) has expanded news broadcasts in Arabic, Dari, Farsi, Pashto and Urdu to the Middle East and South and Central Asia (including Afghanistan).  Broadcasts feature expanded coverage of events in the United States and the region.  The daily broadcasts were increased as follows.
 

• Pashto extended by 30 minutes for a total of 1.75 hours. 
• Dari extended by 30 minutes for a total of 1.75 hours. 
• Urdu added 1 half-hour program for a total of 2 hours. 
• Arabic added 4 half-hour programs for a total of 9 hours. 
• Farsi added 2 half-hour programs for a total of 4.5 hours. 

Arabic, broadcast to 21 countries in the Middle East and North Africa, and Farsi, broadcast primarily to Iran, were expanded beginning on Sept. 11, 2001. Pashto and Dari, broadcast to Afghanistan and Pakistan, and Urdu, broadcast to Pakistan and India, were expanded beginning the early hours of Sept. 18, 2001.  VOA’s additional programming is broadcast via shortwave and mediumwave (AM) radio and live-streamed on the Internet at www.voanews.com. 

A survey of adult males in Afghanistan indicates VOA has an estimated weekly listenership of approximately 80 percent. VOA listeners surveyed indicated high regard for the relevance and credibility of the station’s programming - - 94 percent agreed VOA programs were "relevant to my interests," and 72 percent agreed that "VOA gives you the facts and lets you form your own opinions." 

The Voice of America is a multimedia international broadcasting service funded by the U.S. Government. VOA broadcasts over 900 hours of news, informational, educational, and cultural programming every week to a worldwide audience of 91 million.  Programs are produced and broadcast in English and 52 other languages.

For additional information, please contact the Office of External Affairs at (202) 619-2538 or send email to pubaff@voa.gov.