[NYTr] Radio Free Venezuela? Congress Votes $10 Million for VOA in Venez
 
Date: Fri, 22 Jun 2007 16:03:14 -0500 (CDT)


Via NY Transfer News Collective  *  All the News that Doesn't Fit
 
excerpted from VIO Venezuela Daily News Roundup - June 22, 2007.

[The U.S. House of Representatives voted to put $10 million toward
broadcasting Voice of America in Venezuela, the Miami Herald reported
yesterday.  The proposal was spearheaded by Connie Mack (R-FL), who
claimed that the channel, whose agenda is entirely dictated by the U.S.
government, would serve to foster freedom of the press there.  The move
comes in the wake of the widely misunderstood non-renewal of RCTV and
the founding of Venezuela's first public broadcaster, TVes.  Mack
claimed that the independent media in Venezuela has "died," despite the
fact that criticisms of Chavez persist in the press.  Voice of America
was founded in 1942 by the U.S. Office of War Information, and is the
official broadcasting service of the federal government, with a board
of governors appointed by the president. VIO]

The Miami Herald - June 21, 2007
http://www.miamiherald.com/579/story/146946.html

House OKs plan to broadcast to Venezuela

By Pablo Bachelet

WASHINGTON -- The House of Representatives Thursday approved an
amendment that would provide $10 million for the Voice of America to
boost its broadcasts to Venezuela, where news media freedoms have been
seen as under attack by President Hugo ChC!vez.

The amendment, proposed by Rep. Connie Mack, a Cape Florida lawmaker
who has been sharply critical of ChC!vez, suggests the Broadcast Board
of Governors, which oversees operations like the Voice of America and
Radio and TV MartC-, allot $10 million for its Venezuela operations.

''Freedom of the press died in Venezuela on May 27, 2007, when ChC!vez
shut down Radio Caracas Television,'' Mack said on the floor, referring
to RCTV, an opposition TV station that was denied its broadcast
license, triggering international condemnation.

''Voice of America must provide and create additional programs. With
targeted funding, Voice of America can have an even greater ability and
capability to broadcast longer with more programming,'' he said.

The amendment is part of the $34 billion State Department foreign
operations appropriations bill being debated in the House.

House rules did not allow for an outright increase in funding to the
Broadcast Board of Governors' budget of $661 million, but the text of
the Mack proposal sets the stage for including the additional VOA money
in the final bill that is thrashed out between Senate and House
negotiators, his office said.

Mack's proposal appeared to gain ground as Rep. Nita Lowie, a New York
Democrat who chairs the appropriations subcommittee that oversees the
State Department bill, immediately supported the initiative.

It passed on a voice vote.

Mack said ChC!vez was increasing his influence in places like Bolivia,
Ecuador and Nicaragua and was seeking warmer ties with Iran.

''ChC!vez's communist plans for the future do not include independent
media and freedom of the press,'' Mack said.
       
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