The Southern Ontario/WNY Radio-TV Forum / The VOA Is Pretty Much Dead After Friday's Latest Mass Firings

**Posted by RadioActive** June 20, 2025 8:24 pm

The Voice of America was supposed to transmit news into countries that didn't permit events to be heard without censorship. But now it's the VOA that's been all but censored after the U.S. government ordered the termination of more than 639 remaining staff members of the radio station on Friday, leaving barely 100 people left with the organization.

It comes at a time when there are two major wars ongoing, many despotic countries are restricting access to news and world tensions are at an all time high.

And it truly is the end of an era that goes back a long time.

"The move likely marks an end to VOA, which was founded in 1942 to counter Nazi propaganda, operated in nearly 50 languages and reached 360 million people a week, many living under authoritarian regimes."

It was for many shortwave listeners a signal that could always be counted on, broadcasting on several wavelengths. Those beacons are now silent.

Voice of America parent terminates over 600 more staff in likely death knell

**Posted by darcyh** June 20, 2025 9:51 pm

Problem is hardly anyone has a shortwave radio and like AM / medium wave there is so much electrical noise that receiving anything can be challenging.

Additionally most people would not know a shortwave radio (much less how to tune it) from a banana.

**Posted by Shorty Wave** June 21, 2025 7:49 am

As a kid we lived in Africa and shortwave radio was prevalent. VOA was one of the stations we would listen to find out what was really going on in the world, as local broadcasts usually towed the government line. They even had a pop music program, which I liked as they played stuff we’d never heard locally! It sad that VOA is gone and as RadioActive pointed out, there are two major wars happening and news will be restricted, if not blocked completely in those regions.