22 U.S. Code § 6202 - Standards and principles

(a) Broadcasting standards

United States international broadcasting shall—

(1) be consistent with the broad foreign policy objectives of the United States;

(2) be consistent with the international telecommunications policies and treaty obligations of the United States;

(3) not duplicate the activities of private United States broadcasters;

(4) not duplicate the activities of government supported broadcasting entities of other democratic nations;

(5) be conducted in accordance with the highest professional standards of broadcast journalism;

(6) be based on reliable information about its potential audience;

(7) be designed so as to effectively reach a significant audience; and

(8) promote respect for human rights, including freedom of religion.

(b) Broadcasting principles

United States international broadcasting shall include—

(1) news which is consistently reliable and authoritative, accurate, objective, and comprehensive;

(2) a balanced and comprehensive projection of United States thought and institutions, reflecting the diversity of United States culture and society;

(3) clear and effective presentation of the policies of the United States Government and responsible discussion and opinion on those policies, including editorials, broadcast by the Voice of America, which present the views of the United States Government;

(4) the capability to provide a surge capacity to support United States foreign policy objectives during crises abroad;

(5) programming to meet needs which remain unserved by the totality of media voices available to the people of certain nations;

(6) information about developments in each significant region of the world;

(7) a variety of opinions and voices from within particular nations and regions prevented by censorship or repression from speaking to their fellow countrymen;

(8) reliable research capacity to meet the criteria under this section;

(9) adequate transmitter and relay capacity to support the activities described in this section; and

(10) training and technical support for independent indigenous media through government agencies or private United States entities.

(c) Voice of America broadcasts

The long-range interests of the United States are served by communicating directly with the peoples of the world by radio. To be effective, the Voice of America must win the attention and respect of listeners. These principles will therefore govern Voice of America (VOA) broadcasts:

(1) VOA will serve as a consistently reliable and authoritative source of news. VOA news will be accurate, objective, and comprehensive.

(2) VOA will represent America, not any single segment of American society, and will therefore present a balanced and comprehensive projection of significant American thought and institutions.

(3) VOA will present the policies of the United States clearly and effectively, and will also present responsible discussions and opinion on these policies.

(Pub. L. 103–236, title III, § 303, Apr. 30, 1994, 108 Stat. 433; Pub. L. 103–415, § 1(p), Oct. 25, 1994, 108 Stat. 4301; Pub. L. 105–277, div. G, subdiv. A, title XIII, § 1323(d), Oct. 21, 1998, 112 Stat. 2681–778; Pub. L. 105–292, title V, § 502, Oct. 27, 1998, 112 Stat. 2811; Pub. L. 116–283, div. A, title XII, § 1299Q(b), Jan. 1, 2021, 134 Stat. 4021.)

Editorial Notes

Codification

Pub. L. 116–283, div. A, title XII, § 1299Q(b), Jan. 1, 2021, 134 Stat. 4021, which directed amendment of this section and was not executed, was itself amended by Pub. L. 116–260, div. O, title XIII, § 1301, Dec. 27, 2020, 134 Stat. 2158, to make it effective 90 days after Jan. 1, 2021. However, the amendment by Pub. L. 116–260 could not be executed because it was enacted before the provision from Pub. L. 116–283 that it amended.

Amendments

2021—Subsec. (a). Pub. L. 116–283, § 1299Q(b)(1), which directed insertion of “, including editorial independence” in subsec. (a) “before the semicolon at the end”, was not executed because subsec. (a) contains 6 pars. that have a semicolon at the end and the probable intent of Congress could not be determined.

Subsec. (b). Pub. L. 116–283, § 1299Q(b)(2), which directed amendment of subsec. (b) by inserting “, including editorial independence,” after “programing”, was not executed because the word “programing” did not appear and the word “programming” at the beginning of par. (5) could not be clearly identified as the intended target.

1998—Subsec. (a)(8). Pub. L. 105–292 added par. (8).

Subsec. (b)(3). Pub. L. 105–277, § 1323(d)(1), which directed amendment of par. (3) by inserting “, including editorials, broadcast by the Voice of America, which present the views of the United States Government” after “policies”, was executed by making insertion after “policies” the second time it appears to reflect the probable intent of Congress.

Subsec. (b)(4) to (10). Pub. L. 105–277, § 1323(d)(2), (3), added par. (4) and redesignated former pars. (4) to (9) as (5) to (10), respectively.

1994—Subsec. (c). Pub. L. 103–415 added subsec. (c).

Statutory Notes and Related Subsidiaries

Effective Date of 1998 Amendment

Amendment by Pub. L. 105–277 effective Oct. 1, 1999, see section 1301 of Pub. L. 105–277, set out as an Effective Date note under section 6531 of this title.

Broadcasting Information on States

Pub. L. 105–277, div. G, subdiv. B, title XXIV, § 2420, Oct. 21, 1998, 112 Stat. 2681–835, provided that:

“(a) In General.—

The Voice of America shall devote programming each day to broadcasting information on the individual States of the United States. The broadcasts shall include—

“(1) information on the products, tourism, and cultural and educational facilities of each State;

“(2) information on the potential for trade with each State; and

“(3) discussions with State officials with respect to the matters described in paragraphs (1) and (2).

“(b) Report.—

Not later than one year after the date of enactment of this Act [Oct. 21, 1998], the Broadcasting Board of Governors of the United States Information Agency shall submit a report to Congress detailing the actions that have been taken to carry out subsection (a).

“(c) State Defined.—

In this section, the term ‘State’ means any of the several States of the United States, the District of Columbia, or any commonwealth or territory of the United States.”