News For 21 Countries In 28 Languages
RFE/RL is an independent, international news and broadcast organization to Eastern and Southeastern Europe, Russia, the Caucasus, the Middle East, and Central and Southwest Asia (
click here for a map). It is funded by the U.S. Congress through the
Broadcasting Board of Governors.
Through broadcasts in 28 languages, RFE/RL provides news, information, and responsible discussion of domestic and international issues to countries where free and independent media are not permitted, or not yet fully established. Today, more than 30 million listeners and readers in 21 countries including Russia, Iran, Afghanistan, and Iraq rely on RFE/RL's daily programming -- radio, Internet, and television -- for a balanced and reliable account of events in their region and the world.
Based on the conviction that the first requirement of democracy is a well-informed citizenry, and building on a half-century of experience in surrogate broadcasting, RFE/RL aims to empower people in their struggle against autocratic institutions, violations of human rights, centralized economies, ethnic and religious hostilities, regional conflicts, and controlled media (also see
RFE/RL's mission statement).
RFE/RL operates one of the most comprehensive news operations in the world, with 19 bureaus and over 750 freelancers. More than 1,000 hours of programming a week are broadcast from the RFE/RL headquarters in Prague, Czech Republic. RFE/RL also maintains a corporate office in Washington, D.C.
RFE/RL programs can be heard on shortwave frequencies by listeners across the entire
broadcast region. RFE/RL has also built a network of more than 260 affiliate partner organizations that re-broadcast radio and television programming on over 650 transmitters across 11 time zones. Political circumstances do not currently permit local rebroadcasting in Belarus, Iran, Turkmenistan, Tajikistan, and Uzbekistan
Management / OversightDr. Jeffrey Gedmin was named president of RFE/RL, Inc. on February 2, 2007. Immediately prior to his appointment, Dr. Gedmin had served since November 2001 as director of the Aspen Institute Berlin. Previously, Dr. Gedmin was a resident scholar at the American Enterprise Institute, where he also served as executive director of the New Atlantic Initiative.
RFE/RL operates under the oversight of the
Broadcasting Board of Governors (BBG), an independent, autonomous entity responsible for all U.S. government and government-sponsored, nonmilitary, international broadcasting. Under IRS rules, RFE/RL is a private, nonprofit Sec. 501(c) 3 corporation. Chartered in Delaware, it receives federal grants as a private grantee.
The mission of the
BBG is to promote freedom and democracy through the open communication of information and ideas. While the "Broadcasting Board of Governors" is the legal name given to the Federal entity encompassing all U.S international broadcasting services, the day-to-day broadcasting activities are carried out by the individual BBG international broadcasters: