Like all non-military U.S. public diplomacy broadcasting, VOA falls under the purview of the Broadcasting Board of Governors. The Board was originally formed to insulate VOA from direct political influence so that it could pursue neutrality in its programming. But just like everything else in Washington, the Board consists of political appointees and so political motivations inevitably impact VOA. This is an unavoidable problem, one that the government must navigate by creating a system that distributes power between the Board and VOA and provides for proper oversight of the entire operation.
Sounds easy enough, right?
Well, the problem is that the Board cannot properly oversee VOA because— get this—the agency does not produce English transcripts of its broadcasts. Let me say that another way: The agency tasked with overseeing the broadcasts that American taxpayers pay to create cannot do its job because the broadcasts aren't translated into our native language. Is this not akin to asking the I.R.S. to monitor the tax system using 1040s written in hieroglyphics?
If sunshine is the best disinfectant, then common sense is often the best antidote for what ails various Washington agencies. Accordingly, VOA should begin translating a significant number of its broadcasts into English immediately. It's just common sense. Doing so will not only allow the Board to exercise proper oversight over the VOA; it will also enable an army of journalists and bloggers to examine the content of VOA broadcasts. Knowing that the critical gaze of the American taxpayer is upon them cannot help but make VOA decision-makers clean up their act—something that's long overdue.