The Mission of U.S. International Broadcasting

Each broadcast entity has its own legislated mandate. The Board’s New Strategic Approach

The Board’s new approach to broadcasting represents an ambitious  attempt to reach larger audiences in key markets. The Board’s new strategic plan was issued in December 2002;  however, development of its new approach to broadcasting began in July  2001. These initiatives include the  Afghanistan Radio Network (ARN) and the new Radio Farda service to  Iran. The first program under the Board’s new approach, Radio Sawa in the  Middle East, was launched using modern, market-tested broadcasting  techniques and practices, such as the extensive use of music formats, to  improve performance in this priority market and lend support to the war on  terrorism by targeting youth audiences. How much will it cost? The Board’s strategic plan includes a frank assessment of the market  challenges that must be addressed to make U.S. international broadcasting  more competitive. Technology. Conclusions

The Broadcasting Board of Governors’ strategic plan embodies, defines,  and guides the Board’s new approach to U.S. international broadcasting,  which aims to dramatically increase the size of listening and viewing  audiences in markets of U.S. strategic interest while focusing on the war on  terrorism. However, the Board’s plan lacks measurable program objectives, detailed  implementation strategies, resource needs, and project time frames. We  identified a number of key areas that could provide a starting point for  developing multiyear program objectives that focus on the Board’s actual  effectiveness. These measures include audience size by language service,  audience awareness, broadcaster credibility, and whether VOA effectively  presents information about U.S. thought, institutions, and policies to target  audiences. The Board has identified a number of  market and internal challenges and proposed solutions to address them. Finally, the Board  needs to evaluate how many language services it can effectively carry and  what level of overlap and duplication in VOA and surrogate broadcast  services is appropriate. Resolving these key questions will have significant  resource implications for the Board and its ability to reach large audiences  in markets of priority interest to the United States. Recommendations for Executive Action

To improve overall management of U.S. international broadcast operations  and maximize their impact on U.S. public diplomacy efforts, we  recommend that the Chairman of the Broadcasting Board of Governors:  revise the BBG’s 5-year strategic plan to include measurable program  objectives, implementation strategies, resource requirements, and  project time frames;  include audience size, audience awareness, broadcaster credibility, and  VOA mission effectiveness as measurable program objectives in the  strategic plan;   revise the BBG’s annual performance plan to include performance goals  and indicators that track the Board’s progress in implementing the  multiyear program objectives established in the Board’s revised  strategic plan; and  revise the Board’s strategic plan to include a clear vision of the Board’s  intended scope-of-operations and the appropriate level of overlap and  duplication between VOA and surrogate language services.
Why GAO Did This Study

Prompted by a desire to reverse declining audience trends and to support the war on terrorism, the Broadcasting Board of Governors (BBG), the agency responsible for U.S. international broadcasting, began developing its new strategic approach to international broadcasting in July 2001. This approach emphasizes the need to reach mass audiences by applying modern broadcast techniques and strategically allocating resources to focus on high-priority markets. GAO was asked to examine (1) whether recent program initiatives have adhered to the Board's new strategic approach to broadcasting, (2) how the approach's effectiveness will be assessed, and (3) what critical challenges the Board faces in executing its strategy and how these challenges will be addressed.

What GAO Found

Consistent with its new plan to dramatically increase the size of U.S. international broadcasting listening and viewing audiences in markets of U.S. strategic interest, the Broadcasting Board of Governors has launched several new projects, including Radio Sawa in the Middle East, Radio Farda in Iran, and the Afghanistan Radio Network. These projects adhere to the Board's core strategy of identifying a target audience and tailoring each broadcast product to market circumstances and audience needs. The Board's plan lacks measurable program objectives designed to gauge the success of its new approach to broadcasting, detailed implementation strategies, resource needs, and project time frames. A number of key effectiveness measures could provide a starting point for developing measurable program objectives and related performance goals and indicators under the Board's annual performance plan. These measures include audience size in specific markets, audience awareness, broadcaster credibility, and whether the Voice of America (VOA) effectively presents information about U.S. thought, institutions, and policies to target audiences. The Board has identified a number of market and internal challenges--such as technological innovation and better coordination of its seven separate broadcast entities--that must be addressed to make U.S. international broadcasting more competitive. It has also developed a number of solutions to address these challenges. However, the Board has not addressed how many language services it can carry effectively (with the number rising nearly 20 percent over the past 10 years) and what level of overlap and duplication in VOA and surrogate broadcast services would be appropriate under its new approach to broadcasting. Resolving these questions will have significant resource implications for the Board and its ability to reach larger audiences in high-priority markets.