All quiet on the Western front? 2012 challenges and opportunities in the five-year strategic plan for U.S. international broadcasting.

• Author: Heil, Alan L., Jr.

As the Voice of America marks its 70th anniversary, what lies ahead for all of the world's publicly-funded overseas networks in the year ahead? For Western broadcasters collectively, 2011 was the most potentially devastating year in more than eight decades on the air. Now, because of fiscal uncertainties in their host countries and rapidly evolving competition from both traditional and new media, they face huge cuts in airtime and operations. Can America step up to help fill the gap? A new strategic plan for U.S.-funded overseas broadcasting charts a possible path.

Over the years, the government networks in Europe and North America have offered a window on the world and a beacon of hope for hundreds of millions of information denied or impoverished people on the planet. They have done so by offering accurate, in depth, credible news, ideas, educational and cultural fare, consistent with Western journalistic norms and the free flow of information enshrined in the 1948 U.N. Declaration of Human Rights. The broadcasts have enhanced America's security, and even saved lives. They helped foster a largely peaceful end to the Cold War.

Consider, then, the events of the year past:

-- The BBC World Service, because of resource cuts, has lost five language services (Albanian, English to the Caribbean, Macedonian, Portuguese to Africa and Serbian). Seven more services, including Mandarin Chinese, Russian and Spanish to Cuba, have ended all radio programming, focusing instead, as appropriate, on mobile, television and on-line content and distribution. Over the next five years, World Service projections are a loss of 30 million of its 180 million radio listeners and a reduction of about a quarter of its professional staff. This is the result of a cut in grant-in-aid funding by the United Kingdom's Foreign and Commonwealth Office.

-- Germany's Deutsche Welle (DW) is also facing substantial reductions. DW discontinued shortwave radio broadcasts in German, Indonesian, Persian and Russian. Chinese will be halved from two hours to an hour daily. As 2012 dawned, Deutsche Welle scheduled reductions in its shortwave broadcasts from 260 to 55 hours each day. It remains on the air on shortwave in English only to Africa.

-- Radio Netherlands Worldwide (RNW) is an award-winning network distinguished for its documentary and in-depth cultural and public service broadcasting in English and other languages. But now, RNW funding is being cut 80 percent, effectively silencing one of the West's most attractive voices of reason to audiences everywhere.

-- France's overseas services, Radio France Internationale (RFI), France 24, and TV5, also are in the throes of an existential crisis. RFI and France 24 merger action has resulted in protest demonstrations by staff members affected. Finance ministry auditors in Paris have recommended ending all shortwave and AM radio programming of RFI worldwide to save money. Beginning January 1, shortwave is due to be cut from 102 to 60 hours daily after talks between RFI and TDF, the agency that has managed transmissions for RFI.

-- The Voice of America ended its broadcasts in Croatian last November 23. Earlier in the year, the Voice's oversight Broadcasting Board of Governors (BBG) had announced plans to abolish ten hours daily of VOA Chinese Mandarin shortwave broadcasts and an hour daily of TV as well as the Cantonese Service, while investing more in VOA new media services to the PRC. But that decision was wisely modified in the wake of the Arab awakening and expressions of Congressional concern. VOA Director David Ensor and BBG member Victor Ashe recently informed their Chinese Branch colleagues of a commitment to retain a multimedia VOA service to the PRC. Earlier reports were that they would retain some radio and double their TV programming to two hours a day to enter the growing satellite TV market in the PRC. New multimedia tools, such as a VOA Chinese language iPhone app, also are being developed.

Until a few months ago, the West's publicly-funded international broadcasters--including those of the United States--together reached at least a third of a billion adults around the world each week. Now, they face the prospect of losing tens of millions in audience share, even with the explosion of social media. All this, as Radio China International (RCI), Radio Russia, Iran's Press TV, and Qatar's Al Jazeera, significantly expand their operations. China, for example, spends two billion dollars a year on external media, about triple the outlay for all five publicly-funded U.S. overseas networks. Ironically, Beijing, Moscow, Tehran and Doha have all ramped up transmissions in English, just as the BBC and VOA have cut theirs back. In December, the five directors of the Western networks meeting in London noted increased jamming of international satellite TV programming in 2011, especially by Iran. They called on the International Telecommunication Union in Geneva to take up the issue at an upcoming meeting. The director generals also appealed to satellite operators and service providers "to recognize the importance of the...