The Newport Jazz Festival is an annual American multi-day jazz music festival held every summer in Newport, Rhode Island . Elaine Lorillard established the festival in 1954, and she and husband Louis Lorillard financed it for many years. They hired George Wein to organize the first festival and bring jazz to Rhode Island.
107-599: Most of the early festivals were broadcast on Voice of America radio, and many performances were recorded and released as albums. In 1972, the Newport Jazz Festival was moved to New York City. In 1981, it became a two-site festival when it was returned to Newport while continuing in New York. From 1984 to 2008, the festival was known as the JVC Jazz Festival; in the economic downturn of 2009, JVC ceased its support of
214-438: A public diplomacy function. VOA's charter also requires it to be "a reliable and authoritative source of news" which "shall be accurate, objective, and comprehensive". The Voice of America Firewall was put in place with the 1976 VOA Charter and laws passed in 1994 and 2016 as a way of ensuring the integrity of VOA's journalism. This policy fights against propaganda and promotes unbiased and objective journalistic standards in
321-755: A "T": The number of languages varies according to the priorities of the United States government and the world situation. Before World War II, all American shortwave radio stations were in private hands. Privately controlled shortwave networks included the National Broadcasting Company 's International Network (or White Network), which broadcast in six languages, the Columbia Broadcasting System 's Latin American international network, which consisted of 64 stations located in 18 countries,
428-662: A black group. I sensed something big about them." Brian Epstein demanded the Shea scoreboard plug be cut off before the Beatles hit the stage but that didn't stop Sid from working with the Rascals over the next five years. He helped the New Jersey–based quartet in their rise from obscurity, changing their name from "the Rascals" to "the Young Rascals" in an attempt to avoid controversy because of
535-737: A contract basis was declined, so a follow-on show called Shortwave Radiogram began transmission on June 25, 2017, from the WRMI transmitting site in Okeechobee, Florida. The Bethany Relay Station , operational from 1944 to 1994, was based on a 625-acre (2.53 km ) site in Union Township (now West Chester Township) in Butler County, Ohio , near Cincinnati . Major transmitter upgrades first were undertaken around 1963, when shortwave and medium-wave transmitters were built, upgraded, or rebuilt. The site
642-676: A converted U.S. Coast Guard cutter Courier as a first mobile broadcasting ship . Control of VOA passed from the State Department to the U.S. Information Agency when the latter was established in 1953 to transmit worldwide, including to the countries behind the Iron Curtain and to the People's Republic of China. From 1955 until 2003, VOA broadcast American jazz on the Voice of America Jazz Hour . Hosted for most of that period by Willis Conover ,
749-475: A formal statement of principles to protect the integrity of VOA programming and define the organization's mission, and was issued by Director George V. Allen as a directive in 1960 and was endorsed in 1962 by USIA director Edward R. Murrow . VOA's charter was signed into law by President Gerald Ford . VOA's charter requires it to "present the policies of the United States clearly and effectively." Academics including Téwodros W. Workneh have described this as
856-559: A high school senior in Westchester County, New York , had a Monday night program in which he shared everyday happenings in Yorktown Heights, New York . Brown's program ended due to its popularity: his "chatty narratives" attracted so much fan mail, VOA couldn't afford the $ 500 a month in clerical and postage costs required to respond to listeners' letters. During 1953, VOA personnel were subjected to McCarthyist policies, where VOA
963-649: A jazz jam session hosted by organist Jimmy Smith and featuring, among others, Art Blakey , Hampton Hawes , Sonny Stitt , and Howard McGhee . Friday afternoon featured a rock-oriented bill featuring the jazz-fusion group Blood, Sweat & Tears , eclectic jazz saxophonist Rahsaan Roland Kirk , and the rock acts The Jeff Beck Group , Ten Years After , and Jethro Tull . Saturday's schedule mixed jazz acts, such as Dave Brubeck and Miles Davis , with rock, blues and R&B artists such as John Mayall , Sly & The Family Stone , Frank Zappa and his band The Mothers of Invention , and O. C. Smith . Sunday's bill featured
1070-399: A lawn. These performances were given by a number of notable jazz musicians, including Billie Holiday , and were emceed by Stan Kenton . The festival was hailed by major magazines and newspapers, and some 13,000 people attended between the two days. In general, the festival was regarded as a major success. In 1955, organizers were planning a second year for the festival but needed to find
1177-663: A lineup entirely of jazz performers, including McCoy Tyner , Dexter Gordon , Miles Davis, Dave Brubeck, Dizzy Gillespie, and Art Blakey. The festival was immediately successful upon returning to Newport, although no longer quite the draw it had been in its first years, owing to shifting interests and to the proliferation of competing festivals. Future installments in the 1980s and 1990s also predominantly featured jazz performers, although acts in other genres continued to appear sporadically, including return performances by B.B. King and Ray Charles in 1984, and blues rock guitarist Stevie Ray Vaughan and his band Double Trouble in 1985. In 1988,
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#17328446228361284-527: A morning performance of Brubeck's oratio The Light in the Wilderness , an afternoon set by James Brown , and an evening finale headlined by the British rock band Led Zeppelin , jazz keyboardist Herbie Hancock , blues guitarists B. B. King and Johnny Winter , and jazz drummer Buddy Rich and his orchestra. Davis remarked that the various artists involved were highly encouraging to each other and that he enjoyed
1391-583: A new directive from Russia's Kremlin after a new law was passed by the State Duma (Russia's lower house of parliament) and the upper house Federation Council and signed by Russian President Vladimir Putin , Voice of America was deemed a "foreign agent" under the Russian foreign agent law . In June 2021, the Russian news agency TASS reported that Russia's state communications watchdog Roskomnadzor complained that
1498-415: A new venue. The Newport Casino would not again host the festival since its lawn and other facilities did not stand up well to such a large event. Festival backer Elaine Lorillard , with her husband, purchased " Belcourt ", a large estate which was available locally, in hopes of hosting the festival there. However, the neighborhood disallowed that plan, citing concerns about potential disturbance. Consequently,
1605-560: A note of their music. In late December 1963, the still unknown Beatles were introduced to the Tidewater area of Virginia. Almost every other song played by the area's DJs were Beatle records, accompanied by giveaways of shirts and other promotional items. By the first week of January 1964, as the Beatles were introduced to the New York City area, the same phenomenon occurred complemented by all sorts of contests and gifts. On February 12, 1964,
1712-410: A number of jazz musicians but was financially unsuccessful. Bernstein announced that he would not seek to return to Newport in 1962. In 1962, the Newport Jazz Festival resumed at Freebody Park. Wein did not resurrect the extinct not-for-profit organization which had run the Newport Jazz Festival through 1960; instead, he freshly incorporated the festival as an independent business venture of his own. He
1819-545: A part of several agencies. From its founding in 1942 to 1945, it was part of the Office of War Information , and then from 1945 to 1953 as a function of the State Department. VOA was placed under the U.S. Information Agency in 1953. When the USIA was abolished in 1999, VOA was placed under the BBG which is an autonomous U.S. government agency, with bipartisan membership. The Secretary of State has
1926-696: A part of the United States Information Agency (USIA), and established the Broadcasting Board of Governors (BBG) with oversight authority, which took control from the Board for International Broadcasters which previously had overseen funding for RFE/RL. In 1998, the Foreign Affairs Reform and Restructuring Act was signed into law, and mandated that the BBG become an independent federal agency as of October 1, 1999. This act also abolished
2033-516: A pattern of favoritism that materially benefitted some employees and contractors at the expense of the public. However, within hours after President Biden took office, Sieg was reinstated then transferred to a different role by then-acting VOA Director Yolanda Lopez and cleared of wrongdoing. Lopez abruptly resigned in September 2023 as the Committee intensified its investigation. In its June 2024 report,
2140-453: A riot, to announce that the Sunday evening Led Zeppelin appearance was cancelled. That show was allowed to go forward as initially scheduled after much of the overflow crowd had left the city, following the cancellation announcement. The 1970 festival was three days instead of the usual four with an estimated attendance of 40,400. Promoter George Wein reverted to an all-jazz policy after he stated
2247-452: A seat on the BBG. The BBG was established as a buffer to protect VOA and other U.S.-sponsored, non-military, international broadcasters from political interference. It replaced the Board for International Broadcasting (BIB) that oversaw the funding and operation of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty , a branch of VOA. In 2021, Voice of America launched 52 Documentary, a series that publishes weekly films about human experiences. They publish on
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#17328446228362354-687: A similar named group. Bernstein also brought British bands including the Rolling Stones , Herman's Hermits , the Moody Blues , and the Kinks to America. He also organized concerts for Tony Bennett , Ray Charles , Judy Garland , Frank Sinatra , Jimi Hendrix , Laura Nyro , Laura Branigan , Melanie and Sly & the Family Stone . James Brown said that Bernstein "was in the forefront of race relations" by booking African-American musicians during
2461-593: A television service, as well as special regional programs to Cuba, Radio Martí and TV Martí . Cuba has consistently attempted to jam such broadcasts and has vociferously protested U.S. broadcasts directed at Cuba. In September 1980, VOA started broadcasting to Afghanistan in Dari and in Pashto in 1982. In 1981, VOA opened a bureau in Beijing, China. The next year, it began regular exchanges with Radio Peking . In 1985, VOA Europe
2568-548: A trend of using the "Newport Jazz Festival" name outside of Newport, as in the Newport Jazz Festival in Madarao , Japan, from 1982 to 2004. During the 1970s, the Newport Jazz Festival pioneered corporate sponsorship of music festivals. Working with Schlitz and KOOL , the festival changed its name based on what company was sponsoring. In 1981, George Wein brought the Newport Jazz Festival back to Newport, partly to preserve
2675-527: A variety show with more than 50 musicians. Bernstein died on August 21, 2013, in Manhattan , nine days after his 95th birthday. He was survived by his wife Geraldine Gale; and their four sons, two daughters and seven grandchildren. Bernstein wrote or coauthored several books: At age 93, Bernstein released his first album as a singer. Sid Bernstein Presents... is a collection of some of his favorite songs, and
2782-622: A voluntary basis, through its Foreign Information Service (FIS) headed by playwright Robert E. Sherwood , who served as President Franklin Delano Roosevelt 's speech writer and information advisor. Direct programming began a week after the United States' entry into World War II in December 1941, with the first broadcast from the San Francisco office of the FIS via General Electric's KGEI transmitting to
2889-476: A weekly worldwide audience of approximately 326 million (up from 237 million in 2016) and employed 961 staff with an annual budget of $ 267.5 million. The Voice of America website had five English-language broadcasts as of 2014 (worldwide, Learning English , Cambodia , Zimbabwe , and Tibet ). Additionally, the VOA website has versions in 48 foreign languages. Radio programs are marked with an "R"; TV programs with
2996-875: A year jamming it." Chinese-language VOA broadcasts were jammed beginning in 1956 and extending through 1976. However, after the collapse of the Warsaw Pact and the Soviet Union, interviews with participants in anti-Soviet movements verified the effectiveness of VOA broadcasts in transmitting information to socialist societies. The People's Republic of China diligently jams VOA broadcasts. Cuba has also been reported to interfere with VOA satellite transmissions to Iran from its Russian-built transmission site at Bejucal . David Jackson, former director of Voice of America, noted: "The North Korean government doesn't jam us, but they try to keep people from listening through intimidation or worse. But people figure out ways to listen despite
3103-593: Is an international broadcasting state media network funded by the federal government of the United States of America . It is the largest and oldest of the U.S. international broadcasters. VOA produces digital, TV, and radio content in 48 languages, which it distributes to affiliate stations around the world. Its targeted and primary audience is non-American outside of the US borders. As of November 2022, its reporting reached 326 million adults per week across all platforms. It
3210-492: Is financed by the U.S. Agency for Global Media after approval by Congress. VOA was established in 1942, and the VOA charter was signed into law in 1976 by U.S. President Gerald Ford . It is headquartered in Washington, D.C., and overseen by the U.S. Agency for Global Media (USAGM), an independent agency of the U.S. government . Funds are appropriated annually under the budget for embassies and consulates. As of 2022, VOA had
3317-760: Is now a recreational park with a Voice of America museum. Other former sites include California ( Dixon and Delano ), Hawaii, Okinawa , Liberia (Monrovia), Costa Rica, Belize, and at least two in Greece ( Kavala and Rhodos). Between 1983 and 1990, VOA made significant upgrades to transmission facilities in Botswana ( Selebi-Phikwe ), Morocco, Thailand ( Udon Thani ), Kuwait, and São Tomé ( Almas ). Some of them are shared with Radio Liberty and Radio Free Asia . VOA and USAGM continue to operate shortwave radio transmitters and antenna farms at International Broadcasting Bureau Greenville Transmitting Station (known as "Site B") in
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3424-555: The 602nd Anti-Aircraft Artillery Gun Battalion of the United States Army . After the end of the war he returned to New York and became the manager of mambo musician Esy Morales , as well as acting as a booking agent . He started work for the General Artists Corporation (GAC), and by the early 1960s was working as a booking agent for pop stars such as Dion and Chubby Checker . Bernstein helped jump start
3531-798: The Arabic service, were discontinued in 1945. In late 1945, VOA was transferred to the US Department of State. Also included among the cultural diplomacy programming on the Columbia Broadcasting System was the musical show Viva America (1942–49) which featured the Pan American Orchestra and the artistry of several noted musicians from both North and South America, including Alfredo Antonini , Juan Arvizu , Eva Garza , Elsa Miranda , Nestor Mesta Chaires , Miguel Sandoval , John Serry Sr. , and Terig Tucci . By 1945, broadcasts of
3638-586: The BBC , Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty , and Deutsche Welle were blocked in Russia, as after the Russian invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, Russian authorities increased censorship of independent journalism, anti-war protests, and dissenting voices. Nevertheless, many Russians have used VPNs and other software to get around Russian government blocks. As of March 2022, VOA broadcasts were reaching people in Russia and
3745-883: The British Broadcasting Corporation to share medium-wave transmitters in Great Britain, and expanded into Tunis in North Africa and Palermo and Bari, Italy , as the Allies captured these territories. The OWI also set up the American Broadcasting Station in Europe . Asian transmissions started with one transmitter in California in 1941; services were expanded by adding transmitters in Hawaii and, after recapture,
3852-500: The British Invasion as the first concert promoter to bring the Beatles over to the United States from Britain . An Anglophile , he contacted Beatles manager Brian Epstein in early 1963 after reading about the group in several British newspapers. Persuading Epstein that they could be successful in the US, he booked Carnegie Hall for their first appearance without informing the venue of their style of music and never hearing
3959-601: The Clinton administration advised cutting funding for Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty , as it believed post-Cold War information and influence was not needed in Europe. This plan was not well received, and US President Bill Clinton then proposed the compromise of the International Broadcasting Act , which he signed into law in 1994. This law established the International Broadcasting Bureau as
4066-634: The Crosley Broadcasting Corporation in Cincinnati, Ohio, and General Electric which owned and operated WGEO and WGEA, both based in Schenectady, New York , and KGEI in San Francisco , all of which had shortwave transmitters . Experimental programming began in the 1930s, but there were fewer than 12 transmitters in operation. In 1939, the U.S. Federal Communications Commission set
4173-560: The Duke Ellington Orchestra's lengthy 1956 performance of " Diminuendo and Crescendo in Blue ", featuring a 27-chorus saxophone solo by Paul Gonsalves . A reconstructed Ellington at Newport , from his 1956 performance, was re-issued in 1999. Aside from the actual festival performance of " Diminuendo and Crescendo in Blue ", including the distant-sounding Gonsalves solo, the original album used re-creations, note for note, of some of
4280-613: The Gigi Gryce - Donald Byrd Jazz Laboratory and the Cecil Taylor Quartet featuring Steve Lacy were released on At Newport (1958). The performance of Count Basie was issued as Count Basie at Newport in 1958. The notable film Jazz on a Summer's Day was made from footage of the 1958 Newport Jazz Festival featuring such performers as Louis Armstrong, Anita O'Day and Mahilia Jackson. The film and its soundtrack have been widely released on VHS, DVD, Vinyl and CD. Performances at
4387-570: The Iron Curtain . Practically all defectors during Kohler's time said that the VOA helped in their decision to defect. Another indication of impact, according to Kohler, was the Soviet response. Kohler argued that the Soviets responded because the VOA was having an impact. Based on Soviet responses, it can be presumed that the most effective programs were ones that compared the lives of those behind and outside
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4494-474: The Philippines . By the end of the war, VOA had 39 transmitters and provided service in 40 languages. Programming was broadcast from production centers in New York and San Francisco, with more than 1,000 programs originating from New York. Programming consisted of music, news, commentary, and relays of U.S. domestic programming, in addition to specialized VOA programming. About half of VOA's services, including
4601-631: The VHS video cassette, offered a sponsorship package, and Kool agreed to withdraw its sponsorship for financial reasons. That year the event was renamed the JVC Jazz Festival. That year's lineup reflected a shift away from an almost exclusive focus on mainstream jazz, and introcuded blues, soul, and experimental jazz performers. Performers included Charles, Gillespie, Davis, Ron Carter, and Flora Purim. Coverage in The Providence Journal characterized
4708-523: The 1960 festival by Muddy Waters and Nina Simone were released as the albums At Newport 1960 and Nina Simone at Newport (1960). The 1962 Festival is documented in a film released by Storyville Records . Among the performers are Lambert, Hendricks & Bavan , the Oscar Peterson Trio, Roland Kirk , Duke Ellington , and the Count Basie Orchestra featuring Jimmy Rushing , at
4815-413: The 1960s. In 1964, he brought many Israeli singers to the United States for their first major concerts, among them Shoshana Damari , Shaike Ophir and Yaffa Yarkoni , who appeared at Carnegie Hall a year after the Beatles. He was the first to stage a rock show at Madison Square Garden . He teamed with Shirley MacLaine in 1972 to produce Star-Spangled Women for McGovern–Shriver in ten days –
4922-515: The 1967 festival was released as part of the Holy Ghost: Rare & Unissued Recordings (1962–70) box set (2004). An Ella Fitzgerald performance from Carnegie Hall in July 1973 was documented on the album Newport Jazz Festival: Live at Carnegie Hall (1973). Past performers at the Newport Jazz Festival include: 41°28′38″N 71°20′22″W / 41.47722°N 71.33944°W / 41.47722; -71.33944 Voice of America Voice of America ( VOA or VoA )
5029-461: The Beatles Shea concert, Bernstein had the phrase " the Rascals are coming!" displayed on the Shea Stadium scoreboard. "I had met the Rascals in the summer of '65 though Billy Smith (Amato) who actually discovered this group in Westhampton Long Island playing at a nightclub called the Barge. I put their name up on the scoreboard (at Shea) – 'The Rascals are coming! The Rascals are coming!' A lot of people who hadn't seen pictures of them thought they were
5136-562: The Beatles played two concerts at Carnegie Hall, three days following an historic appearance on The Ed Sullivan Show . On August 15, 1965, Bernstein also booked them at Shea Stadium , a show that Bernstein described as "inaudible." After a final world tour, including another Bernstein produced Shea Stadium performance, the group retired from touring in 1966 and split up in April 1970. Bernstein made many attempts to persuade them to re-form, at one point taking out full-page newspaper articles asking them to perform together for charity. During
5243-416: The Committee found that the original allegations had merit and were supported by substantial evidence. Sieg remains employed at VOA. Sid Bernstein (impresario) Sidney Bernstein (August 12, 1918 – August 21, 2013) was an American music promoter , talent manager , and author. Bernstein changed the American music scene in the 1960s by bringing the Beatles , the Rolling Stones , Herman's Hermits ,
5350-435: The Festival would be cancelled. Poet Langston Hughes , on the grounds, wrote an impromptu lyric called "Goodbye Newport Blues" and brought it to Muddy Waters , who was headlining the Sunday blues presentation. They announced a spontaneous performance of the piece with pianist Otis Spann leading the band. Likewise the Nashville All-Stars retreated to their rented mansion and recorded a live album on its porch, called After
5457-517: The Greek service ended after 72 years on air. RFE/RL launched the Russian language Current Time TV , in October 2014. In January 2016, upon his arrival in Moscow, Russian authorities detained and then deported Jeff Shell , the Chairman of the Broadcasting Board of Governors that oversees the Voice of America, despite his having a valid Russian visa. Russian authorities did not explain their actions. Round-the-clock broadcasting of Current Time began on February 7, 2017. In December 2017, under
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#17328446228365564-476: The House Foreign Affairs Committee concluded that there was "credible evidence of corruption" regarding the matter of Setareh Derakhshesh Sieg, the former director of Voice of America's Persian News Network (PNN). Following a series of whistleblower complaints and an extensive internal investigation by civil servants, Sieg had been terminated in January 2021 for falsifying her education credentials, severe abuses of taxpayer dollars for personal benefit, and engaging in
5671-596: The Iron Curtain, questions on the practice of slave labor, as well as lies and errors in Stalin 's version of Marxism . In 1947, VOA started broadcasting to the Soviet citizens in Russia under the pretext of countering "more harmful instances of Soviet propaganda directed against American leaders and policies" on the part of the internal Soviet Russian-language media, according to John B. Whitton's treatise, Cold War Propaganda . The Soviet Union responded by initiating electronic jamming of VOA broadcasts on April 24, 1949. Charles W. Thayer headed VOA in 1948–49. Over
5778-418: The Jazz Futures ensemble of young jazz musicians that also featured Roy Hargrove and Antonio Hart . In 2016, McBride was selected as the festival's artistic director and lineup curator. In early 2007, Newport Jazz Festival producer George Wein sold his Festival Productions company to Festival Network, a company operated by former Shoreline Media executive Chris Shields. Festival Networked owned and operated
5885-414: The Moody Blues , and the Kinks to America . He was the first impresario to organize rock concerts at sports stadiums. Bernstein was born in New York City in 1918 and was adopted by a Russian Jewish family. He studied journalism at Columbia University before working in a ballroom and joining the US Army in 1943. During World War II , he was stationed in Britain and also served in France with
5992-450: The Newport Jazz Festival legacy and to protect his interest in the Newport Jazz Festival name. Arrangements with the title sponsor of the Newport Jazz Festival-New York had seen that festival promoted as the "Kool Jazz Festival". The revived festival took place at Fort Adams State Park, where it has remained since. Newport, now quite keen to tourism, was extremely receptive to the resumption of its Newport Jazz Festival. The 1981 bill featured
6099-418: The Newport Jazz Festival with Wein in a senior position. Starting in 2007, the Newport festival began serving beer and wine at Fort Adams State Park. Wein began running the festival again in 2009 after the company that owned the event experienced financial difficulty. In 2011, Wein established the non-profit Newport Festivals Foundation, which has operated the jazz and folk festivals since. The 2020 festival
6206-437: The Philippines in English (other languages followed). The next step was to broadcast to Germany, which was called Stimmen aus Amerika ("Voices from America") and was transmitted on February 1, 1942. It was introduced by the “ Battle Hymn of the Republic " and included the pledge: "Today, and every day from now on, we will be with you from America to talk about the war... The news may be good or bad for us – We will always tell you
6313-414: The Riot at Newport . On Monday the 4th the last two days of the festival were indeed cancelled. The 1960 event was also notable for the presence of a rival jazz festival that took place at the Cliff Walk Manor Hotel, just a few blocks away. This was organized by musicians Charles Mingus and Max Roach in protest against the festival paying less to jazz innovators, compared to more mainstream performers;
6420-438: The U.S. consolidated its international broadcasting efforts, with the establishment of the Bureau of Broadcasting. With the breakup of the Soviet bloc in Eastern Europe, VOA added many additional language services to reach those areas. This decade was marked by the additions of services in Standard Tibetan , Kurdish (to Iran and Iraq), Serbo-Croatian (Croatian, Serbian, Bosnian), Macedonian , and Rwanda-Rundi . In 1993,
6527-521: The US government's international English language TV service Worldnet , became part of VOA as "VOA TV". Radio programs in Russian ended in July 2008. In September 2008, VOA eliminated the Hindi-language service after 53 years. Broadcasts in Ukrainian, Serbian, Macedonian, and Bosnian also ended. These reductions were part of American efforts to concentrate more resources to broadcast to the Muslim world . In September 2010, VOA began radio broadcasts in Sudan. As U.S. interests in South Sudan grew, there
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#17328446228366634-633: The USIA, and merged most of its functions into those of the State Department. In 1994, Voice of America became the first broadcast-news organization to offer continuously updated programs on the Internet. The Arabic Service was abolished in 2002 and replaced by a new radio service, called the Middle East Radio Network or Radio Sawa , with an initial budget of $ 22 million. Radio Sawa offered mostly Western and Middle Eastern popular songs with periodic brief news bulletins. The Arabic Service expanded to television with Alhurra on February 14, 2004 (and later to various social media and websites). On May 16, 2004,
6741-421: The United States, close to Greenville, North Carolina . They do not use FCC -issued call signs , since the FCC does not regulate communications by other federal government agencies. The International Broadcasting Bureau also operates transmission facilities on São Tomé and Tinang, Concepcion, Tarlac , Philippines for VOA. [REDACTED] Kosovo Republic of Kosovo (2008–present) On June 12, 2024,
6848-466: The VOA was serving its purpose, which he identified as aiding in the fight against communism. He argued that the numbers of listeners they were getting such as 194,000 regular listeners in Sweden, and 2.1 million regular listeners in France, was an indication of a positive impact. As further evidence, he noted that the VOA received 30,000 letters a month from listeners all over the world, and hundreds of thousands of requests for broadcasting schedules. There
6955-549: The agency. The charter is one part of this firewall and the other laws assist in ensuring high standards of journalism. According to former VOA correspondent Alan Heil, the internal policy of VOA News is that any story broadcast must have two independently corroborating sources or have a staff correspondent witness an event. VOA Radiogram was an experimental Voice of America program that started in March 2013 and ended in June 2017, which transmitted digital text and images via shortwave radiograms . There were 220 editions of
7062-422: The band's. Gonsalves' performance so excited the audience that the festival sponsors feared that the crowd was on the verge of rioting. The 1957 festival was well documented by Verve Records , which released 12 albums of recorded performances. The 1957 performances of Ella Fitzgerald , Billie Holiday , and Carmen McRae were released on the album Ella Fitzgerald and Billie Holiday at Newport (1958). Those by
7169-435: The broadcasts' actual impact. For example, in 1956, Polish People's Republic stopped jamming VOA transmissions, but People's Republic of Bulgaria continued to jam the signal through the 1970s. In 1966 Edward R. Murrow said that: "The Russians spend more money jamming the Voice of America than we have to spend for the entire program of the entire Agency. They spend about $ 125 million ($ 1,200,000,000 in current dollar terms)
7276-421: The closing. Part of the appearances by John Coltrane and Archie Shepp from the 1965 Festival appeared on the album New Thing at Newport . A set by Herbie Mann featuring Chick Corea , at that same year's festival, was released on the album Standing Ovation at Newport . Mann also released an album, mostly recorded at that performance, titled New Mann at Newport (1967). Albert Ayler 's performance at
7383-418: The continental United States does not meet the requirements for this service. Around 1940, shortwave signals to Latin America were regarded as vital to counter Nazi propaganda . Initially, the US Office of the Coordinator of Information sent releases to each station, but this was seen as an inefficient means of transmitting news. The director of Latin American relations at the Columbia Broadcasting System
7490-457: The country. Kohler used all of this as evidence to claim that the VOA helped to grow and strengthen the free world. It also influenced the UN in their decision to condemn communist actions in Korea, and was a major factor in the decline of communism in the "free world, including key countries such as Italy and France. In Italy, the VOA did not just bring an end to communism, but it caused the country to Americanize. The VOA also had an impact behind
7597-428: The documentary film Jazz on a Summer's Day the following year. In 1960, local papers on July 1 noted a string of violent, but minor, incidents in town on the opening Friday. Saturday was much worse, with thousands of people unable to enter the sold-out shows roaming the city streets and battling police. Some 200 people were arrested, a town record. The National Guard was called in. By Sunday word circulated that
7704-573: The early 1980s, VOA began a $ 1.3 billion rebuilding program to improve broadcast with better technical capabilities. During the implementation of the Martial law in Poland between 1981 and 1983, VOA's Polish broadcasts expanded to seven hours daily. Throughout the 1980s, VOA focused on covering events from the 'American hinterland', such as 150th anniversary of the Oregon Trail . Also in the 1980s, VOA also added
7811-440: The fact that the innovators were mostly black and the mainstream performers mostly white was also an aggravating factor. In 1961, presentation of the official Newport Jazz Festival was disallowed, due to the difficulties associated with the previous year's festival. In its place, another festival, billed as "Music at Newport", was produced by Sid Bernstein in cooperation with a group of Newport businessmen. That festival included
7918-692: The festival and was replaced by CareFusion . The festival is hosted in Newport at Fort Adams State Park . It is often held in the same month as the Newport Folk Festival . In 1954, the first Newport Jazz Festival (billed as the "First Annual American Jazz Festival") was held at Newport Casino , in the Bellevue Avenue Historic District of Newport, Rhode Island . It incorporated academic panel discussions and featured live musical performances. The live performances were set outdoors, on
8025-471: The festival began also hosting annual concerts at the Newport Casino , where the first festival was held in 1954, with performers such as Tony Bennett , Mel Tormé , Illinois Jacquet , k.d. lang , Diana Krall , Ray Charles, Harry Connick Jr. , and Wynton Marsalis . JVC became the primary sponsor of the festival in 1984; Wein stated that the audio-visual equipment company, which had recently developed
8132-477: The festival more than ever before. He also noticed and appreciated the spirited nature of the younger audience. But some clashes did occur. Excess crowds, estimated at 50,000, who had been unable to obtain tickets filled an adjacent hillside, and the weekend was marred by disturbances, including fence crashing and crowd surging, during the most popular performances. Saturday evening's disturbances were particularly significant, prompting producer George Wein, who feared
8239-528: The following policy, which was intended to enforce the US State Department 's Good Neighbor Policy , but which some broadcasters felt was an attempt to direct censorship: A licensee of an international broadcast station shall render only an international broadcast service which will reflect the culture of this country and which will promote international goodwill, understanding and cooperation. Any program solely intended for, and directed to an audience in
8346-427: The foreign agent Voice of America radio station challengingly refused to observe Russian law because it had not established a Russian legal entity. Roskomnadzor also said that VOA was as a foreign agent "obliged to mark their content and provide information about all aspects of their activity, including a detailed description of contacts with the authorities." In March 2022, VOA and other news broadcasters, including
8453-460: The free TIVAR app from the Google Play store using any Android device. The mode used most often on VOA Radiogram , for both text and images, was MFSK32 , but other modes were also occasionally transmitted. The final edition of VOA Radiogram was transmitted during the weekend of June 17–18, 2017, a week before the retirement of the program producer from VOA. An offer to continue the broadcasts on
8560-497: The jazz-fusion groups Chase , Soft Machine , and Weather Report . Many more fans were drawn than Festival Field could accommodate. On the second night, after the recording of what would become The Dave Brubeck Quartet featuring Gerry Mulligan – The Last Set at Newport , over 12,000 people on the adjacent hillside crashed the fence during Dionne Warwick 's performance of " What the World Needs Now Is Love ". The festival
8667-770: The lineup as "the most exciting in at least five years." The festival drew a varied crowd of 7,000 that year. The festival continued to take place annually at Fort Adams through the 1990s and 2000s. Along with established jazz performers such as Wynton Marsalis and George Benson, the festival also featured contemporary jazz musicians, as well as appearances from artists who performed other, related genres. These included: Tito Puente and Celia Cruz (1990), Tower of Power (1992), Thomas Chapin (1995), Medeski Martin & Wood (1997), Femi Kuti , Cassandra Wilson , John Zorn , and Maceo Parker (2000), Isaac Hayes (2002), Pat Metheny (2003), and Dr. John (2006). Bassist Christian McBride made his Jazz Festival debut in 1991 as part of
8774-559: The next few years, the U.S. government debated the best role of Voice of America. The decision was made to use VOA broadcasts as a part of U.S. foreign policy to fight the propaganda of the Soviet Union and other countries. The Arabic service resumed on January 1, 1950, with a half-hour program. This program grew to 14.5 hours daily during the Suez Crisis of 1956, and was six hours a day by 1958. Between 1952 and 1960, Voice of America used
8881-676: The next years, but Wein missed the outdoors of Newport which the venues of New York City failed to duplicate. In 1977, Wein worked with the city of Saratoga Springs, New York , to move the festival to the Saratoga Performing Arts Center during the following year. He established the Newport Jazz Festival-Saratoga and remained in New York City, retaining the Newport Jazz Festival-New York in what amounted to an expansion. The Saratoga addition began
8988-506: The night. The festival concluded on Sunday with performances from Roberta Flack , Gene McDaniels , Buddy Rich and Ella Fitzgerald . For 1971, the festival booked the rock group The Allman Brothers Band alongside an otherwise predominantly jazz and soul-oriented bill that included performances by Aretha Franklin , Ray Charles , Duke Ellington , Roberta Flack, Charles Mingus , Ornette Coleman , Dionne Warwick , Dave Brubeck, King Curtis , Dizzy Gillespie , and Herbie Mann , as well as
9095-588: The odds. They're very resourceful." Throughout the 1960s and 1970s, VOA covered some of the era's most important news, including Martin Luther King Jr. 's 1963 " I Have a Dream " speech and Neil Armstrong 's 1969 first walk on the Moon , which drew an audience estimated at between 615 and 750 million people. In 1973, due to the détente policies in the Cold War, Soviet jamming of the VOA ceased; it restarted in 1979. In
9202-470: The previous year had "maybe too much rock." On the first day there was a tribute to Louis Armstrong featuring Dizzy Gillespie , Bobby Hackett , Joe Newman , Wild Bill Davison , Jimmy Owns , and Ray Nance . Mahalia Jackson made a rare festival appearance to pay respects to Armstrong. Saturdays performers included Nina Simone and the Herbie Mann Quintet with Ike & Tina Turner closing out
9309-413: The program had 30 million listeners at its peak. A program aimed at South Africa in 1956 broadcast two hours nightly, and special programs such as The Newport Jazz Festival were also transmitted. This was done in association with tours by U.S. musicians, such as Dizzy Gillespie , Louis Armstrong , and Duke Ellington , sponsored by the State Department. From August 1952 through May 1953, Billy Brown,
9416-541: The program, transmitted each weekend from the Edward R. Murrow transmitting station. The audio tones that comprised the bulk of each 30-minute program were transmitted via an analog transmitter , and could be decoded using a basic AM shortwave receiver with freely downloadable software of the Fldigi family. This software was available for Windows , macOS , Linux , and FreeBSD systems. Broadcasts could also be decoded using
9523-465: The region through TV, FM and medium wave radio, digital, and direct-to-home satellite. In May 2023, Russia banned acting VOA chief Yolanda Lopez from ever entering the country. The current director, Michael Abramowitz, assumed the position in July 2024. He previously served as president of Freedom House and spent nearly 25 years as a reporter and editor for The Washington Post . Voice of America has been
9630-515: The set's highlights, which were re-recorded in the studio. The new set restored the original festival performance after a recording from the Voice of America (which broadcast the performance) was discovered and, among other things, the odd timbre of the Gonsalves performance. Gonsalves, it turned out, stepped up to the wrong microphone to play his legendary solo; he stepped up to the VOA's microphone and not
9737-458: The show were carried by 114 stations on CBS's "La Cadena de las Américas" network in 20 Latin American nations. These broadcasts proved to be highly successful in supporting President Roosevelt's policy of Pan-Americanism throughout South America during World War II. The VOA ramped up its operations during the Cold War . Foy Kohler , the director of VOA during the Cold War, strongly believed that
9844-538: The significant growth of shortwave radio listeners. During the Hungarian Revolution of 1956 , VOA's broadcasts were deemed controversial, as Hungarian refugees and revolutionaries thought that VOA served as a medium and insinuated the possible arrival of the Western aid. Throughout the Cold War , many of the targeted countries' governments sponsored jamming of VOA broadcasts, which sometimes led critics to question
9951-463: The streaming app, VOA+, and YouTube. Films average 10–15 minutes and are translated with captions in several languages, including Russian, Persian, Mandarin, Urdu, and English. Euna Lee directs the program. From 1948 until its amendment in 2013, Voice of America was forbidden to broadcast directly to American citizens, pursuant to § 501 of the Smith–Mundt Act . The intent of the 1948 legislation
10058-468: The truth." Roosevelt approved this broadcast, which then-Colonel William J. Donovan (COI) and Sherwood (FIS) had recommended to him. It was Sherwood who actually coined the term "The Voice of America" to describe the shortwave network that began its transmissions on February 1, from 270 Madison Avenue in New York City. The Office of War Information , when organized in the middle of 1942, officially took over VOA's operations. VOA reached an agreement with
10165-493: The workshops and receptions were held at Belcourt, while the music was presented at Freebody Park, an arena for sports located a block behind the casino. Some Newport residents were opposed to the festival. Jazz appreciation was not common within the established upper-class community, and the festival brought crowds of younger music fans to Newport. Many attendees were students who, in the absence of sufficient lodging, slept outdoors wherever they could, with or without tents. Newport
10272-488: Was Edmund A. Chester , and he supervised the development of CBS's extensive "La Cadena de las Américas" radio network to improve broadcasting to South America during the 1940s. Even before the December 1941 Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor , the U.S. government's Office of the Coordinator of Information (COI) had already begun providing war news and commentary to the commercial American shortwave radio stations for use on
10379-642: Was a desire to provide people with free information. In 2013, VOA ended foreign-language transmissions on shortwave and medium wave to Albania, Georgia, Iran, and Latin America, as well as English-language broadcasts to the Middle East and Afghanistan. This was done due to budget cuts. On July 1, 2014, VOA cut most of its English-language transmissions to Asia, as well as shortwave transmissions in Azerbaijani, Bengali, Khmer, Kurdish, Lao, and Uzbek. The following month,
10486-470: Was a music festival pioneer and would run many festivals besides the Newport Jazz Festival during his career. The 1964 festival was the last at Freebody Park, since the event had outgrown that venue also. Festival organizers saw a need to move the festival outside of the downtown area, since the festival-caused gridlock there was a contentious point in the community. A suitable site, actually a simple but ample field, which would become known as Festival Field ,
10593-402: Was accused by Senator Joseph McCarthy, Roy Cohn , and Gerard David Schine of intentionally planning to build weak transmitting stations to sabotage VOA broadcasts. However, the charges were dropped after one month of court hearings in February and March 1953. Sometime around 1954, VOA's headquarters were moved from New York to Washington D.C. The arrival of cheap, low-cost transistors enabled
10700-489: Was an analysis done of some of those letters sent in 1952 and 1953 while Kohler was still director. The study found that letter writing could be an indicator of successful, actionable persuasion. It was also found that broadcasts in different countries were having different effects. In one country, regular listeners adopted and practiced American values presented by the broadcast. Age was also a factor: younger and older audiences tended to like different types of programs, no matter
10807-462: Was at first not accustomed to this. Traffic gridlock and other contention near the downtown venue were legitimate concerns. Moreover, many of the musicians and their fans were African American. Racist attitudes were probably a factor in some residents' opposition to the festival too as it commonly was across the country at that time. Nonetheless, the festival continued annually and increased in popularity, aided in part by 1958 concert footage released as
10914-508: Was cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic crisis. Booked artists were invited to return in 2021. Citing his advancing age and the pandemic, founder George Wein was unable to attend the 2021 Newport Jazz Festival; it was only the third time he was not in attendance since the event's founding in 1954. Wein died on September 13, 2021. Two of the most famous performances in the festival's history are Miles Davis ' 1955 solo on " 'Round Midnight " and
11021-511: Was created as a special service in English that was relayed via satellite to AM, FM, and cable affiliates throughout Europe. With a contemporary format including live disc jockeys, the network presented top musical hits as well as VOA news and features of local interest (such as "EuroFax") 24 hours a day. VOA Europe was closed down without advance public notice in January 1997 as a cost-cutting measure. It
11128-492: Was followed by VOA Express, which from July 4, 1999, revamped into VOA Music Mix. Since November 1, 2014, stations are offered VOA1 (which is a rebranding of VOA Music Mix). In 1989, Voice of America expanded its Mandarin and Cantonese programming to reach the millions of Chinese and inform the country about the pro-democracy movement within the country, including the demonstration in Tiananmen Square. Starting in 1990,
11235-513: Was halted after the stage was rushed and equipment destroyed. The festival would not return to Newport in 1972. In 1972, festival producer George Wein transplanted the festival to New York City, calling it the Newport Jazz Festival-New York. An expanded format involved multiple venues, including Yankee Stadium and Radio City Music Hall , and comprised 30 concerts with 62 performers including Dave Brubeck , Ray Charles , Duke Ellington , Roberta Flack, and Dizzy Gillespie. This format continued for
11342-484: Was identified, and the move was completed for the 1965 festival. Frank Sinatra played the festival that year, and new attendance records were set. Festival Field remained the venue for the jazz festival until 1971. The festival's 1969 program was an experiment in fusing jazz, soul, and rock music, and their respective audiences. The Thursday evening set featured performances by jazz musicians Sun Ra , Bill Evans , George Benson , Freddie Hubbard , and Anita O'Day , and
11449-729: Was to protect the American public from propaganda by its own government and to avoid any competition with private American companies. The act was amended via the passage of the Smith-Mundt Modernization Act provision of the National Defense Authorization Act for 2013 . The amendment was intended to adapt the law to the Internet and to allow American citizens access to VOA content. Under the Eisenhower administration in 1959, VOA Director Henry Loomis commissioned
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