ABSTRACT
International radio in the country has no powerful constituency; the only people who have direct knowledge of the Radios are emigre groups. Beyond the ethnic groups, the mass of the people have no knowledge of the Radios at all and could not care less. The committees in each House which really know about the Radios and tend to be supportive are the Foreign Committees, that is to say, the Senate Foreign Relations Committee and the House Foreign Affairs Committee. In the Senate, the committees that carry great strength are the Appropriations Committee, the Armed Services Committee, the Finance Committee, the Labour Committee, the Education Committee – because they have huge constituencies. The United States is undertaking a build up of broadcast operations, building up both VOA and RFE/RL. President Reagan has made the strongest pronouncements about increasing the strength of the Radios.
