I’ve been following events in Uzbekistan as best I can via the internet here. Most of the news is, of course, not good. But I just came across this (link) . The gist is that VOA (Voice Of America) is going to resume Uzbek language broadcasts within Uzbekistan. This is potentially huge. A major problem facing regular Uzbeks is lack of access to reliable news. TV is controlled with an iron fist. Most Uzbeks are only able to receive broadcast TV, which consists of two national channels and a Russian station. Of course, I don’t need to comment much about what Uzbek news is like… I think the phrase “droning monologues” sums things up just fine. I remember watching the Uzbek TV stations while the news about Andijon was unfolding all over BBC and CNN only to find the movie Winged Migration being shown. It was funny is a twisted way… talk about having ones head in the clouds…
Uzbeks living in major cities, especially Tashkent, can get cable TV. But again, during the Andijon events, CNN and BBC were blanketly dropped from the lineup. This leaves only satellite TV. The problem is, though, that satellite TV is expensive, in fact prohibitively so for most Uzbeks. Furthermore, since the current generation of youth no longer speaks Russian, to fully comprehend news received, it must be in Uzbek. Thus, the almost complete lack of non-governmentally regulated Uzbek language news has been a major barrier to progress in the region.
Although news does travel in Uzbekistan – make no mistake, most everyone knows what went down in Andijon – one has got to remember the game “telephone. ” I was reminded of this today during Romanian language class. Telephone is a simple game about verbal communication. It starts with one person telling another some phrase. That person then turns to his or her neighbor and passes it along. 9 times out of 10, of course, the resulting phrase is far different from what the initial person said. This is a simple, albeit accurate, representation of the danger of communications systems spread solely via word of mouth.
Now, I consider myself to be pretty aware of the global media situation, and will be the first to concede that news delivered by ANY government is suspect. VOA is an US Governmental organization, and thus to imply that VOA is gospel or completely unbiased would be foolhardy. Looking at the VOA news about the United States, there emerges a picture of an organization that is willing to entertain reasoned critiques of America and American society, but not so much in an overtly political or partisan way. For a good example, read (this article.) So, all said and done, I am satisfied with VOA considering it for what it is.
Now, back to Uzbekistan. Although satellite TV may be a dream but for the country’s more financially successful families, almost every family can afford a shortwave radio (albeit it’ll likely be a piece of junk from China, but nonetheless it should work.) Some of my former colleagues in country were able to purchace, for about $10, such radios. Now, although TV is by far the dominant means of entertainment and news gathering in Uzbekistan, almost every Uzbek can afford and has the ability to receive shortwave radio broadcasts. During my Peace Corps service in that country, I enjoyed listening to, among others, BBC World Service via shortwave. Now although listening to BBC World was a godsend to me, it meant nothing to most Uzbeks, who are unfamiliar with the English language.
VOA in English already makes it to Uzbekistan. With the resumption of Uzbek language broadcasts, however, the potential audience for such information expands exponentially. VOA’s director claims: “The Uzbek people deserve to have access to uncensored news and information about what’s happening in their own country, their region, and the world.” And with that, I can not agree more wholeheartedly. Also stated are future plans to expand the service to the MW and FM bands – further increasing its reach. Though I have reservations about the McDonalds and KFC located here in Brashov, Romania, if our government can subsidize bringing real news to a country lacking it, in that country’s local language, then I’m all for it.
My only hope is that word gets out, somehow, about these broadcasts. Perhaps I’m doing my small part by writing about them here, and perhaps someone will benefit from this. Although I’m no longer able to serve in Uzbekistan, maybe I can continue to do a little good, WD style.
Links:
I am certain you have made an impact on Uz life through the people you have interacted with along the way. There is an increasingly tense dialogue between the USA and Uz; the Uz govt has accused the US govt of inciting riots and perhaps the goal of trying to account for what happened in Andijon and opening the airwaves to information is what they mean by “incite”. From your entry I now think it sinister that Russian no longer is spoken; ofcourse not renewing your visas was a way to block the development of spoken english in that society. XXXOOO GQ
Progress happens in small steps, I know. Generally, I’d be doubtful of government-sponsored efforts to bring unbiased news to the world, but I think it’s an admirable effort nonetheless, especially if they’re trying to avoid a reputation for being an imperialist propoganda tool.
That was a good article about the abuse of the US military. I was reading a book recently about the development of US military spycraft for the past five decades, and according to the book, these planes were initially developed to limit what Eisenhower saw as a dangerous growth of the military.
Eisenhower’s concern at the time was fairly similar to Andrew Bacevich’s. He knew that the US needed a strong deterrent against the Russian nuclear strikes everyone was worried about, but he had to deal with a very hawkish general, Curtis LeMay, who was heading the Strategic Air Command (the always-airborne fleet of bombers that comprised the American second-strike capability). No one knew what the Russians had at the time, and LeMay used the lack of intelligence as a reason to demand more and more planes. Eisenhower knew that an excess of weapons would come with a heightened temptation to use them, so he focused on developing technology that would tell us specifically what the Russians had, rather than bulking up the Air Force. It’s from this research that we got the U2, the first spy satellite, and ultimately the Stealth aircraft.
In other words, the very technology that’s key to the military we’re misusing today was developed to prevent misuse of the military.
I think if history were sentient, I bet it would have a pretty dark sense of humor.