TRANSCRIPT:
Hi, I’m Dave Shear. I’m a retired Foreign Service officer and former U.S. ambassador to Vietnam from 2011 to 2014. When the Trump administration shut down the Voice of America on March 14, the United States lost an important way of telling its story to the world.
The Voice of America was founded in 1942. And ever since that time, VOA has been providing the world with an objective source of information on what’s going on in the United States, what Americans are thinking, and what official U.S. policy is. Without the Voice of America, we’ve lost an important tool of public diplomacy.
Voice of America strengthens American prestige worldwide. Prestige is the coin of the realm in diplomacy. It’s that quality that helps American diplomats get what they want without even having to brandish sticks or carrots.
The departure of the Voice of America also leaves a gaping vacuum in the information world that can only be filled by countries like China and Russia. And believe me, Vladimir Putin and Xi Jinping aren’t going to give the world a clear picture of what’s going on in their countries, much less in the United States. So, I hope you’ll work to help us restore the Voice of America. It’s an important tool of American diplomacy.
Published
Shear served as U.S. ambassador to Vietnam from 2011–2014 during the Obama administration. He also was the assistant secretary of defense for Asian and Pacific security affairs from 2014–2016.