History Timeline – Cold War Radio Museum

1938-10-30

Future First Voice of America Director Introduces Americans To Entertainment Fake Radio News in 1938

Photo of Orson Welles meeting with reporters in an effort to explain that no one connected with the War of the Worlds radio broadcast had any idea the show would cause panic. Future first Voice of America (VOA) director John Houseman was the producer of the War of the Worlds fake entertainment newscast.

Cold War Radio Museum One of the main reasons John Houseman was selected to produce the first Voice of..Read More

1942-01-11

Religious Fanatical Crusade Nelson Poynter 1942 Government Memorandum

Quote: “We must sell the ‘religion of democracy’”– First Unofficial Voice of America Mission Statement By Nelson Poynter, Office Of The Coordinator of Information

— Nelson Poynter, U.S. Office of the Coordinator of Information, January 11, 1942

1942-02-01

First Radio Broadcast of Future Voice of America

On February 1, 1942, the first Voice of America (VOA) radio broadcast in German may have gone on the air...First Radio Broadcast of Future Voice of America

1942-02-01

Quote: “ The news may be good for us. The news may be bad. But we shall tell you the truth.” — William Harlan Hale

— Office of War Information announcer William Harlan Hale. February 1942.

1942-06-13

Photograph President Franklin Delano Roosevelt in front of microphones of U.S. radio networks.

FDR Creates Office of War Information

President Franklin Delano Roosevelt established the Office of War Information (OWI) on June 13, 1942 through the Executive Order..FDR Creates Office of War Information

1943-03-04

Members of Congress Exposed Domestic Government Propaganda

During World War II, the federal government’s Office of War Information (OWI), which launched Voice of America (VOA) radio..Members of Congress Exposed Domestic U.S. Government Propaganda in 1943

1943-04-05

Quote: “Said to have been responsible for placing Communists in key position in foreign radio sections of OWI.” – U.S. State Department About First VOA Director John Houseman

Cold War Radio Museum The State Department informed the White House in a memorandum from Under Secretary of State..Read More

1943-04-06

Sumner Welles Warns White House About First Voice Of America Director Hiring Communists

Cold War Radio Museum In 2018, the online Cold War Radio Museum presented for the first time to a broader online audience..Read More

1943-05-03

OWI Director Supports Soviet Katyn Propaganda Lie On Voice of America And Domestic Radio

Cold War Radio Museum On May 3, 1943, the Office of War Information (OWI) Director Elmer Davis was heard in..OWI Director Supports Soviet Katyn Propaganda Lie On Voice of America And Domestic Radio

1943-07-28

New York Times Exposes Voice of America “Moronic Little King of Italy” Broadcast Condemned By Roosevelt And Eisenhower

Cold War Radio Museum In 1943, in the middle of the war, the U.S. Congress almost completely de-funded domestic propaganda..Read More

1943-10-04

Former Office of War Information (OWI) journalist Julius Epstein explaining how the AFL and the CIO American labor federations broke their cooperation with the Voice of America because of communist influence over VOA broadcasts.

American Labor Federations AFL And CIO Break Cooperation With OWI Over Communist Influence At Voice of America

Cold War Radio Museum Julius Epstein[ref]“How a refugee journalist exposed Voice of America censorship of the Katyn Massacre,” Cold War..Read More

1944-01-12

Office of War Information (OWI) Personnel Card for Voice of America (VOA) first chief news writer and editor Howard Fast, the future Communist Party USA recipient of the Stalin Peace Prize.

Communist Writer And Future Stalin Peace Prize Winner Howard Fast Resigns From Voice of America

Cold War Radio Museum On January 12, 1944, Howard Fast, best-selling author, a Communist Party USA activist, and a future..Read More

1944-04-15

Konstanty Broel Plater OWI Personnel Record Card Photo

Broel Plater Resigns In Protest Against Soviet Propaganda On Voice Of America

By Ted Lipien for Cold War Radio Museum We know of only one Voice of America (VOA) journalist, Konstanty Broel..Broel Plater Resigns In Protest Against Soviet Propaganda On Voice Of America

1944-12-01

VOA’s Owen Lattimore’s National Geographic Article on “Greenhouse Vitamins” for Soviet Gulag Prisoners

In 1941, President Roosevelt appointed Professor Owen Lattimore, who advocated for a stronger Soviet role in China, to serve as U.S. advisor..Read More

1945-05-15

President Truman and General Eisenhower Shut Down OWI’s Attempt To Control U.S. Media Access To Occupied Germany

Cold War Radio Museum In the presidential news conference on May 15, 1945, President Truman sided with General Eisenhower and..Read More

1945-08-31

President Truman Abolishes Office Of War Information, Moves Voice of America To State Department

Cold War Radio Museum In his Executive Order 9608 issued on August 31, 1945, President Truman abolished the functions of..Read More

1947-02-17

Voice Of America Launched Soft Broadcasts to Soviet Russia

The first Voice of America broadcast in Russian aired from New York on February 17, 1947. Before that date, VOA..Voice Of America Launched Soft Broadcasts to Soviet Russia

1947-12-31

Quote: OWI’s [VOA’s agency] mission was to cure “misunderstanding” of Soviet Russia — Oliver Carlson, 1947

— Oliver Carlson (1899–1991) founder of the Young Communist League of America who became an anti-communist writer, University of Chicago political..

1948-01-27

President Truman Signs Smith-Mundt Act Limiting Domestic Use Of Voice Of America Programs

The U.S. Information and Educational Exchange Act of 1948 (Public Law 80-402), known as the Smith–Mundt Act was signed into..Read More

1948-05-26

U.S. Senators Criticize VOA-NBC Broadcasts As “Baloney,” “Lies,” “Insults,” “Drivel,” “Nonsense,” “Falsehoods,” “Downright Tragedy.”

— Senator Homer Earl Capehart, (R-Indiana) May 26, 1948. Cold War Radio Museum By 1948, the Voice of America’s failure..U.S. Senators Criticize VOA-NBC Broadcasts As “Baloney,” “Lies,” “Insults,” “Drivel,” “Nonsense,” “Falsehoods,” “Downright Tragedy.”

1950-04-20

President Truman Launches The “Campaign of Truth”

Cold War Radio Museum President Harry Truman unveiled the “Campaign of Truth”– a multi-faceted U.S. government’s international information policy –..Read More

1950-07-04

Radio Free Europe Launched in 1950

Radio Free Europe started broadcasting on July 4, 1950. The first broadcast was to Czechoslovakia. It originated from New York..Radio Free Europe Launched in 1950

1950-12-11

Voice of America Censors Soviet Massacre Survivor Józef Czapski And Lies About Its Actions

Cold War Radio Museum On December 11, 1950, a member of the U.S. Congress revealed the Voice of America censorship..Voice of America Censors Soviet Massacre Survivor Józef Czapski And Lies About Its Actions

1951-03-25

1951 – New York Times Reviews Former Communist Elinor Lipper’s Book Debunking U.S. Office of War Information’s Soviet Propaganda

Ted Lipien for Cold War Radio Museum The March 25, 1951 Sunday edition of the New York Times had a..Read More

1951-07-24

Congressman Reveals Voice Of America To Behind Iron Curtain Is “Drab” And “Unconvincing”

Cold War Radio Museum Speaking in the U.S. House of Representatives on July 24, 1951, Congressman Richard B. Wigglesworth (Republican-Massachusetts)..Read More

1951-12-18