VOA Deewa's Coverage of Flooding in Pakistan’s Remote Regions Draws Praise from Residents
VOA Deewa's coverage of the floods in remote and often inaccessible communities in Pakistan has drawn recognition from local residents, as the service’s FB content garnered more than 13 million views in the past week. “After you aired the report about lack of facilities at our camp, the other media followed, non-governmental organizations started distributing financial help," Fazlullah Khan of northwestern Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province wrote on a WhatsApp message. A resident of Balochistan province pointed out VOA Deewa as their “only source” of communication with the outside world.
VOA Reporting on Human Rights in Ukraine Cited More Than 90 Times by Media in the Region
VOA Ukrainian had an exclusive interview with Rachel Denber of Human Rights Watch following a report in which the human rights watchdog said the forcible transfer of Ukrainian citizens to Russia and occupied territories constitutes war crimes and potential crimes against humanity. Coverage also included an interview with Ukrainian Parliament Commissioner for Human Rights Dmytro Lubinets, who told VOA Russia is treating Ukrainians deported to Russia as refugees whether they had a choice to leave Ukraine or not. Coverage was republished more than 90 times in Ukrainian media.
VOA Exclusive with Nigerian Army Chief Generates Significant Traction on Digital Platforms
In his first ever interview granted to an international media outlet, Nigerian Army Chief, Lieutenant General Farouk Yahaya, told VOA Hausa that the action of two Nigerian soldiers who allegedly killed an Islamic cleric was “totally unacceptable” and announced they would be punished accordingly. Part one of the on-camera interview from Abuja has received more than 440k views and 18k engagement actions.
VOA Exclusive: U.S. Plans to Curb Nicaraguan Imports to Pressure President Ortega
Top Biden administration officials told VOA Spanish the U.S. plans to block imports from Nicaragua to pressure President Ortega over his regime’s human rights violations, dealing a serious blow to the country's economy. The story was widely shared by affiliates, including Mexico’s TV Azteca, Nicaraguan exiled publication La Prensa, 100% Noticias,Nicaragua Investiga,Stereo 100,Efecto Cocuyo and Colombia’s Semana. Republican members of Congress from Florida, Senator Marco Rubio and U.S. Representative María Elvira Salazar, commented on social media on the VOA exclusive, which got 2.6K web views and 55.5K views across social media. Bridged into English, it generated 3,009 views on the VOA English website.
Xinjiang Internment Camp Survivor Shares Her Story with VOA Mandarin
VOA Mandarin landed the timely interview after the UN declared China’s treatment of Uyghurs in Xinjiang may constitute a crime against humanity. The discussion with Xinjiang internment camp survivor, Gulbahar Haitiwaji scored big, generating 276,000 total views on Twitter. The UN said Uyghurs have been subjected to rape, torture and forced labor, but stopped short of using the term “genocide” disappointing Uyghur activists. Haitiwaji, now living in France, said she went to Geneva to make UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, Michelle Bachelet aware that China would hide the truth during Bachelet's visit to Xinjiang.
VOA's Reporting Republished by Many Media Outlets Around the World
EFE, the largest Spanish-language news agency, republished the lead of chief diplomatic correspondent Cindy Saine’s TV report on President Biden’s Thursday night speech describing former president Donald Trump and his “MAGA” supporters as a threat to American democracy. Her article was also picked up by Globe Echo (U.K.); thenews-24 (U.S.); and Recently Heard (India). Saine’s TV report on Tuesday’s DOJ court filing in response to former President Trump’s application for a special master was picked up by News Net Daily (U.K.); UgNews24 (Uganda); Gazeta Blic (Serbia); Alfapress (Albania); and Uzavtra (Ukraine). In almost every case, Saine and VOA were identified by name.
VOA Persian’s TV Special Generates Strong Audience Interest
VOA Persian’s one-hour TV Special, "Water, Wind, Soil" featured interviews with several environmental experts who discussed Iran's grim and deepening environmental problems. Experts were divided on whether the nuclear deal will have a positive effect on the country's environmental issues. Nemat Ahmadi, a legal expert, said that reaching a nuclear deal cannot resolve Iran’s environmental issues unless the leadership changes. Mozaffar Shirvani, an environmental expert, said that Iran’s environment would benefit from the revival of JCPOA since new technology will replace aging machinery. Audience engagement for this program on all digital platforms surpassed 825,670.
VOA Programming Highlights are compiled based on information available from multiple sources at the time of posting. This information constantly evolves. If you intend to cite to information posted in VOA Highlights, please consult VOA Public Relations at publicrelations@voanews.com to ensure it is accurate and current.