Biberaj, VOA's Acting Director of the Eurasia Division, was honored for his scholarly writings and for "providing accurate, unbiased, and solid news to Albanians everywhere during the course of his work," including his service as former chief of VOA's Albanian Service.
In his remarks accepting the award, Biberaj said he was pleased not just for himself "but on behalf of all those in the Voice of America" who worked for close to half-a-century to provide audiences with objective news and to promote human rights and democracy in Albania, Kosovo, Macedonia, Montenegro and other parts of the Balkans.
Also honored at the event was Senator Bob Dole who received NAAC's "Hands of Hope" Award for his role in enhancing the lives of the Albanian people in the Balkans and for his contribution in improving human condition throughout the world.
VOA Albanian's popular TV news program Ditari (Journal) is broadcast daily to audiences throughout the Balkans. VOA also transmits 10.5 hours a week of news in Albanian via shortwave. Programs are available on the Internet at www.VOANews.com/Albanian.
The Voice of America, which first went on the air in 1942, is a multimedia international broadcasting service funded by the U.S. government through the Broadcasting Board of Governors. VOA broadcasts more than 1,000 hours of news, information, educational, and cultural programming every week to an estimated worldwide audience of more than 100 million people. Programs are produced in 44 languages.
For more information, call the Office of Public Affairs at (202) 401-7000, or E-Mail publicaffairs@voa.gov.
