Author page: Ted Lipien

Audio, Cold War, Glos Ameryki, History, International Broadcasting, Poland, Public Diplomacy, Radio, VOA

Zbigniew Brzezinski Interviewed for 1989 Worldnet Program on Historic Changes in Poland

In a March 1989 Voice of America-Worldnet-Polish Television program moderated by Ted Lipien, then director of the Voice of America (VOA) Polish Service, Dr. Zbigniew Brzezinski discussed historic political changes, which were taking place at that time in Poland and throughout Central and Eastern Europe. Dr. Brzezinski was being interviewed by journalists in Poland which was still under communist rule…

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Audio, Cold War, Glos Ameryki, History, International Broadcasting, Poland, Public Diplomacy, Radio, VOA

1984 Interview With Czeslaw Miłosz on Polish-Jewish Relations (in Polish – po polsku)

Link to audio. The interview (in Polish – po polsku) with Czesław Miłosz was recorded in Oxford on September 19, 1984 at a conference on Polish-Jewish relations. Miłosz talks about Poland’s multicultural traditions, Polish-Jewish relations in the 19th century, during the interwar period, and under communism. He discusses anti-Semitism, Polish-Jewish relations in his home city of Wilno (Vilnius – now…

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Audio, Cold War, Glos Ameryki, History, International Broadcasting, Poland, Public Diplomacy, Radio, VOA

September 1987 – Vice President George H.W. Bush discusses Poland, U.S. Polish-Relations, Solidarity, Lech Walesa, Polish Americans

“There’s great affection from the American people for the people of Poland.” – Vice President George H.W. Bush, September 24, 1987   Voice of America correspondent Wayne Corey and VOA Polish Service director Ted Lipien recorded the interview at the White House on September 24, 1987 shortly before Vice President George H.W. Bush left on his trip to Poland.  The…

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Audio, Cold War, Glos Ameryki, History, International Broadcasting, Photos, Poland, Public Diplomacy, Radio

Vice President George H.W. Bush’s September 1987 Visit to Poland – Report in Polish (po polsku)

Vice President George H.W. Bush began a four-day visit to Poland on Saturday, September 26, 1987. His visit facilitated talks between Solidarity and the communist regime and eventual peaceful fall of communism in Poland. I interviewed Vice President Bush at the White House before the trip and accompanied him as Voice of America Polish Service correspondent. I filed this report…

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Cold War, Glos Ameryki, History, International Broadcasting, Photos, Poland, Public Diplomacy

Poland, A Season of Light, and of Darkness

In 1982, the United States International Communication Agency (USICA), earlier and later called the United States Information Agency (USIA), published a booklet “Poland: A Season of Light, and of Darkness,” to complement its “Let Poland Be Poland” television film produced by the agency as a response of the Reagan Administration to the imposition of martial law in Poland by General…

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Cold War, Glos Ameryki, International Broadcasting, Photos, Poland, Public Diplomacy, VOA

Interweaving of Public Diplomacy and U.S. International Broadcasting

Interweaving of Public Diplomacy and U.S. International Broadcasting A Historical Analysis by Ted Lipien Published in American Diplomacy, December 2011   Summary U.S. policy makers have used traditional diplomacy, public diplomacy and government-sponsored journalism to promote America’s interests and to influence public opinion abroad. On the journalistic side, the so-called surrogate radios: Radio Free Europe and Radio Liberty – more…

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Cold War, Glos Ameryki, History, International Broadcasting, Photos, Poland, VOA

Reagan and Korbonski on Yalta and Poland

As Poland prepares for next year’s 70th anniversary of the Warsaw Rising, I wanted to share [highlight]Stefan Korboński[/highlight]‘s 1984 letter to The New York Times, in which the last chief of the Polish wartime underground State repeated President Ronald Reagan’s earlier statement that the United States rejects any interpretation of the Yalta agreement that suggests American consent for the division of…

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Poland, Religion

Ted Lipien’s book published in Poland, reviewed in Polityka

Ted Lipien’s book about Pope John Paul II and feminism, “Wojtyła’s Women: How They Shaped the Life of Pope John Paul II and Changed the Catholic Church, O-Books, UK, 2008,” was translated into Polish and published in Poland. Adam Szostkiewicz, a reviewer for the Polish news magazine Polityka, wrote that “Lipien is an American journalist with Polish roots who speaks…

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Cold War, Digital Journal, History, International Broadcasting, Poland, Public Diplomacy, RFE

Digital Journal Op-Ed: America could learn from rappers’ tribute to Radio Free Europe

by Ted Lipien Published April 7, 2013 by Digital Journal Truckee – Led by Peja of the Polish rap group Slums Attack, Europe’s rappers recorded a multilingual tribute to political and cultural freedom message of the American-funded station Radio Free Europe. Using historical film footage of Radio Free Europe broadcasters, rappers from several European countries make statements similar to dissident voices…

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Congress, Digital Journal, International Broadcasting, VOA

Op-Ed: Federal employees identify U.S. stations for government-paid news SPECIAL | Digital Journal

By Ted Lipien Published July 27, 2013 by Digital Journal Washington – Federal employees were told to identify U.S. stations but not to make offers of government-funded news to domestic media. With the controversy swirling over media reports that after a recent congressional modification in the 1948 Smith-Mundt Act, U.S. officials may try to target Americans with government propaganda, the federal agency…

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International Broadcasting

Op-Ed: US propaganda ban overturned with help of government propaganda

DigitalJournal.com – ‎20 hours ago‎ Would government officials resort to deceptive propaganda to help them get Congress to overturn an old law, the Smith-Mundt Act, which prohibited them from distributing government-funded news to Americans? They most certainly did by telling members of Congress that Americans were somehow denied having any kind of access to Voice of America (VOA) news and that great many Americans were demanding that the…

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Congress, Digital Journal, International Broadcasting, Public Diplomacy, Russia

Op-Ed: I’m not afraid of Voice of America news in the US, but . . . | Digital Journal

By Ted Lipien Published July 15, 2013 by Digital Journal Washington – I am not afraid of taxpayer-funded Voice of America (VOA) news in the United States, but I’m afraid of government officials who may interfere with the news and mistreat journalists. I am not afraid of Voice of America news being available on radio, TV and Internet in the United States. As…

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Congress, Digital Journal, International Broadcasting, Public Diplomacy, VOA

Op-Ed: US propaganda ban overturned with help of government propaganda | Digital Journal

By Ted Lipien Published July 16, 2013 by Digital Journal Washington – Government officials used deceptive propaganda to get congress to overturn a ban on government news distribution in the U.S. Would government officials resort to deceptive propaganda to help them get the U.S. Congress to overturn an old law, the Smith-Mundt Act, which prohibited them from distributing government-funded news to…

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Public Diplomacy

Coward Media

Commentary by Ted Lipien Istanbul, June 8, 2013. Protest signs on Taksim Square in Istanbul say “Coward Media.” The very few acts of vandalism during the initial days of the anti-government protests in Turkey were directed against TV vans of local networks. Protesters in Turkey were especially angry with CNN Turkish and NTV (MSNBC Turkish). Some of these media outlets…

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