Rebroadcasting propaganda from al-Shabab's sophisticated media center, an operation that rivals or even surpasses al Qaeda's, would have been an easier task for the Minneapolis station, should it have wanted to do so. The First Amendment provides substantial protection for media outlets, especially when the footage or tape is aired as part of a news program. Major U.S. networks, for example, devote substantial airtime to playing and discussing propaganda from al Qaeda's leadership. The right to view those Osama bin Laden tapes is protected by the Bill of Rights and the public's right to know.
Back in Minneapolis, though, this all looks a bit backward. U.S. radio and television stations can broadcast news and information programs produced by foreign governments and terrorists ... but not VOA. It's impossible to say whether those Somali-language VOA broadcasts would have deterred any of the four Somali-Americans who have died in the last year fighting for al-Shabab (including the first American suicide bomber -- a feat that al Qaeda has yet to match). But it certainly wouldn't have hurt. Now, the FBI is investigating the recent disappearances of more than 20 young men suspected of traveling to Somalia to join the militia. Two others from the community have been indicted for supporting al-Shabab. The charges include fighting for a terrorist organization.
This muzzling of VOA comes at a time when the U.S. media is shrinking, eliminating foreign bureaus, and increasingly relying on stringers (of sometimes dubious quality) for its news. VOA and other U.S. public diplomacy organizations, meanwhile, are staffed with professional journalists and editors who are adept and experienced with covering goings-on about the world.
In an age where a teenager with a keyboard can wield more influence than an F-22 Raptor, the time has long past for the United States to change its public diplomacy and communications strategy accordingly. In 2005, Ayman al-Zawahiri, often described as the real brains behind al Qaeda, wrote, "We are in a battle, and more than half of this battle is taking place in the battlefield of the media." He gets it. It's about time the U.S. government does, too.


























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