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Debate Continues About Mission Of TV, Radio Marti Networks In Cuba

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The Associated Press

Published: June 8, 2008

MIAMI - Two decades after Congress established the U.S. Office of Cuba Broadcasting, lawmakers and experts still can't seem to agree on the program's mission.

Should its TV and Radio Marti networks send the communist island unbiased news about Cuba and the outside world? Or should their stories only support the U.S. government's policy toward Cuba, as they mostly do now?

The taxpayer-funded Cuba broadcasts, which receive $34 million annually, belong to a network that includes the Voice of America, Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty and Alhurra, among others.

Still, the Martis' congressional charter states the broadcasts must be operated "in a manner not inconsistent with the broad foreign policy of the United States."

Jeff Trimble, executive director of Broadcasting Board of Governors, which oversees the broadcasts, says the charter calls for promoting democracy "through the journalistic mission. You have open information. ...It's not to do the short-term policy issues of any particular administration."

But Rep. Ileana Ros-Lehtinen, a Miami Republican and Marti supporter, says the broadcasts should back the president's positions.

"It is not a 'Let's have all this diversity of thought,'" said Ros-Lehtinen, a Cuban-American. "If we were to have a change in Cuba policy come November, you will see that reflected in the transmissions. The mission is clear: It's to advance our U.S.-Cuba policy."

Marti Chief of Staff Alberto Mascaro said Cuba is one of the most difficult countries from which to glean local news because of strict censorship.

The goal is to bring in a free exchange of ideas, he said.

"You can't speak about the United States and what our policy is to the rest of the world without talking about the war on terror - in this current administration," he said.

Rep. William Delahunt, D-Mass., a critic of the Martis, called for an investigation into management of the broadcasts. He thinks the Martis fail to show the diverse viewpoints within the United States.

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