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RFE/RL head is willing to fight

Funding and outreach are the big challenges, Gedmin says

By Hilda Hoy
Staff Writer, The Prague Post
April 11th, 2007 issue

Despite arriving at Prague-based Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty (RFE/RL) only three weeks ago, Jeffrey Gedmin, its new president, is already well-versed on the challenges facing the broadcast outlet. In an April 4 interview, he practically brims with excitement over tackling them.

VLADIMÍR WEISS/THE PRAGUE POST
He’ll need that enthusiasm. Gedmin is heading an RFE/RL that, in recent years, has been working through a major focus shift. It’s also fighting “significant opposition” from the U.S. Congress, which provides the funding that amounts to $75 million (1.6 billion Kč) this year, he said. Competing for RFE/RL’s share are similar initiatives such as Radio Free Asia and Radio Marti, which broadcasts into Cuba.
Jeffrey Gedmin
  • 2001–07: Director, Aspen Institute in Berlin
  • 1996–2001: Resident scholar, American Enterprise Institute in Washington, D.C., and executive director, The New Atlantic Initiative
  • BA in music and MA in German studies from American University
  • Ph.D. in German studies from Georgetown University
RFE/RL was created by the U.S. government during the Cold War to broadcast pro-democracy messages behind the Iron Curtain. After the last communist regimes fell in the early 1990s, the station began retooling itself. Today, it broadcasts to countries in Eastern Europe, Central Asia, the former USSR and the Middle East, most of them with Muslim majorities.
RFE/RL moved to Prague from Munich in 1995 at the invitation of then President Václav Havel. But the downtown site — next to the National Museum on Wenceslas Square — became a security risk after the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks against the United States. After years of planning, construction on a more secure building began last October in Prague 10. It’s expected to be ready next year.
Gedmin spoke frankly with The Prague Post on how he plans to address these challenges.
The Prague Post: What interested you in this position?
Jeffrey Gedmin: First, I’m very attached to the idea that we free citizens of Western societies … have an opportunity and in some ways even an obligation to… unfree or partially free societies. To exchange information with them … and, when it’s appropriate, provide material support. …
There’s also the people. If you’re interested in human rights, if you’re interested in democracy, if you’re interested in quality journalism … [at RFE/RL], you’re like a kid in a candy store.
TPP: Since 9/11, security has been a major issue at RFE/RL, and arranging a new location has been time-consuming and costly. Why is Prague still the best place for RFE/RL?
JG: Honestly, I don’t know if there’s any good objective reason why Prague and not another great city in another great democracy. … I think people from our side are happy here, and we hope our Czech hosts are happy too.
TPP: What are your top priorities?
JG: First, we have to … ask ourselves, “Are we maximally efficient … in using our limited resources? Do we need to cut [or] restructure?” … We’re in an intensive review process … and we’re going to be making decisions by midsummer. … Two, we want to look very hard … and see if there are areas … we can make stronger. And lastly, I would be happy if we could enhance our communications strategy, in Prague and in Washington. … We need to make much more abundantly clear … how we make a very, very important contribution.
TPP: When former RFE/RL President Thomas Dine resigned in 2005, he said RFE/RL had to be “rescued from extinction” in 1997–98 by lobbying in Washington, D.C. Are you speaking now of a similar effort? How loud is the opposition against RFE/RL in Washington?
JG: Yeah, I think so. … If I’m walking into the White House, or I’m walking onto Capitol Hill … they say, “Jeff, we have a big problem in Iraq. Two, Iran is probably coming online with nuclear weapons.” ... And here comes Jeff Gedmin, and he wants to promote democracy in Uzbekistan and Armenia. …. [But] we have a compelling case. … Everybody runs around saying, “[The West], they always react. … We need more preventive diplomacy.” Well, this is it.
TPP: Just how loud is that opposition?
JG: There’s significant opposition. … Our job is to get folks in Washington to take a more nuanced view … and ultimately a more responsible view. … If you want peace in the future, you have to invest now.
TPP: What about RFE/RL’s broadcasts to Iran, for example. How is that an investment?
JG: Imagine Iran was a democracy. … The fact that France has the bomb doesn’t keep anybody up late at night. … They’re not going to use it. They’re a democracy. … [So] why doesn’t the West have a more cogent strategy to support the democracy movement in Iran … as a way of containing some of these issues? We’re a small piece of that.
TPP: RFE/RL has changed significantly since it began, and now focuses on the Muslim world. What does that mean to politicians in Washington?
JG: There are folks who say because of 9/11 … we must concentrate on the Muslim world. … And I think it’s half-true. … But I think we would do something typically American — short-sighted and foolish — if we started doing that to the neglect of other … vital concerns and places.
TPP: Your views on Israel are clear from the editorials you’ve written. Do you think this could be an issue at RFE/RL, considering the station’s Muslim focus?
JG: I’m a friend and ally of Israel [but also] … of Muslim democrats. …. I’ve developed… a pretty good network of [Muslim] democrats … most of whom have big problems with Israel. And that’s OK, because that’s democratic debate. But what they do have in common is their belief in decent, accountable government.
TPP: You’ve also made it no secret you’re a Bush supporter. Any dynamics between you and staff who came on board during the Clinton administration?
JG: I don’t see any conflicts. … I don’t care if someone supports Bush or Clinton or the deputy dogcatcher. I want serious people who believe in ideas and open, constructive debate.

Hilda Hoy can be reached at hhoy@praguepost.com


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