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# **RADIO FREE ASIA FACT SHEET**

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| *            | ### March 12,                                         |
| **Founded*** |  1996, under the provisions of the 1994 International |
|              |                                                       |
|              | ### Broadcasting Act                                  |
|              |  (P.L. 103-236), as a private non-profit corporation  |
+--------------+-------------------------------------------------------+
| *            | As outlined in the legislation, RFA's mission is to   |
| **Mission*** | broadcast news and                                    |
|              |                                                       |
|              | information to listeners in Asia who are otherwise    |
|              | denied access to                                      |
|              |                                                       |
|              | full and free information, and to provide a forum for |
|              | a variety of opinions                                 |
|              |                                                       |
|              | and voices from within those Asian nations.           |
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| ***A         | ### Acting as a substi                                |
| Surrogate*** | tute for indigenous free media, RFA concentrates its  |
|              |                                                       |
| ***Br        | ### coverage on events occ                            |
| oadcaster*** | urring in and/or affecting the countries to which it  |
|              |                                                       |
|              | ### broadcasts.                                       |
+--------------+-------------------------------------------------------+
| ***9         | **Mandarin** (Launched 9/96) 12 hours of programming  |
| Language***  | per day, 7 days a week                                |
|              |                                                       |
| ######       | One and one half additional hours weekly in the Wu    |
| **Services** | (Shanghai) dialect.                                   |
|              |                                                       |
|              | **Tibetan** 3 dialects - 10 hours of programming per  |
|              | day, 7 days a week                                    |
|              |                                                       |
|              | Uke dialect (Launched 12/96), Kham dialect (5/97),    |
|              | Amdo dialect (5/97) \*                                |
|              |                                                       |
|              | **Burmese** (Launched 2/97) 4 hours per day, 7 days a |
|              | week \*                                               |
|              |                                                       |
|              | **Korean** (Launched 3/97) 5 hours per day to North   |
|              | Korea, 7 days a week                                  |
|              |                                                       |
|              | **Vietnamese** (Launched 2/97) 2 hours per day, 7     |
|              | days a week                                           |
|              |                                                       |
|              | **Laotian** (Launched 8/97) 2 hours per day, 7 days a |
|              | week                                                  |
|              |                                                       |
|              | **Khmer** (Cambodian) (Launched 9/97) 2 hours per     |
|              | day, 7 days a week                                    |
|              |                                                       |
|              | **Cantonese** (Launched 5/98) 2 hours per day, 7 days |
|              | a week                                                |
|              |                                                       |
|              | **Uyghur** (Launched 12/98) 2 hours per day, 7 days a |
|              | week                                                  |
+--------------+-------------------------------------------------------+
| ***Format*** | News, analysis, commentary, and cultural programming  |
|              | in the languages of the country of broadcast. RFA     |
|              | does not express editorial opinions.                  |
+--------------+-------------------------------------------------------+
| ***Tra       | A combination of U.S. government-operated             |
| nsmission*** | transmitters and a variety                            |
|              |                                                       |
|              | of shortwave lease facilities.                        |
+--------------+-------------------------------------------------------+
| ***RFA on*** | RFA maintains an active and growing Web site          |
|              | (www.rfa.org), which                                  |
| ***the       |                                                       |
| Internet***  | provides both streaming audio and text in each of its |
|              | broadcast languages.                                  |
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| ***Hea       | 2025 M St., NW, Suite 300, Washington, D.C., 20036    |
| dquarters*** |                                                       |
|              | 29 studios                                            |
|              |                                                       |
|              | RFA is an all-digital facility, allowing nearly total |
|              | self-production                                       |
|              |                                                       |
|              | by the language services.                             |
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| ***Overseas  | Hong Kong, China; Taipei, Taiwan; Bangkok, Thailand;  |
| Offices***   | Phnom Penh, Cambodia; Seoul, South Korea              |
+--------------+-------------------------------------------------------+
| ***Stringer  | Dharamsala, India; Ankara, Turkey                     |
| Offices***   |                                                       |
+--------------+-------------------------------------------------------+
| ***          | *Libby Liu*                                           |
| President*** |                                                       |
|              | Before her appointment as president, Ms. Liu served   |
|              | as RFA's Vice                                         |
|              |                                                       |
|              | President of Administration. She brings to her office |
|              | a distinguished                                       |
|              |                                                       |
|              | career in law and non-profit administration. She      |
|              | holds an MBA                                          |
|              |                                                       |
|              | from the Wharton School and a J.D. from the           |
|              | University of Pennsylvania.                           |
+--------------+-------------------------------------------------------+
| ***V.P.      | *Daniel Southerland*                                  |
| of***        |                                                       |
|              | ##### An acclaimed repo                               |
| ***Pr        | rter on Asian affairs, Mr. Southerland spent 18 years |
| ogramming*** |                                                       |
|              | ##### as a foreign c                                  |
| ***&         | orrespondent in the region. From 1985 to 1990 he was  |
| Executive    |                                                       |
| Editor***    | ##### The Washin                                      |
|              | gton Post's bureau chief in Beijing, where he covered |
|              |                                                       |
|              | ##### China's economic                                |
|              | reforms, political developments, human rights issues, |
|              |                                                       |
|              | ##### and the Tiananmen Squa                          |
|              | re uprising. Prior to his association with the Post,  |
|              |                                                       |
|              | ##### he spent 13                                     |
|              | years at The Christian Science Monitor, covering the  |
|              |                                                       |
|              | #####                                                 |
|              |  Vietnam War and other history-making events in Asia. |
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| *            | Annual grant from the Broadcasting Board of           |
| **Funding*** | Governors.                                            |
+--------------+-------------------------------------------------------+
| ***          | The Broadcasting Board of Governors, appointed by the |
| Oversight*** |                                                       |
|              | President with the advice and consent of the U.S.     |
|              | Senate, serves as RFA's                               |
|              |                                                       |
|              | corporate board of directors, making and supervising  |
|              | its annual grants.                                    |
+--------------+-------------------------------------------------------+
| ***Staff***  | T Total employees consist of approximately 270        |
|              | full-time staff and more than                         |
|              |                                                       |
|              | 200 stringers and consultants in the U.S. and         |
|              | overseas.                                             |
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|              |                                                       |
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\* RFA Tibetan and Burmese have been funded for surge broadcasting
through September 30, 2008.