Bob Strickley

rstrickley@enquirer.com

"Tell the truth and let the world decide" was the operating mantra of the Voice of America when it began broadcasting in February 1942, and Cincinnati was in no small part responsible for delivering that message to the globe.

Specifically, the creation and operation of the Voice of America-Bethany Relay Station by the Crosley Broadcasting Corporation through World War II and the Cold War played a significant role in delivering news and information from America to citizens of other countries. This, from a field in West Chester Township.

On Feb. 17, 1947, the VOA began delivering programming to Russia to "give listeners in the USSR a picture of life in America," according to an article by history.com staff and VOA's own historic timeline.

The message wasn't new, but the audience certainly was. Bethany Relay Station delivered news from America during World War II to such effect that Adolf Hitler referred to the station in 1944 as "those Cincinnati liars," according to the station's history by the National Voice of America Museum of Broadcasting.

The Bethany Station's role in the Cold War was relaying news to countries in Europe and northern Africa that fell behind the Iron Curtain.

Beginning in 1952, shortwave broadcasts from Butler County were sent to the converted Coast Guard cutter The Courier under the operation of the Department of State as part of an initiative approved by President Harry Truman called "Operation Vagabond."

Stationed in the eastern Mediterranean, The Courier was "designed to provide another electronic weapon for combatting [sic] Soviet jamming and to enable the Voice of America to cover areas beyond the reach of present broadcasts" according to Dr. Wilson Compton, the head of the U.S. International Information Administration at the time.

An insidevoa.com history of VOA in the post-World War II years indicates that, over time, a show called "Music USA" was a popular feature in communist countries. That show and "Jazz Hour," hosted by Willis Conover, provided international listeners with interviews of musical talents such as Duke Ellington, Billie Holiday and Irving Berlin.

After 50 years of broadcasting, the Bethany Relay Station closed in 1994. The majority of the land was given to Butler County and West Chester, and is now Voice of America Park.

Also on site is the National Voice of America Museum of Broadcasting at 8070 Tylersville Road in West Chester. It is open for visitors from 1 p.m. to 4 p.m. on the third Saturday of the month, but private group tours are available.