Radio Moscow

The Shukhov radio tower in Moscow.

In the mid 1960s, at the height of the Cold War, WNYC was one of few American stations to broadcast recordings from Radio Moscow, the international news service of the USSR. 

It is unclear how many recordings from this collection made it onto the air and which were set aside as soviet propaganda. Eventually concerns about the broadcasts made their way to the FBI and were discontinued at the insistence of city attorneys. 

Publisher image Note written on the back of a Radio Moscow reel by a WNYC staffer, "Do not use pure propaganda." (NYC Municipal Archives WNYC Collection/NYPR Archives)

Shows like Moscow Mailbag, in which the folksy and candid host, Joe Adamov, responds to questions from Americans, illuminate the tensions between these two countries and their particular style of domestic branding. The Truth About the Vietnamese War takes the United States to task on the escalation of the war, "Washington's mad, irresponsible course of suppressing national liberation movements" is compared as worse than Hitler. Rather, the recordings that were most likely aired, focus on Soviet daily life, culture and scientific advancements such as an investigation of the mysterious Tungus Meteorite or a dramatization of the landmark film I Am Twenty.

Publisher image Leader from Radio Moscow Tapes (WNYC Archive Collections/WNYC)

Featured Shows 

(click on the Listen tab to hear episodes) 

Moscow Mailbag

Science and Engineering

What is Communism

Moscow Meridian

Spotlights on Soviet Life

New York City Municipal Archives Logo Image New York City Municipal Archives Logo Image (WNYC)

 Publisher image

This web resource has been made possible in part by the National Endowment for the Humanities: Exploring the Human Endeavor.

Any views, findings, conclusions, recommendations expressed in this web resource do not necessarily reflect those of the National Endowment for the Humanities.

Stories

Music and Musicians, An Outstanding Soviet Pianist Sviatoslav Richter

The second part of a profile on Pianist Sviatoslav Richter
WNYC |

Moscow Meridian

The exact date of this episode is unknown. We've filled in the date above with a placeholder. What we actually have on record is: 197u-uu-uu. On this broadcast of Moscow Meridian, hos...
WNYC |

Mikhail Lermontov and America

The short life of Russian romantic poet Mikhail Lermontov, "a direct successor of Pushkin, a free thinker and a man who hated high society."
WNYC |

Science and Engineering, The Secret of the Tungus Meteorite

This episode of Science and Engineering investigates the Tunguska Event (Tungus Meteorite) that occurred in the Eastern Siberian Taiga on June 30th, 1908. Scientists believe that a me...
WNYC |

English in Soviet Schools

This recording, produced by Radio Moscow, describes how soviet schools teach English. The host [Annabelle Bucar] begins with quotes from two Educators after tours of the Soviet Union'...
WNYC |

How the Soviet Union Copes with its Juvenile Delinquency

In response to listener questions, announcer [Joe Adamov] presents some information about how the Soviet Union copes with its juvenile delinquents. He begins by asserting that, "less ...
WNYC |

Peter Tchaikovsky 125th Birthday Anniversary

Radio Moscow presents a tribute to Peter Tchaikovsky on the anniversary of his 125th Birthday. An announcer, Sergei Rudin, recounts details of his life and work in between music segme...
WNYC |

Youth Parade, Siberian Miracle: The Krasnoyarsk Dam

The exact date of this episode is unknown. We've filled in the date above with a placeholder. What we actually have on record is: 1965-uu-uu. This episode of Youth Parade features the...
WNYC |

The Man Who Swam in Space

The exact date of this episode is unknown. We've filled in the date above with a placeholder. What we actually have on record is: 1965-uu-uu. This program produced by Radio Moscow dra...
WNYC |

Moscow Mailbag, The Ousting of Nikita Khrushchev

The exact date of this episode is unknown. We've filled in the date above with a placeholder. What we actually have on record is: 1965-uu-uu. Host, Joe Adamov, answers letters from Am...
WNYC |

Spotlights on Soviet Life No. 3

The exact date of this episode is unknown. We've filled in the date above with a placeholder. What we actually have on record is: 1965-uu-uu. This episode of Spotlights of Soviet Life...
WNYC |

Scenes from the Film I Am Twenty (Mne dvadtsat' let)

The exact date of this episode is unknown. We've filled in the date above with a placeholder. What we actually have on record is: 1965-uu-uu. This production of Radio Moscow highlight...
WNYC |

Vladimir Lenin's Crusade for Literacy

The Soviet leader's crusade to abolish illiteracy in Russia.
WNYC |

Moscow Mailbag

The exact date of this episode is unknown. We've filled in the date above with a placeholder. What we actually have on record is: 1965-uu-uu. Host, Joe Adamov, answers letters from Am...
WNYC |

Contemporary Music from Soviet Central Asia and Kazakhstan

The exact date of this episode is unknown. We've filled in the date above with a placeholder. What we actually have on record is: 1965-uu-uu. Presented by Sergei [Rudin?], this broadc...
WNYC |
WNYC Archives show image

WNYC Archives

Established in the year 2000, the New York Public Radio Archives are the station's physical link to its rich and storied past.

Be alert for scams. WNYC never asks for nor accepts money for coverage or interviews. Anyone making such a request does not represent WNYC.

YOU ARE ONLINE