Type | Network of American military radio and television stations |
---|---|
Branding | FEN |
Availability | U.S Forces in Japan, Okinawa, the Philippines, and Guam |
Headquarters | Yokota Air Base |
Launch date
|
May 1942 |
Former names
|
American Forces Network-Japan |
The Far East Network (FEN) was a network of American military radio and television stations, primarily serving U.S Forces in Japan, Okinawa, the Philippines, and Guam.
Now known as the American Forces Network-Japan (AFN-Japan), with the disestablishment in 1997 of the Far East Network, this network provides military members, Department of Defense civilian employees, and State Department diplomatic personnel and their families with news, information and entertainment by over-the-air radio and TV, and by base cable television.
In addition to its primary military and authorized U.S. civilian audience, AFN-Japan also has a "shadow audience" of an estimated 1.2 million non-military listeners; mostly Japanese studying English, and other English-speaking foreign nationals residing in Japan.
AFN-Japan is headquartered at Yokota Air Base, a major U.S. Air Force installation on the outskirts of Tokyo, and is also known as "AFN-Tokyo".
The network has affiliates located at Misawa Air Base (AFN-Misawa), Marine Corps Air Station Iwakuni (AFN-Iwakuni), and Fleet Activities Sasebo (AFN-Sasebo). While not operationally part of what was once FEN - US Air Force personnel assigned to the Army Network in Korea (AFKN) were under partial administrative control of the FEN Network Headquarters.
Also part of AFN-Japan is AFN-Okinawa, located in the Rycom Plaza Housing Area adjacent to Marine Corps Base Camp S.D. Butler.