"Welcome to our house. I hope you walk side by side with the women in Iran" –viewer

Host Leili Sadr

Host Hamideh Aramideh

Host Fatemeh Aman

The fast-moving opening animation ends, music fades down and lights come up on a set of cozy chairs grouped around a low table, inviting conversation and the lively give-and-take that has quickly become the show’s hallmark.

Welcome to another edition of Today’s Woman, our latest daily television program in Persian. “It has compelling topics and contemporary look,” said VOA Director Danforth W. Austin. "The engaging hosts and up-to-the-minute topics are attracting the viewers we want." The new show debuted September 27.

The first show focused on human rights and the One Million Signatures campaign in Iran. Since then we’ve covered such topics as women’s sports, AIDS, adoption, the family dynamic, women’s empowerment, and domestic violence. We’ve featured guests from around the world, including Shahla Shafigh, Nilofer Baizayee, Arash and Kamayar Alayee, and Nasrin Basiri. The hosts, Hamideh Aramideh, Leili Sadr, and Fatemeh Aman and regular participants Elham Sataki and Reza Saber have a warm and appealing connection, not only with each other but also with the audience and the program guests.

"I'm very happy that a show like this is being produced and that we can watch it in Iran," wrote one 16-year-old-fan. A male viewer wrote, "I hope that after all these years of repression, women have not given up or lost hope. I believe that if we give the world to women, it will be a better place."

Today’s Woman airs after the news at 6:10 p.m. in Iran. For information on all our programs in Persian, see page 52, or online at www.VOAPNN.com.