TWR's founder,
Dr. Paul Freed

Demonstrating a passion for sharing God's love through Jesus Christ with people everywhere, Dr. Paul E. Freed was used by God to launch Trans World Radio and to advance its worldwide ministry from its early stages to its present status as one of the world's foremost international Gospel broadcasting networks. Dr. Freed passed away on December 1, 1996, at the age of 78.

No stranger to missions work, Dr. Freed grew up in the Middle East and often accompanied his missionary father, Ralph Freed, on visits to nearby villages in what is now known as Syria. His zeal for sharing the Gospel was cultivated early, as he helped one of his friends commit his life to Jesus Christ.

As part of his education, Dr. Freed sought missionary training at Wheaton College (during the same time as Billy Graham) and continued his studies at Nyack College in New York. He later earned a master's degree at Columbia University and a Ph.D. in mass communications at New York University.

From Nyack, Dr. Freed briefly served as pastor of a new church in North Carolina. He then became the Greensboro (NC) director of Youth For Christ (YFC). While attending an international YFC conference in Switzerland in 1948, Dr. Freed accepted a heartfelt request from two Spaniards to visit Spain.

That plea opened a new direction in Dr. Freed's career, gave him a profound love for the Spanish people, and became a simple beginning for his life's work – one of the world's great adventures in missionary radio.

Written by TWR Int'l

A brief history of Trans World Radio

Trans World Radio was founded on February 11, 1952, as a nonprofit organization for the mass communication of the good news of Jesus Christ. Burdened for the people of Spain, TWR founder Dr. Paul E Freed realised that radio would be the best tool for reaching those in this spiritually needy land. While visiting Tangier, Morocco, he discovered an open door for the establishment of a missionary radio station. Spain is directly across the Strait of Gibraltar.

The Voice of Tangier became a reality in 1954. Dr. Freed's father, Dr. Ralph Freed, a veteran missionary, sailed with his wife to Tangier to take charge of the operation. Dr. Ralph Freed gave the first Christian message, which was broadcast over a 2,500-watt transmitter on February 22, 1954. The Voice Of Tangier began its programming in two languages, Spanish and English. On January 1, 1956, the station expanded by broadcasting programs to 40 countries in more than 20 languages.

At the end of 1959, an edict from the Moroccan government set in motion events that led to the birth of a new era for the mission and to a name change from The Voice of Tangier to Trans World Radio. Even before the Moroccan government announced that all radio installations in the country were to be nationalised as of December 31, 1959, Dr. Freed had begun negotiating with Radio Monte Carlo in Monaco with the hope of moving the ministry to the European continent. In 1960, TWR moved across the Strait of Gibraltar to Monte Carlo, and the broadcasts continued from a transmitter building constructed for Nazi propaganda purposes during World War II.