KNOXVILLE, Tenn. (WVLT) – President Barack Obama has nominated Knoxville’s former mayor to the Broadcasting Board of Governors.

Victor Ashe was mayor of Knoxville from 1988 until 2003. In 2004 he was appointed ambassador to Poland, where he served until October 2009.

The board is an independent agency of the United States Government responsible for all non-military, international broadcasting sponsored by the U.S. government. If was formerly called the U.S. Information Agency and today is responsible for broadcasts in more than 125 markets covering 65 languages. Those include the Voice of America, Radio Free Europe and Radio Marti.

The White House included the following biography on Ashe with the nomination announcement:

“Victor H. Ashe recently served as United States Ambassador to Poland from June 2004 to October 2009. He also previously served as a Tennessee State Representative and was the longest serving Mayor of Knoxville, Tennessee. Mr. Ashe has served as President of the U.S. Conference of Mayors, was twice appointed to the Intergovernmental Advisory Committee and is a former member of the AmeriCorps Board of Directors. He currently sits on the Board of the National Trust for Historic Preservation and the American Rovers Association. Mr. Ashe is a graduate of Yale University and the University Of Tennessee College Of Law in 1974.”

Ashe was one of eight people nominated to the Broadcasting Board of Governors on Thursday. The others included former CNN Chairman Walter Isaacson, former White House Press Secretary Dana Perino, Michael Lynton, Susan McCue, Michael Meehan, Dennis Mulhaupt and S. Enders Wimbush.

By law, no more than four members of the board can be appointed from the same political party. All eight must next be confirmed by the U.S. Senate.