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Two Al-Hurra presenters anchoring news in a test before gong on air
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WASHINGTON,
February 14 (IslamOnline.net & News Agencies) - Washington
launches Saturday, February 14, an Arabic-language channel in a bid to
reach out to Arabs and stem rising anti-U.S. sentiments fueled by
rights abuses against Arabs and Muslims, the occupation of Iraq and
blind support for Israel.
Al-Hurra,
or the free one, will be broadcast to the Middle East and the Gulf
region and debut with 14 hours a day of programming, to expand to 24
hours within weeks, reported Agence France-Presse (AFP).
It
will be available to viewers in the Middle East on the region's two
major satellite systems, namely, Arabsat and Nilesat.
According
to its website, Al-Hurra is operated by the Middle East Television
Network (MTN), a body financed by the Congress, which earmarked $62
million for the channel’s 2004 budget.
The
MTN receives this funding from the U.S. Broadcasting Board of
Governors (BBG), which also runs the Voice of America radio network.
The
BBG comprises four U.S. Democrats, four Republicans and the Secretary
of State ex officio.
Seen
by many as a channel seeking to rein in the influence of the Aljazeera
and Al-Arabiya networks and polish the tarnished image of the U.S.,
the new channel airs its programs from studios in the U.S. state of
Virginia and bureaus across the Middle East.
It
will open its transmission with excerpts from an exclusive interview
with U.S. President George W. Bush on democracy in the Middle East.
In
the interview, to be aired in full on Sunday, February 15, Bush
expects Al-Hurra to "cut through the hateful propaganda that
fills the airwaves in the Muslim world".
Aljazeera
and Al-Arabiya had repudiated "slanderous
" accusations by Washington of being unbalanced in their
coverage of the situation in Iraq, accusing the U.S.-led forces of
wanting to control all media.
‘A
Beacon’
BBG
chairman Kenneth Tomlinson told AFP the channel would stand out
"like a beacon of light in a media market dominated by
sensationalism and distortion".
He
said Al-Hurra enlists a "highly professional group of journalists
primarily from the (Mideast) region".
According
to him, it will provide the kind of news and information that will
"resonate with our viewing audience".
MTN
Chairman Norman said Al-Hurra will present "fresh perspectives
for viewers in the Middle East that we believe will create more
cultural understanding and respect".
The
London-based Arabic international Al-Hayat newspaper said most
of the channel staff are from Lebanon, Egypt, Jordan, Syria,
Palestine, Qatar, Algeria and Iraq.
The
new channel is one of several American media projects to reach out to
Arabs and Muslims that included publishing
slick magazines.
Last
year, the U.S. unveiled plans to launch a
new Arabic-language television network in the
Middle East and to double radio broadcasts to Indonesia, the world's
most populous Muslim nation.
In
2002, the BBG launched Radio
Sawa , a new Arabic-language broadcasting service
proving news and entertainment to listeners in the Middle East.
