Foreign Policy Blogs

Al Jazeera 'Demands' US Broadcasting

Al Jazeera is leveraging the crisis in Egypt (and their coverage of it) to campaign for broadcasting rights throughout the US. They say they are not available in most of the 50 states in the US, but want the right to be.

Al Jazeera 'Demands' US Broadcasting

In an opinion article on their website, Al Jazeera’s Director General Wadah Khanfar said their broadcasting has been unfairly blocked in the past:

Elsewhere, in the United States, Al Jazeera faces a different kind of blackout, based largely on misinformed views about our content and journalism. Some of the largest American cable and satellite providers have instituted corporate obstacles against Al Jazeera English.

So the company is taking matters into its own hands with a campaign to “demand Al Jazeera on your TV.” The campaign includes February 10 Meetup gatherings to tell satellite and cable providers how much Al Jazeera is wanted.

The demands are overshadowed, though, by Al Jazeera’s reputation for bias. In his manifesto about the campaign, Khanfer himself alludes to the approach their reporters take.

…our journalists exist in the right places and are given the space and resources to get the job done. Most importantly, they have editorial freedom.

According to the Meetup website, the February 10 event is planned in 345 communities, including New York.

Al Jazeera 'Demands' US Broadcasting

 

Author

Genevieve Belmaker

Genevieve Belmaker is a freelance journalist and contributing editor with The Epoch Times (www.theepochtimes.com). She also contributes to Quill, the magazine of the Society of Professional Journalists and Poynter.org. Her blog on journalism is http://artofreportage.com.

Genevieve has traveled throughout the U.S., Asia, Central America, Israel and the West Bank for reporting assignments, including major investigative reports on the recovery of New Orleans, the encroaching presence of China in Costa Rica and Nicaragua, the dangerous import of melamine-contaminated milk into the U.S. and settlement outposts in the West Bank. She regularly reports on issues related to journalism, and the work of journalists.

She holds a BA from the University of Southern California in International Relations, and has been a member of several prominent national and international professional media organizations, including the Society of Professional Journalists, Investigative Reporters and Editors, the International Women’s Media Foundation, the New York Press Club, and the Newswomen’s Club of New York. She lives in Jerusalem, Israel with her husband and son.

Areas of Focus:
New Media; Journalism; Culture and Society