... Op dezelfde manier is het Israëlische hooggerechtshof waarschijnlijk de enige rechtbank in het Midden-Oosten waar Arabieren tegenover de staat in het gelijk worden gesteld.
Dit laat onverlet dat Al Jazeera geen objectieve nieuwszender is en toch vooral vanuit Arabisch perspectief over de zaken bericht. Dat Al Jazeera desondanks uit alle Arabische staten, inclusief de Palestijnse gebieden is gegooid (door de Palestijnen, niet door Israël), is veelzeggend.
Dit laat onverlet dat Al Jazeera geen objectieve nieuwszender is en toch vooral vanuit Arabisch perspectief over de zaken bericht. Dat Al Jazeera desondanks uit alle Arabische staten, inclusief de Palestijnse gebieden is gegooid (door de Palestijnen, niet door Israël), is veelzeggend.
Hoever zou een Israëlisch TV station komen in de Arabische wereld? Niet ver. In een aantal landen mogen Joden niet eens komen, en kom je ook met een Israëlisch stempel in je paspoort al niet binnen. Israëlische producten komen er ook vaak niet in, en in sommige landen hebben bedrijven die handel drijven met Israël eveneens een probleem.
Ratna
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'The only country we haven't been kicked out of is Israel'
It's not just America that's hostile to al-Jazeera, Nigel Parsons, who launched the English version of the channel, tells James Robinson. The so-called 'Terror TV' station has ruffled feathers across the Gulf
* James Robinson
* The Observer
* Sunday November 4 2007
http://www.guardian.co.uk/media/2007/nov/04/television?gusrc=rss&feed=media
In Washington, the political elite call al-Jazeera 'Terror TV' - so rolling out an international version of the 24-hour Arabic news channel to extend its reach to the English-speaking world was always likely to be fraught with difficulties.
Sipping tea in a central London hotel, Nigel Parsons, the man who launched al-Jazeera English a year ago, recalls the reception he received on an early visit to Washington to meet a US Congressman. 'When I walked in he said "So you're the guys who are responsible for our kids dying in Iraq". And this was a Democrat - an ex-surfer from California.'
Parsons, an Englishman with an unassuming manner who has worked at the BBC and Associated Press, has had to fight to make AJE's voice heard. As the channel's anniversary approaches, al-Jazeera English is still not available in American homes and has been forced to rely on its website to build a presence in the US. 'Cable companies were fearful of a backlash,' Parsons says.
It has hired a posse of big-name reporters and presenters, including ex-BBC stars Rageh Omaar and Sir David Frost, to imbue the network with some star quality, and Frost helped the channel get off to a good start, securing an interview with Tony Blair in its first week in which the then Prime Minister appeared to agree that the invasion of Iraq had 'so far been pretty much of a disaster'.
Though few stories have made such a spectacular splash since then, Parsons says there have been plenty of other exclusives: 'We had five cameras in Burma when no one else could get in and that was picked up [by other networks].' So too was the channel's footage of the Pakistani army's raid on the Red Mosque in Islamabad.
After a delayed launch, which left more than 100 of its 390 journalists sitting in the Qatari desert, Parsons is pleased to be in nearly 100 million homes in more than 60 countries (market-leader CNN is in 200 million). 'I could hear the knives sharpening as launch day approached. Now that we are on air, people can judge us for what we are.'
There is no doubt that AJE's coverage is distinctive. Parsons says around 40 per cent of its output covers the Middle East, but it majors on stories in developing nations and offers a world view that is refreshingly different or dangerously subjective, depending on your personal perspective.
'We don't want to be part of the herd,' Parsons says. 'That's not saying the herd is always wrong, but following it is responsible for the mistakes that have been made. Iraq was a classic example of that. It was nothing short of a dereliction of duty, for broadcasters in particular. We assumed that our politicians knew more than we did and assumed their statements were based on fact.
'The rhetoric being used against Iran is a carbon copy of the rhetoric used against Iraq. They are already linking Iran with al-Qaeda and using that phrase "nuclear ambitions". But the media are more wary this time and there will be a lot of questions asked if there is a rush to war.'
AJE covered President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad's recent visit to New York 'quite differently', Parsons says. 'We were far more critical of his treatment. We are far more aware of the fact that he is not the ultimate leader of Iran. It is a very old nation that hasn't invaded anyone for 300 years and was on the wrong end of a war of attrition with Iraq.' But he also points out: 'We're not less critical of Iran. We often get thrown out of the country.'
One of the ironies of AJE's pariah status in the US is that the original Arabic-language al-Jazeera, which claims to report and reflect the view from the 'Arab street', often clashes with Middle Eastern regimes, which don't always appreciate candid criticism. 'Saudi is the most difficult one to cover. We haven't been in for years, though we're trying to. The only country we haven't been kicked out of is Israel; even the Palestinians kicked us out once.'
Those who characterise AJE's sister channel as Osama bin Laden's favourite news outlet might also be interested to learn that al-Qaeda has just issued a fatwa against AJE. 'We didn't show [bin Laden's latest statement] in a flattering enough light.'
It was those videotaped statements that first made al-Jazeera's reputation in the West, but Parsons is dismissive of those who claim they are aiding bin Laden by airing them. It has always insisted that it would not hand over tapes to the CIA and Parsons says that journalists who say bin Laden should be denied the oxygen of publicity are being disingenuous. 'If he offered you an exclusive interview in a cave in Tora Bora, you'd go. If they protest they wouldn't, they'd be lying.'
These days, other broadcasters frequently find bin Laden's tapes before al-Jazeera does, he says. 'They used to be dropped off anonymously, but are uploaded in an internet cafe now. Reuters received the last one.'
Both channels are funded by the fabulously wealthy Emir of Qatar, in part because they allow the kingdom to punch above its weight politically and diplomatically, but Parsons denies they have money to burn: 'We don't have the same commercial pressure, but we have fixed budgets. We don't have as much money as our competitors.'
Neither were its big-name signings lured with big-money offers. 'The idea that we are the Chelsea of broadcasting is a complete myth. We had a deliberate policy of not buying our way into the market. We are at the bottom end of the global pay league. I can tell you that Rageh's not being paid anything near what his agent would have liked. He could have made a lot more money elsewhere.' Reporters are attracted by the chance to do work they enjoy, travelling when they want to, but doing less 'rooftop journalism' from the edge of war zones, he claims.
The truth - however unpalatable it may be to some - is that the channel will come into its own next time there is a major conflict in the Middle East, when it hopes to use its correspondents and contacts in the region to get to places and people Western news outlets might not reach.
Parsons admits that last summer's Israeli-Lebanese conflict, which preceded AJE's launch was frustrating to watch because his colleagues had to watch the war unfold from their desert base. 'It's a dilemma. The region's seen enough conflict, but if there were another Lebanese war tomorrow, that could make us as a channel.'
His only regret so far, he says, is that AJE didn't go on a publicity push in America: 'We've been very weak on marketing. I would have taken one of those big Times Square electronic signs and put a slogan up saying "The rest of the world is watching; why aren't you?". It's debatable whether that would have won it a wider audience in America, but it would certainly have provoked an interesting response.'
'The only country we haven't been kicked out of is Israel'
It's not just America that's hostile to al-Jazeera, Nigel Parsons, who launched the English version of the channel, tells James Robinson. The so-called 'Terror TV' station has ruffled feathers across the Gulf
* James Robinson
* The Observer
* Sunday November 4 2007
http://www.guardian.co.uk/media/2007/nov/04/television?gusrc=rss&feed=media
In Washington, the political elite call al-Jazeera 'Terror TV' - so rolling out an international version of the 24-hour Arabic news channel to extend its reach to the English-speaking world was always likely to be fraught with difficulties.
Sipping tea in a central London hotel, Nigel Parsons, the man who launched al-Jazeera English a year ago, recalls the reception he received on an early visit to Washington to meet a US Congressman. 'When I walked in he said "So you're the guys who are responsible for our kids dying in Iraq". And this was a Democrat - an ex-surfer from California.'
Parsons, an Englishman with an unassuming manner who has worked at the BBC and Associated Press, has had to fight to make AJE's voice heard. As the channel's anniversary approaches, al-Jazeera English is still not available in American homes and has been forced to rely on its website to build a presence in the US. 'Cable companies were fearful of a backlash,' Parsons says.
It has hired a posse of big-name reporters and presenters, including ex-BBC stars Rageh Omaar and Sir David Frost, to imbue the network with some star quality, and Frost helped the channel get off to a good start, securing an interview with Tony Blair in its first week in which the then Prime Minister appeared to agree that the invasion of Iraq had 'so far been pretty much of a disaster'.
Though few stories have made such a spectacular splash since then, Parsons says there have been plenty of other exclusives: 'We had five cameras in Burma when no one else could get in and that was picked up [by other networks].' So too was the channel's footage of the Pakistani army's raid on the Red Mosque in Islamabad.
After a delayed launch, which left more than 100 of its 390 journalists sitting in the Qatari desert, Parsons is pleased to be in nearly 100 million homes in more than 60 countries (market-leader CNN is in 200 million). 'I could hear the knives sharpening as launch day approached. Now that we are on air, people can judge us for what we are.'
There is no doubt that AJE's coverage is distinctive. Parsons says around 40 per cent of its output covers the Middle East, but it majors on stories in developing nations and offers a world view that is refreshingly different or dangerously subjective, depending on your personal perspective.
'We don't want to be part of the herd,' Parsons says. 'That's not saying the herd is always wrong, but following it is responsible for the mistakes that have been made. Iraq was a classic example of that. It was nothing short of a dereliction of duty, for broadcasters in particular. We assumed that our politicians knew more than we did and assumed their statements were based on fact.
'The rhetoric being used against Iran is a carbon copy of the rhetoric used against Iraq. They are already linking Iran with al-Qaeda and using that phrase "nuclear ambitions". But the media are more wary this time and there will be a lot of questions asked if there is a rush to war.'
AJE covered President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad's recent visit to New York 'quite differently', Parsons says. 'We were far more critical of his treatment. We are far more aware of the fact that he is not the ultimate leader of Iran. It is a very old nation that hasn't invaded anyone for 300 years and was on the wrong end of a war of attrition with Iraq.' But he also points out: 'We're not less critical of Iran. We often get thrown out of the country.'
One of the ironies of AJE's pariah status in the US is that the original Arabic-language al-Jazeera, which claims to report and reflect the view from the 'Arab street', often clashes with Middle Eastern regimes, which don't always appreciate candid criticism. 'Saudi is the most difficult one to cover. We haven't been in for years, though we're trying to. The only country we haven't been kicked out of is Israel; even the Palestinians kicked us out once.'
Those who characterise AJE's sister channel as Osama bin Laden's favourite news outlet might also be interested to learn that al-Qaeda has just issued a fatwa against AJE. 'We didn't show [bin Laden's latest statement] in a flattering enough light.'
It was those videotaped statements that first made al-Jazeera's reputation in the West, but Parsons is dismissive of those who claim they are aiding bin Laden by airing them. It has always insisted that it would not hand over tapes to the CIA and Parsons says that journalists who say bin Laden should be denied the oxygen of publicity are being disingenuous. 'If he offered you an exclusive interview in a cave in Tora Bora, you'd go. If they protest they wouldn't, they'd be lying.'
These days, other broadcasters frequently find bin Laden's tapes before al-Jazeera does, he says. 'They used to be dropped off anonymously, but are uploaded in an internet cafe now. Reuters received the last one.'
Both channels are funded by the fabulously wealthy Emir of Qatar, in part because they allow the kingdom to punch above its weight politically and diplomatically, but Parsons denies they have money to burn: 'We don't have the same commercial pressure, but we have fixed budgets. We don't have as much money as our competitors.'
Neither were its big-name signings lured with big-money offers. 'The idea that we are the Chelsea of broadcasting is a complete myth. We had a deliberate policy of not buying our way into the market. We are at the bottom end of the global pay league. I can tell you that Rageh's not being paid anything near what his agent would have liked. He could have made a lot more money elsewhere.' Reporters are attracted by the chance to do work they enjoy, travelling when they want to, but doing less 'rooftop journalism' from the edge of war zones, he claims.
The truth - however unpalatable it may be to some - is that the channel will come into its own next time there is a major conflict in the Middle East, when it hopes to use its correspondents and contacts in the region to get to places and people Western news outlets might not reach.
Parsons admits that last summer's Israeli-Lebanese conflict, which preceded AJE's launch was frustrating to watch because his colleagues had to watch the war unfold from their desert base. 'It's a dilemma. The region's seen enough conflict, but if there were another Lebanese war tomorrow, that could make us as a channel.'
His only regret so far, he says, is that AJE didn't go on a publicity push in America: 'We've been very weak on marketing. I would have taken one of those big Times Square electronic signs and put a slogan up saying "The rest of the world is watching; why aren't you?". It's debatable whether that would have won it a wider audience in America, but it would certainly have provoked an interesting response.'
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