Monday, August 27, 2007

Al - Jazeera English plans more autonomy over regional news


August 27th, 2007 - 14:26 UTC by Andy
The Qatar-based international satellite TV news channel Al-Jazeera English (AJE) is preparing to give its three broadcast centres outside Doha (Kuala Lumpur, London and Washington) more autonomy over regional news agendas later this year, according to AJE managing director Nigel Parsons.

His remarks were reported on 27 August by Content Asia, an Asia-based information resource aimed at the entertainment industry (http://www.contentasia.tv/ ). He was speaking on the sidelines of the recent Global Brand Forum in Singapore.

Parsons said centralized control in Doha for AJE’s first six months on air meant other broadcast centres had not been used as effectively as they could be. “We were terrified of creating four channels instead of one,” the report quoted him as saying.

AJE continues to be monitored in Singapore “to see if we are safe to unleash on the local population,” Parsons added. AJE has secured distribution in Malaysia and Indonesia, the Philippines, New Zealand, Taiwan and Thailand, but is still waiting for a broadcasting licence in India, the Content Asia report noted.

(Source: BBC Monitoring research 27 Aug 07/R Netherlands Media Network Weblog)