Television Journalists Leave Syria to Protest Government Censorship

Television Journalists Leave Syria to Protest Government Censorship

SPRINGFIELD, Va., April 20 /PRNewswire/ -- Less than 24-hours after Alhurra television broadcast a historic town-hall meeting live from Damascus on freedom of speech and freedom of the press, the Alhurra team that produced the meeting left the country in protest after the Syrian government attempted to censor the content of Alhurra's future town-hall meetings scheduled for the rest of the week. The shows that were cancelled were to discuss topics such as the future of the Baath Party, political and economic reform in Syria and democracy in the Middle East.

It started on Monday, April 18th, when Alhurra television broadcast the first in a series of live town-hall meetings from downtown Damascus that included questions and comments from the audience. Panelists on the program discussed the laws governing the press in Syria and said that there was no freedom of the press. Guests called for the end of interference in the press by the Syrian authorities. Following that broadcast, the Syrian government tried to pressure Alhurra not to include certain guests from appearing on the future town-hall meetings scheduled for the rest of the week. Before sending the team to Damascus, Alhurra management was assured by the relevant Syrian authorities that nothing would interfere with free discussion.

One of the guests on Monday's town-hall meeting was human rights activist Anwar Albunni. In an interview with Agence France-Presse right after the program, Albunni praised the broadcast stating it "is a positive initiative from Alhurra and from the Syrian Ministry of Information to start an open dialogue on-air and to solve the problems and obstacles that are facing reform in Syria."

Norman J. Pattiz, Chairman of the Broadcasting Board of Governors Middle East Committee, which oversees Alhurra stated, "No legitimate news organization in the world would stand for this kind of censorship. We wholeheartedly support Alhurra's decision to resist this kind of political pressure."

"This is a loss for the people of Syria. But it does not erase the impact of the historic town-hall meeting broadcast live by Alhurra from Damascus," said Kenneth Y. Tomlinson, Chairman of the Broadcasting Board of Governors.

Alhurra has become an important source of news and information in Syria. In December of 2004, just ten months after the satellite television network was launched, ACNielsen surveys showed that Alhurra's weekly viewership in Syria was 39 percent of all adults (15 and over) residing in satellite television households. The survey also indicated that Alhurra was a source of credible news for Syrians; 60 percent of Alhurra viewers stated that the news on Alhurra is reliable.

Alhurra's rising viewership in Syria is part of a continuing trend throughout the Middle East. In February 2005 a telephone survey, conducted by Ipsos-Stat, of satellite television households in major cities across the Middle East, found 34 percent of Arabic-speakers over the age of 15 watched Alhurra in a typical week. The same survey showed that 61 percent of Alhurra's weekly audience considers its news reliable.

Alhurra (Arabic for "The Free One"), was launched in February 2004 and is one of the newest and most technologically advanced channels in the increasingly crowded Middle Eastern satellite television market. The 24-hour Arabic-language channel broadcasts a diverse schedule of news, talk shows, debates, documentaries as well as entertaining information programs on a wide variety of subjects from sports to fashion to technology. The channel can be seen in 22 countries via Arabsat and Nilesat.

Alhurra is operated by The Middle East Broadcasting Networks, Inc. (MBN), a non-profit corporation. MBN is financed by the U.S. Government through a grant from the BBG, an independent federal agency. The BBG provides oversight and serves as a firewall to protect the professional independence and integrity of the broadcasters.

Source: Alhurra

CONTACT: Deirdre Kline, Director of Communications of Middle East Broadcasting Networks, Inc., +1-703-852-9250, or dkline@alhurra.com

Web site: http://www.alhurra.com/

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