14 July 2004
In an historic agreement, the Broadcasting Board of Governors (BBG) signed a contract with Clarity Communications Pakistan that will allow listeners across that country to hear the new Urdu-language Radio Aap ki Dunyaa on the FM 101 Network.
The agreement – signed by BBG Chairman Kenneth Y. Tomlinson and Syed Asif Salahuddin, Clarity’s CEO – means that for the first time millions of Pakistanis will have easier, improved access to Aap ki Dunyaa by listening to FM radio. The new, fast-paced Urdu service of the Voice of America (VOA) first went on the air May 10 on medium wave (AM) 972Hz. Pakistan is a vitally important country and we’re pleased to be able to provide information and programming to so many people,” said Tomlinson, head of the agency that oversees all U.S. nonmilitary international broadcasting.
Under the agreement, Clarity, which leases large blocks of time on the FM 101 Network from Pakistan Broadcasting Corporation, will air Aap ki Dunyaa twice a day in the morning and the evening in cities around the country. The broadcasts begin immediately. Those cities are Karachi, Islamabad, Lahore, Faisalabad, Quetta, Sialkot, Peshawar and Hyderabad. They have a combined population of 23 million, which is about 15 percent of the country’s total population.
The popular FM 101 Network will complement the existing options for listening to Aap ki Dunyaa. Since its launch, the station has been available for 12 hours a day, from 7 p.m.-7 a.m., on a medium wave (AM) signal – 972kHz – that reaches listeners in Pakistan and northeast India. It is also broadcast for three hours on shortwave (7 to 8 p.m., 10 to 11 p.m., and 6 to 7 a.m. Pakistan time). It is also carried for 12 hours on digital audio satellite and via the Internet (www.VOANews.com/urdu). Internet enhancements will be phased in, providing audience interaction through e-mail, and texts of selected feeds, interviews, and other programs of interest to the listening audience.
Aap ki Dunyaa’s regular programming features 10-minute newscasts twice an hour during most of prime time and hourly newscasts throughout the night. The service provides in-depth coverage of events affecting South Asia and the world; features on topics such as health, education, and political issues; call-in shows; roundtable discussions; and a mix of Pakistani, Indian, and Western music. With its combination of news and features, about half of Aap ki Dunyaa’s unique programming consists of information.
Aap ki Dunyaa is staffed by 27 people in Washington as well as a network of more than 15 stringers in Pakistan, India and North America. Dr. Brian Q. Silver is chief of the service. All staffers from the original VOA Urdu Service are now part of the Aap ki Dunyaa team.
14 July 2004
The paneuropean news TV channel, EuroNews, has reached an agreement with Spanish satellite operator, Hispasat, whereby Hispasat 1C will distribute its signal in Spain and all over Europe for a period of six years.
Thanks to the agreement, EuroNews significantly increases its distribution in the Iberian market, adding more than 3 million homes in Spain and Portugal. The channel will be available to all 1.7 million subscribers (400,000 through Hispasat) to Spanish digital satellite platform, Digital Plus.
EuroNews strengthens the free-to-air TV offer distributed by Hispasat to Europe available to all users equiped with a small dish orientated at the Spanish satellite, located at West 30º, and with a digital set-top-box. Today, Hispasat distributes to Europe around 40 free-to-air TV channels.
The President of EuroNews, Philippe Cayla, said that, thanks to this agreement, EuroNews strengthens its presence in the Iberian market and consolidates its leading position in Europe where, as a paneuropean news television, is one of the most widely watched TV channels.
14 July 2004
The Digital Audio Broadcasting (DAB) transmitters covering Hilversum, Amsterdam, The Hague and Rotterdam were switched on on 19 July. The public channels Radio 1, Radio 2, 3FM, Radio 4, 747 AM and the Concertzender are now available.
By the end of 2004, 70% of the Dutch population will be able to receive DAB. The service will have the capacity to carry 24 national stations, of which eight will be public and sixteen commercial, and 117 regional and local stations.
14 July 2004
Hong Kong viewers will be able to enjoy digital television broadcasts by 2007 at the latest, after the government gave Television Broadcasts Limited (TVB) and Asia Television Limited (ATV) the right to beam programmes to viewers using the technology.
Under terms of the licences, TVB and ATV must begin transmitting digital signals in tandem with their existing analogue service by 2007, the South China Morning Post reports.
The two broadcasters will also be allocated spectrum to launch high-definition TV services, which allow for higher resolution than standard televisions.
TVB and ATV are also required to extend their digital network coverage to 75 percent of Hong Kong by the end of 2008.
If a national standard for digital terrestrial television (DTT) broadcasting has not been established on the mainland before the end of 2006, the government said it will let the market decide on the selection of the technical standard.
Both broadcasters have indicated that they will adopt the European DVB-T technical standard for digital broadcasting by 2006 to encourage the introduction of DTT services in the territory.
10 July 2004
In what could well be a first in Arab TV broadcasting, Al Jazeera Channel has finalised a Code of Ethics guided by a transparent Vision and Mission Statement.
The document, which will be made public in the next few days, states unequivocally the satellite channel’s professional beliefs and standards. Foremost is Al Jazeera’s intent to adhere to professional core values, distinguish between what is news and what is opinion and analysis, and monitor its output acknowledging unintended mistakes if and when it occurs and ensuring it does not recur.
Defining Al Jazeera as an “Arab media service
with global orientation”, the Code re-emphasises its motto of “The One and the Other Opinion”. It further asserts the Channel’s position as a “forum for pluralism, seeking the truth while observing the principles of professionalism within an institutional framework”.
The Code of Ethics, as well as the Vision and Mission Statement, were the result of exhaustive meetings held over a period of months by Al Jazeeras Editorial Board and discussions that invited views from all the Channels employees. The firm conviction has always been that any media organisation has to be responsible towards the environment in which, and with which it interacts, and consequently it is imperative that there should be clear and transparent communication.
Waddah Khanfar, Channel Director, said that the Code is one way of putting our vision and mission statement into action. Al Jazeera has always endeavoured to promote public awareness of issues of concern. Khanfar further pointed out that one of the Codes articles stipulates: “Al Jazeera aspires to be a bridge between peoples and cultures to support the right of the individual to acquire knowledge and strengthen the values of tolerance, democracy and respect for liberties and human rights”.
The Code also stresses that professional considerations are sacrosanct, and thus have priority over political and commercial concerns. Consequently, virtues such as honesty, courage, fairness, balance and independence are but few of Al Jazeera’s core professional values.
The announcement of the Code of Ethics coincides with the launch of Al Jazeera World Forums first annual conference to be held in Doha on 12-13 July 2004. The title of the conference, which around 120 Arab and Western journalists are expected to attend, is Changing Media Perceptions: Professionalism & Cultural Diversity.
The AIB is attending the Doha conference and AIB members will receive a briefing about the event.
Al Jazeera is a Platinum Member of the AIB
