14 November 2016
Arab Satellite Communications Organization – Arabsat – participates in AFRICACOM Conference & Exhibition held in Cape Town, South Africa, from 15-17 November 2016.
Eng. Khalid bin Ahmed Balkhyour, President & CEO of Arabsat, stated that “Through our participation in this show, we are looking forward to presenting our services provided to the African continent, as our 5th generation satellites are covering the entire African continent broadcasting TV, telecommunications and Internet satellite services. Arabsat satellites also broadcast dedicated bouquets over North Africa and other dedicated bouquets over the whole African continent including TV & telecom broadcast, in addition to the existence of several ground satellite stations inside Africa connected to the European and the Asian satellite ground stations to provide Internet services and mobile networking. ARABSAT will also showcase the capabilities of its 6th generation satellites, scheduled to be launched next year which will provide extra massive satellite capacities covering the whole African continent and its potential market with full in Orbit – back up.”
Balkhyour concluded that “We are currently working hard on several important strategic projects to operate many of our new orbital positions and keep up with our customers increasing needs, maintaining Arabsat status as the best choice to provide customers’ needs in satellite broadcasting & Telecommunication services.”
(Source: Arabsat press release)
3 November 2016
12th annual AIBs reward factual programme makers from across the world
The 12th annual awards for factual television, radio and online productions – known as the AIBs – were awarded at a glittering gala dinner in London on Wednesday 2 November hosted by Mark Barton, anchor on Bloomberg Television. Sponsors of the AIBs 2016 include global satellite communications company Eutelsat and broadcast consultants MediaGuru.
As well as rewarding programme makers, the Association for International Broadcasting presented its Founders Award to Abdul Rahman Ramadhan (right) who for more than 35 years has been an unsung hero of news and documentary-making in Africa. He is “The Sound Man” who, working for Camerapix alongside the late legendary photojournalist Mohamed Amin, captured the sounds of war, famine and genocide across Africa. Abdul was the sound recordist who worked with the BBC’s Michael Buerk, who brought news of the Ethiopian famine into homes around the world. This led to the creation of Band Aid and the global Live Aid pop concert. “We are delighted to have the opportunity to recognise the work of Abdul Rahman Ramadhan,” said Alexey Nikolov, Managing Director of RT and Chairman of the AIB’s Executive Committee. “He has worked tirelessly in the most challenging of situations to bring the sounds that illustrate the news to viewers across the world. He has put his life in danger on many occasions and yet shows no sign of hanging up his headphones. Abdul is a worthy recipient of the important AIB Founders Award.”
Alongside the presentation of the Founders Award, the global panel of judges of this year’s AIBs rewarded programme makers in 14 countries, ranging in size from an Argentinian radio station to major TV networks such as the BBC.
Key themes among the entries were the migrant crisis in Europe and in particular the effects on children. There were also a range of productions covering issues around so-called ISIS, including the radicalisation of youth in western European countries. The judges praised the work of nominees, describing productions variously as “bold”, “engaging”, “compelling” and “comprehensive”.
The Association’s Innovation award was presented to the Private Engineering Office of Qatar for its ground-breaking TV and film archiving project that is preserving Qatar’s audio-visual archives on a scale unmatched anywhere in the world.
“We had the largest crop of entries in the 12-year history of the AIBs,” commented Simon Spanswick, chief executive of the Association for International Broadcasting. “Work from broadcasters and production companies on every continent was considered by our shortlisting team. Then our experts in the international jury evaluated which work was the best of the best. Some of the decisions were immensely close as the programmes we saw and heard in the shortlist were all of the very highest standard.”
With results in 17 categories ranging from news journalism to children’s factual, sport to investigate documentary, the AIBs cover the entire range of factual TV, radio and online production genres. There is an overall winner in each category and there are also special commendations that the judges said represented excellent work.
The list of winners appears below.
The AIBs open for entry again in April 2017.
Winners list
TELEVISION JOURNALISM – sponsored by MediaGuru
Winner – The Children of War – BBC News
Highly commended – Desperate Journey – PBS NewsHour
Highly commended – Paris Terror Attacks – CNN
RADIO JOURNALISM
Winner – Burmese Election Special – BBC Burmese
DOMESTIC CURRENT AFFAIRS
Winner – My Son the Jihadi – True Vision Productions for Channel 4
Highly commended – My Jihad – VRT
Highly commended – Chemsex – Vice
RADIO CURRENT AFFAIRS
Winner – ISIS: Young, British and Radicalised – Snappin’ Turtle Productions for BBC Radio 1
Highly commended – Corruption K: Cristina in the Dock – Radio Mitre
Highly commended – Alvin Hall Goes Back to School – WNYC & Public Radio International
SHORT FEATURE
Winner – On Assignment – Vicky’s Story – ITV News and MediaZones
Highly commended – Right to Fight – The Guardian
Highly commended – Winners – BBC World Service
SPECIALIST
Winner – It Ends with Murder – The Body in the Freezer – Danish Broadcasting
Highly commended – The Sound Man – Africa24 and Camerapix
Highly commended – The Special Needs Hotel – Lambent Productions
RADIO INVESTIGATIVE
Winner – Documentary on One: The Case That Never Was – RTÉ Radio 1
Highly commended – The Unfinished Story of Fighting FGM in Egypt – BBC Arabic
Highly commended File on 4 – Tennis – Game Set and Fix? – BBC/Buzzfeed
ONLINE
Winner – 6×9: A virtual experience of solitary confinement – The Guardian
Highly commended – Back in Touch – On Our Radar in partnership with New Internationalist
Highly commended – China’s Science Revolution – BBC News
SCIENCE
Winner – Iceman Reborn – Nova – WGBH
Highly commended – Secrets of the Brain – TERN International
INNOVATION
Qatar Private Engineering Office for the Old Films Archive Project
FOUNDERS
Abdul Rahman Ramadhan
CHILDREN’S
Winner – Checker Tobi – Bayerischer Rundfunk
Highly commended – Know Zone – The Mediae Company
SPORT
Winner – Formula 1 – Whisper Films and Channel 4
Highly commended – Rugby World Cup Final – ITV Sport
RADIO CREATIVE FEATURE
Winner – The Battle of Britain at 75 – TBI Media with Snappin’ Turtle Productions for BBC Radio 2
Highly commended – Growing Up Without a Dad – BlokMedia
SHORT FORM JOURNALISM
Winner – Brussels Divided: Molenbeek after the Terrorist Attacks – The Guardian
Highly commended – Syria: Witness to an Airstrike – CNN Worldwide
Highly commended – VTM News – Train of Hope – Medialaan
TV INVESTIGATIVE
Winner – ISIS: The British Women Supporters Unveiled – Channel 4
Highly commended – 101 East: Murder in Malaysia – Al Jazeera English
Highly commended – Spotlight – Selling Northern Ireland – BBC Northern Ireland
INTERNATIONAL CURRENT AFFAIRS
Winner – Children on the Frontline: The Escape – Channel 4
Highly commended – Kaos Hatti – Kos Island – TRT
Highly commended – We Love Gaza – RT
RADIO PERSONALITY
Viny Agrawal – MyFM 94.3, Indore, India
TELEVISION PERSONALITY
Hala Gorani – CNN International
1 November 2016
Arqiva, the communications infrastructure and media services company, has announced a partnership with Alexandra Palace that will see it illuminate the mast which broadcast the first ever regular high definition public television transmission in 1936.
This November 2nd marks the 80-year anniversary of the day the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) launched the world’s first high definition television service and the occasion will be marked with the illumination of the Alexandra Palace mast.
From 1936 until the early 1950s, Alexandra Palace became the major production centre for BBC Television, broadcasting landmark programming and coverage of historical events including the 1953 coronation. Converting former dining rooms and unused spaces to create two experimental TV studios, The BBC Studios became known globally as ‘the birthplace of television’.
Bryan Coombes, Director of Terrestrial Broadcast at Arqiva commented: “We feel incredibly privileged to be able to support the 80th anniversary celebrations at Alexandra Palace, and help deliver what will be an amazing public spectacle befitting of this historic location.
“When you look back on all the incredible things that the television industry has achieved – from the broadcasting of the coronation to the introduction of colour TV – it’s important to acknowledge just how much of the work that was done inside the Alexandra Palace studios all those years ago.
“With the mast standing at 65.5 metres high and continuing to provide TV and radio services to the surrounding area, there’s no doubt its illumination will be the perfect tribute.”
Louise Stewart, Chief Executive at Alexandra Park and Palace commented: “The BBC led the world with the development of television, and the first broadcasts made at Alexandra Palace exemplify a culmination of collaborative invention, pioneered by John Logie Baird, but ultimately carried forward by the Marconi-EMI system.
“It is fitting that we are able to work with Arqiva to the light the iconic mast as part of our celebration of this ground breaking moment in broadcasting history, in the very spaces in which the first opening night of television actually happened.”
Alongside the mast illumination, Alexandra Park and Palace Charitable Trust (APPCT) is marking the anniversary by inviting the public to an evening of talks and comedy in the Palace Suite, with the critically acclaimed comedy troupe ‘Do Not Adjust Your Stage’ as the lead attraction.
Ticket proceeds will be going towards the restoration of the Alexandra Palace studios as a visitor centre and museum capturing the history of television broadcasting in the UK. The Trust has committed to raising £1 million to complete the project, and restore and open the historic studios to the public for the first time in 2018.
For more information about and ticket purchases for the 80th anniversary event, please visit: http://www.alexandrapalace.com/whats-on/
Further details on the Palace’s fundraising and restoration efforts can also be found here: http://support.alexandrapalace.com/east-wing-restoration/
(Source: Arqiva press release)
27 October 2016
The total number of views on RT’s YouTube channels has exceeded four billion, making RT the leader among international TV news channels, including CNN and BBC.
In total, the aggregate number of views on RT’s channels is more than twice as many as that of CNN, three times as many as Euronews, and more than seven times as many as the BBC’s YouTube news channels combined.
VIDEO https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8CufWXj_o4o&feature=youtu.be
“The future of media is inextricably linked to the Internet. Once you fall behind in this field, it’s difficult to catch up. From the very beginning, RT has focused on developing its digital platforms, and this has been the key to our success,” noted RT Editor in Chief Margarita Simonyan.
“For many years now, RT has been the unrivalled leader on YouTube, the most popular video hosting platform in the world. Four billion views is a new milestone, and we are aiming to raise the bar even further,” said Kirill Karnovich-Valua, RT’s Head of Online Projects.
In 2007, RT became the first Russian TV channel to post video content on YouTube, as soon as the platform became available in Russia. In 2011, an RT clip was recognized as the most popular news video of the year on the platform. The following year, the Pew Research Center named RT the top news producer on YouTube. In 2013, RT became the first TV news channel in the world to hit one billion views on the portal.
In September 2016, RT took home seven Lovie Awards, the pan-European awards honoring online excellence. Last April, it received the People’s Voice Award at the prestigious Webby Awards, garnering user acclaim ahead of BBC News, ABC News, NBC Nightly News, and the New York Times.
(Source: RT press release)
27 October 2016
The release of the new story production tool from Vizrt provides an easy tool for editing video and distributing to any platform including social media and media asset management systems.
Good storytellers shouldn’t need to be technical wizards. They just need the tools to tell their story easily, professionally, and get it to their audience immediately. To accomplish this, Vizrt has created Viz Story, a browser-based (HTML5) editing tool that allows the journalists to quickly create compelling video stories with state of the art 3D graphics, and easily distribute them online and to social media.
Capture
Use video from any source, including professional video shot from the field, mobile phone video, or files from a media asset management (MAM) system. Search your ingested media and add to a timeline for editing. Combine Viz Story with Vizrt’s MAM system for live editing on growing proxy video.
Edit
Edit with multiple clips of any aspect ratio on a timeline. Add high-quality graphics to your video using templates for a fast way to add text and define the style of Text On Video (TOV) content. Graphics are rendered by our state-of-the-art 3D graphics rendering system.
Easily edit videos for multiple aspect ratios. Adjust the position of your video in your project with keyframed panning. This keeps the point of interest always in the center of the frame – even when using 16:9 video in a square video project.
Other editing features include:
- Overlay video, audio and graphics
- Video transitions
- Preview of graphics animations
Share
Instantly publish your final video anywhere, including Facebook, FTP, to disk, or to our media asset management system. The system also includes a third-party REST API for custom publishing workflows.
To find out more about Viz Story, visit vizstory.com and follow the Viz Story Facebook page.
(Source: Vizrt release)
