Al Jazeera’s forthcoming English language channel has the potential to be one of the most exciting projects in the world of television journalism in years.
After the Arabic channel’s controversial but ultimately successful coverage of the Afghanistan and Iraq conflicts, the Qatar-based channel has developed a reputation for brave reporting and risk-taking.
As a result the Al Jazeera brand is considered young and edgy and was voted as the fifth most influential brand in the world by a Brandchannel magazine in 2005.
Launch delayed
Al Jazeera International, as it will be known, says it aims to tap into the English language market and cover global affairs with the same maverick spirit it has shown Arab viewers.
The channel was supposed to appear on our television screens this month but has been delayed once again and as curiosity over the project grows, there are rumors that the ambitious network may be struggling in its attempts to crack the English-language market.
Al Jazeera International has still not fixed a launch date, but say they will start broadcasting sometime this year, after failing to meet a launch target in November 2005. The channel says the delays are a result of technical problems.
“There is too much at stake and we owe too much to our viewers to launch on an arbitrary deadline. We want, first and foremost, a quality product. Our technology consultants will offer us a slightly revised timeline for launch, but in the big scheme of things, we don’t expect too serious a delay from our target” spokesperson for the channel told EXECUTIVE.
Despite the advantages of Al Jazeera’s “rebel” image, the name also carries baggage, and the team of British TV executives brought into launch the channel has had a tough job trying to convince some elements in the West of the network’s credibility.
The trouble is that Al Jazeera Arabic has something of an image problem. It has been accused of having links with Al Qaida terrorists, Iraqi insurgents, and of pushing an anti-American Islamist editorial line to its 50-million-strong Arab audience.
Still, while the channel’s airing of hostage videos and Osama bin Ladin’s statements, raised eyebrows, it made for enthralling television news, and many of these scoops would likely be jumped upon by any news organization in the world.
Bad image
But although the charges are mostly unfair, there is still deep-rooted animosity towards the channel in the American administration and some other Western governments. The channel remains banned from Iraq, one of its cameramen is imprisoned in Guantanamo Bay and its correspondent Tayseer Alouni has been jailed in Spain for links to “terrorists.”
As a result Al Jazeera International has found it hard to gain acceptance in some circles. The English venture has still not found a US cable provider that will carry the channel and talks with media giants such as Time Warner and Comcast appear to have come to nothing. In comments to the US press, the cable carriers deny their decision is political and say that it just doesn’t make economic sense to carry the channel, as it is unlikely to be popular in the US.
Although Al Jazeera has found carriers in most other regions in the world, many in the media world question who will make up the new channel’s audience. Al Jazeera International has sent out mixed messages over whom they plan to target. Initially they said the channel would cover affairs in the developing world, but more recently however they say they want to seek a wider range of viewers.
“People with questioning minds and who are seeking a fresh perspective on the news, one that is not limited to one viewpoint of one nation or people – one that addresses concerns around the world,” said the channel’s spokesperson.
In order to achieve a global view, the management team has spent the last year setting up studios in Kuala Lumpur, Doha, London and Washington as well as bureaus across the world.
Some media analysts are skeptical however and say that the channel will target too wide an audience, making it unappealing to specific groups.
Gossip and intrigue
The venture has attracted publicity due to high-profile signings such as veteran British journalist Sir David Frost, BBC’s Rageh Omar, and Nightline correspondent David Marash, and has been poaching talent from other networks with the help of fat salary offers.
All of this would not be possible without the Emir of Qatar, Shaikh Hamid bin Khalifa. Although the Qatari ruling family has tried to play down the links to the channel, the reality is that it has total control over the network. The emir’s nephew is chairman of the board and the family sees the network as a key part of their plan to use huge gas revenues to transform Qatar from a remote desert backwater to a center of finance and trade that will rival Dubai.
The family has given millions of dollars to the Arabic channel since its launch in 1996. Al Jazeera Arabic and Al Jazeera International are likely to rely on this support for the foreseeable future as the network is starved of advertising due to Saudi Arabia’s opposition to the channel and its attempts to starve it of revenue by manipulating the Arab advertising sector.
The bankrolling of Al Jazeera International by the Qatari royal family is the stuff of media executives’ dreams. Although the budget for the English venture is unknown, the Qataris have evidently been generous. Al Jazeera International’s London studios are located at one of the most prestigious addresses in London: No. 1 Knightsbridge.
The budget also allows the channel to build what it describes as “the most sophisticated technology ever deployed for an international news network.”
With this kind of money and power being made available it is no surprise that the network is a hotbed of gossip and intrigue.
The latest Al Jazeera news to hit the headlines was a report that the channel’s London offices were broken into and several computers containing highly sensitive information were stolen.
The thieves apparently ignored valuable equipment and headed straight for the files and computers suggesting that the break-in was industrial espionage.
“We lost several contacts books and hard drives containing email records and details of things like what people like Frost and Omar will be doing, and how much they’re being paid,” an unnamed employee at the channel told the Independent daily.
According to insiders at the channel the management team has also faced internal feuding – a problem familiar to anyone in the upper tiers of media management.
Last month the managing director of Al Jazeera Arabic, Wadah Khanfar was appointed as the director general of the entire network, which in addition to the English and Arabic channels also includes a sports channel, documentary channel and children’s channel. The 38-year-old Jordanian Palestinian also secured a seat on the network’s board.
In the same week of his appointment Khanfar said in remarks to the press that Al Jazeera International’s launch would be delayed until late this year.
Crucially, the fact he spoke for Al Jazeera International and contradicted the official line raised questions over the position of the top tier of Al Jazeera International’s management who have a history of tense relations with the Arabic channel’s management team.
In an internal memo Al Jazeera International managing director Nigel Parsons played down Khanfar’s comments and said his appointment had been expected.
“Working ever more closely together will only make us stronger. There is no need for anxiety,” he told his staff.
Internal feuding
But internal sources at the network say there is concern within the channel over Khanfar’s appointment.
“Senior management, including Al Jazeera International head Nigel Parsons and his number two, Steve Clark in particular, don’t like at all the appointment of Wadah Khanfar as Director General of the Al Jazeera Network, nor his appointment to the board,” said one member of staff at the network. “They are scared that he will interfere and they are right, he’s already started signaling I’m the big boss messages,”
Tensions between the two camps are partly a result of the larger salaries of the AJI team but there were also deeper fears among many Arab journalists over the number of Britons being employed at the network. With a few exceptions most of the top editorial management at the channel are British, leading some at the network to dub the English venture “Al Jazeera on Thames”. The appointment of an Arab to the top position in the network is likely to counter these accusations.
“From a traditional Al Jazeera point of view, many within Al Jazeera Network are happy that the British club that is the AJI management has finally been checked by an Arab and they want more Arab’s within the senior hierarchy and at all levels,” said the network staff member, who asked to remain anonymous.
“There is a lot of jealously and fear over Al Jazeera (Arabic) losing the limelight, news focus and Qatari money being thrown in Al Jazeera International’s direction,” the source said.
Although we will have to wait a few months before we see a Doha dateline on our screens, when it does launch Al Jazeera International looks certain to attract as much controversy as its Arabic counterpart.
