New Media

Audio/Video

Religious Programming on Al Jazeera

From: Al Jazeera: Voice of Arabia

© 2003, Used with permission of First Run/Icarus Films

A film by Tewfik Hakem

This clip is 3.52 megabytes in size

Running time is 3 minutes and 49 seconds

This clip is from a 52 minute documentary examining the impact of the Al Jazeera satellite news channel in the Arab world and beyond. The station has generated its fair share of controversy. Many Middle East Countries have sanctioned the network at some point for unfavorable coverage fo their affiars, and in the US the administration has repeatedly expressed disatisfaction with the network's coverage of the war in Iraq and and American counter-terrorism activities. Fewer have discussed the extraordinary social impact of the station across the region. This clip deals with religious programming on the station, specifically the fact that there is so little of it in comparison with previously existing national networks. It also discusses the role of these programs in breaking taboos, such as that on frank discussion of sexuality in the broadcast media.