[ebaltz]

Comcast is not going to ad the terrorist network. Good for them. Maybe Dish will follow and not waste bandwidth on the HD version.

http://www.variety.com/article/VR1117953878.html?categoryid=14&cs=1

 

[DougRuss]

The Brain Wash Network....we Don't need it !!:nono2:

 

[Michael P]

I have not seen the Arabic Al Jazeera (in red) in the EPG for some time now. I do see all the other Arabic channels. Did E* pull it off 61.5 or just made it invisable to non-subscribing EPG's?

Thanks alot to all you who threatened to cancell E* over the English Al Jazeera - you may have just took the freedom of choice away from your fellow Americans. I hope you are all feeling proud of yourselves. Now go stick your heads back in the sand

 

[Darkman]

Meow .. Another Al-Jazeera thread.. Yummie!

ebaltz,
Not such a big deal anyhow, cuz Comcast never comitted themself to AJI previously anyhow...

Meanwhile.. from the Net:

----
....Al-Jazeera has been a lightening rod since 9/11 thrust the region onto center stage and its English channel will certainly be viewed with suspicion in many quarters. Here's more:

- Dave Marash, a former ABC Nightline correspondent who'll co-anchor a daily newscast, says Al-Jazeera got a black eye from the Bush administration for airing Osama bin Laden videotapes and live reports from Fallujah, Iraq.

- Al-Jazeera reported news in both cases, he says, and its journalistic "aspirations, tactics and techniques" are like those of any mainstream news outlet. "No holds barred, political ideology, party affiliation. When people actually see the product, I think a lot of that (criticism) is going to go away."

The question is, will you watch?

( The entire article is at the following source: http://www.cbsnews.com/blogs/2006/1...OTC-RSSFeed&source=RSS&attr=PublicEye_2180441 )

And here is little something that might make ebaltz, etc... even more happier ( not 100 % gauranteed of course )

---
"US carriage eludes Al-Jazeera International" ( for now anyhow, i guess...if article is truly accurate.. i guess we ll have to wait and see to see if it is or NOT )

Tuesday, November 14 2006, 18:24 UTC - by James Welsh

Al-Jazeera International will not be seen on TV in the United States when it launches on Wednesday.

The channel, which will launch to around 70m households worldwide on November 15, has not been able to secure carriage at launch with any cable or satellite provider in America.

Variety reports that a deal between AJI and Comcast, one of America's biggest cable operators, fell through after AJI held out for nationwide coverage when Comcast wanted to make the channel tentatively available in Detroit, which houses a large Arab-American population.

Source: http://www.digitalspy.co.uk/article/ds39411.html

 

[tsmacro]

I don't really get all the hype surrounding this whole Al-Jazeera thing. Wouldn't blaming them for terrorism be kinda like shooting the messanger when he delivers bad news?

 

[Darkman]

Exactly tmsmarco!

On the lighter note though,

----
Britons at Al-Jazeera TV station rapped for 'drinking binges'

Posted on 11/14/2006 3:43:22 AM PST by Mrs Ivan

British staff working for the new English language Al-Jazeera channel drank so much alcohol that they were ordered to undergo special "cultural awareness" training on how to behave in a Muslim country.

Presenters and producers hired on massive taxfree salaries to launch Al-Jazeera International (AJI) were lectured by Islamic groups on " appropriate behaviour" after a series of marathon drinking sessions in Qatar, where the new service is based.

The channel's owner, the Emir of Qatar, is understood to have personally ordered the move...

----
( The entire article is at the following source: http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1738243/posts )

 

[Darkman]

I have not seen the Arabic Al Jazeera (in red) in the EPG for some time now. I do see all the other Arabic channels. Did E* pull it off 61.5 or just made it invisable to non-subscribing EPG's?

It's still there..

TNGTony's chart shows Al Jazeera Satellite Channel as an existing channel..
at .. 61.5, 148 and 121 locations:

Al Jazeera Satellite Channel ALJAZ 645 15 61.5°
Al Jazeera Satellite Channel ALJAZ 645 24 148°
Al Jazeera Satellite Channel ALJAZ 761 21 121°

On the right of his chart it is also shown it to be in couple of Arabic Packages...

...
Ebaltz,

Why should DISH drop Al Jazeera? - It's on their platform FOR YEARS now (as mentioned already on numerous occasions) :grin:

And more likely a very popular channel among Arabic Subscribers...

 

[cybrsurfer]

Comcast is not going to ad the terrorist network. Good for them. Maybe Dish will follow and not waste bandwidth on the HD version.

http://www.variety.com/article/VR1117953878.html?categoryid=14&cs=1

They have obviously signed a contract for carrying the network. They can review whether they want to renew when the contract expires. With enough negative feedback, they probably will not renew the carriage contract when it expires.

 

[James Long]

They have obviously signed a contract for carrying the network. They can review whether they want to renew when the contract expires. With enough negative feedback, they probably will not renew the carriage contract when it expires.

The old network is carried, but tomorrow an English language version allegedly launches.

If a channel launches and nobody carries it has it really launched?

 

[Darkman]

Al Jazeera International launches Wednesday; not available in India

Indiantelevision.com Team
(14 November 2006 10:00 pm)

MUMBAI: There's just a day left for the official launch of the Al Jazeera International, the English language sibling of the sometimes controversial Arabic language channel Al Jazeera.

Al Jazeera International will kick off its inaugural broadcast from its headquarters in Doha, Qatar at 12 GMT tomorrow.

In English-language markets, the channel will beam down from the Astra and Eurobird satellites to DSat homes in the UK; the Globecast platform in the US; Optus in Australia; and foreign-language platform Orcus in New Zealand, informs an official release....

--- etc ----

...Broadcast across the globe, Al Jazeera English will far exceed its original launch target of 40 million cable and satellite homes. It will be distributed across all continents throughout the world and in addition to cable and satellite will be available on broadband IPTV, ADSL, terrestrial and mobile phone platforms.

Not surprisingly the channel has got a very limited distribution in the US after it was "blanked" by big satellite players like News Corp's DirecTV and Charlie Ergen's Echostar and cable giants like Comcast and Time Warner. Al Jazeera English will only be available to subscribers of the GlobeCast Network - a subsidiary of France Telecom that carries channels from all parts of the world and services mainly non-Americans.

Among the European satellite and cable platforms to carry the channel are Canal Sat and TPS in France, Kabel Deutschland and Kabel BW in Germany, HK Broadband in Hong Kong, YES TV in Israel, Sky Italia, Astro Malaysia, Canal Digital in The Netherlands, ORCUS in New Zealand, Canal Digitaal in Nordic Region and Sky Guide 514 in United Kingdom.

----
hehe, even Israel will carry Al Jazeera International on it's own YES TV :lol: (Please do NOT ask: "How come even Israel has YES TV, but DISH doesn't")

as to:

...it was "blanked" by big satellite players like News Corp's DirecTV and Charlie Ergen's Echostar and cable giants like Comcast and Time Warner.

I can only add - "blanked" .. CURRENTLY anyhow.. - Time will show what the future brings!

After all, Who really said that it's a NECESSITY to carry this channel (or any other one for that matter) on the day it's launched

 

[Darkman]

Al-Jazeera English ready for debut - but not in U.S.

By Gail Shister
The Philadelphia Inquirer
(MCT)

It's a drag to be fenced out of your own backyard, says Dave Marash.

Marash, Washington anchor for Al-Jazeera English, is disappointed that the Qatar-based news network - scheduled to launch Wednesday - will reach more than 80 million homes worldwide, but none on U.S. cable.

AJE (formerly known as Al-Jazeera International), the English spin-off of controversial Arab-Language Al-Jazeera Network, will be carried here on four obscure outlets: GlobeCast; Jump TV; VDC and Fision, AJE announced Tuesday.

It will also be streamed live on aljazeera/english.net.

GlobeCast is a satellite network; Jump TV and VDC are on the Internet....

---
( The entire article is at the following source: http://www.mercurynews.com/mld/mercurynews/entertainment/television/16012455.htm )

 

[cj9788]

I personaly visit the AJ website every other day. I find it entertaining and offers a glimps to the maddness of the other side. I would not mind if E* adds it. If they do will it be available with AEP on 119 or 110 or do I need 61.5?

 

[Darkman]

I would not mind if E* adds it. If they do will it be available with AEP on 119 or 110 or do I need 61.5?

That is a Million Dollar question cj9788! (.. as the channel is NOT even on E*'s platform)

Also.. found this interesting read just now:

NZ Herald:

Launch of al Jazeera will bring new perspective to TV news

1.00pm Wednesday November 15, 2006
By Guy Adams

Lights, cameras, salaam.

In the heart of old London, a stone's throw from Buckingham Palace, the inhabitants of a state-of-the-art TV studio are preparing to make broadcasting history....

--
...The new channel, al-Jazeera International, already boasts star quality.

A host of big names, from Sir David Frost to former BBC and ITV stalwarts Rageh Omaar and Darren Jordon have been poached from rival British broadcasters....

--
...In the USA, meanwhile, AJI has signalled its intention to do battle with the mighty CNN, after poaching its sought-after Atlanta-based anchorman Riz Khan to front a daily news programme from Washington.

The channel certainly has money to back up its ambitious aims.

Bankrolled by the Emir of Qatar to the tune of tens of millions of dollars, it launches with a total of 18 bureaux around the world, and no less than five hundred staff of its own....

--
...Four studios - in London, Doha, Kuala Lumpur and Washington DC - will allow AJI to "follow the Sun," broadcasting around the world via satellite TV and the internet, 24 hours a day, seven days a week.

"This will be the last great adventure in TV news," says the station's Europe Correspondent, Alan Fisher.

"It sounds like a terrible cliche, but the world is getting smaller, and there's a huge untapped market out there that isn't served by a rolling news station. I'd put that potential audience in tens, if not hundreds of millions."

It's a bold claim.

But al-Jazeera has made a habit of living up to the hype that has surrounded it since the original Arabic station hit the airwaves just ten years ago...

etc...

---
( The entire article (LONG) is at the following source: http://www.nzherald.co.nz/section/story.cfm?c_id=2&ObjectID=10410880 )

 

[James Long]

Comcast is not going to ad the terrorist network. Good for them. Maybe Dish will follow and not waste bandwidth on the HD version.

http://www.variety.com/article/VR1117953878.html?categoryid=14&cs=1

A reminder that at this point E* has not even HINTED that they will be carrying ANY English version of Al-Jazeera. It is all speculation based on Al-Jazeera's reporting (which did not name E* as a potential partner).
Previous Thread

 

[Darkman]

Associated Press

NEW YORK - Al-Jazeera's English-language network is set to begin operation on Wednesday without any distribution by a major cable or satellite system in the United States.

The all-news network, based in Doha, Qatar, said it would be available to computer users via a broadband Internet connection. But despite months of trying and delays in its launch date, it named only four companies available in the United States that would offer it....

--- etc ----

...Al-Jazeera English will be available to customers of GlobeCast, the subsidiary of a French company that offers satellite TV service costing around $300 to install. The other companies Al-Jazeera English said it had agreements with are Fision, a digital service that will be available shortly in Houston; Jump TV, which describes itself as "the world's leading broadcaster of ethnic TV over the Internet; and VDC, a service that offers TV on the Internet to about 10,000 customers in the U.S.

Elsewhere around the globe, Al-Jazeera English said the picture is brighter. The network said it would be available via cable or satellite in more than 80 million homes, or double its launch target of 40 million.

---
( The entire article is at the following source: http://www.timesleader.com/mld/timesleader/16012709.htm )

 

[JM Anthony]

While I doubt I'm make a steady diet of it, I'd definitely check it out. With more and more of our news being held in the hands of an ever smaller band of moguls, I'm interested in hearing more divergent views. I'm also of the opinion that you, "keep your friends close and your enemies closer."

John

 

[pdxsam]

I read something today which said Dish was willing to carry it but they wanted to package it with the arabic Al Jazeera but A-J-I wanted the channel carried in an AT package.

 

[Darkman]

Is it appropriate to have "(aka Al-Terrorist)" in the Thread name there?

......
Some more details about the channel:

Frost opens with Blair in al-Jazeera English launch

Owen Gibson and Oliver Burkeman
Wednesday November 15, 2006
The Guardian

Sir David Frost has revealed how he investigated al-Jazeera's credentials with his own high-level contacts in Whitehall and Washington before agreeing to sign up to its long-delayed English language channel, which launches today.

In an interview in today's G2, Sir David, who is scheduled to welcome Tony Blair as the first guest to his show on Friday, said he initially had qualms about signing for the broadcaster after trenchant criticism from the American right.

"So I deliberately checked out, with Whitehall and with Washington, that there were no links with al-Qaida, for instance, that sort of thing," he said. "And it was not really a surprise that there were no such links, because Qatar, the proprietor of al-Jazeera, is also our most important ally in the Middle East."

---- etc -----

...Yesterday it was revealed that the US cable network Comcast had pulled out of talks to carry the channel, citing lack of capacity.

It hopes to offer a new, Middle Eastern perspective on world events as an alternative to CNN and BBC World. But it will not be available in America via either EchoStar, Comcast or Rupert Murdoch's DirecTV at launch, although US viewers will be able to tune in via the GlobeCast satellite....

( The entire article is at the following source: http://media.guardian.co.uk/site/story/0,,1948048,00.html )

 

[Darkman]

I read something today which said Dish was willing to carry it but they wanted to package it with the arabic Al Jazeera but A-J-I wanted the channel carried in an AT package.

If that was true, that could be interpreted then, i guess, as DISH is trying to be too greedy, trying generate extra revenues through additional new subscriptions cuz of this particular channel.. instead of adding it to more appropriate (for English language News channel) package(s), such as AT one(s)

 

[rasheed]

Just some factual notes...

Dish has always has the ability to block (even from the RED All Chan display) channels. This is true with many international channels (not just Arabic ones). They only show up if you have a subscription in those channel regions. Of course, many customers wish they would do this with PPV offerings, but obviously that is business counter-intuitive. Arabic is one of their most popular international offerings. It is primarily music and entertainment (dramas, soaps, etc.), but there are some existing news sources there too. They have been on the free preview international (573) from time to time.

The issue with this new channel is that it is in English, and even if added to the Arabic tier -- it doesn't really make sense. It is more like CCTV in English as a comparison probably.

There is also the HD version, which is interesting from a technical point of view, but I don't think anyone has identified it as a priority for the HD metal packages or as an international HD channel (currently this doesn't exist as a particular category). If it does go as an international subscription channel, it will be 148/61.5 recommendation.

Rasheed