The Courting of Al-Jazeera
by TBS Managing Editor
Sarah SullivanWhile Washington asked the emir of Qatar to "rein in" Al-Jazeera, American
networks were headed to Doha in search of a deal.It's nearly midnight in Doha, and we are in a cafe on a pier jutting out over the shoreline of the Persian Gulf. The cafe is empty and the night air quiet—except for the insistent ring of mobile telephones. Al-Jazeera Managing Director Mohammed Jasim Al-Ali takes a call from an American TV network executive. The airstrikes are well underway, and the Qatar-based satellite news channel, by now well known to TV audiences and Washington decision-makers alike, is the only TV presence in Taliban-controlled Afghanistan. Washington, in early October, asked Qatar to rein in the satellite channel, claiming it fans anti-American sentiment. American broadcasters, though, want Al-Jazeera to make them a deal.
The story continues...
Although this is a perfect example of how two organizations can be of mutual assistance, agreements between Al-Jazeera and CNN are not just a result of, nor limited to, crisis coverage. "We've had a history of cooperation with CNN," Mr. Al-Ali says. "Three or four months ago we had a meeting with them to agree on cooperation, so that in areas where they are strong we would join in, and in the places that we're strong they'd have our support. It became formal around two and a half months ago, and more so after Sept. 11. It's a long-term agreement, not just for this crisis."
Al-Jazeera became a CNN World Report contributor a year ago, and over the summer officials from the two organizations met both in Washington and in Doha to cement a relationship. "After Sept. 11," Nasr says, "we realized we need a CNN presence in the Al-Jazeera newsroom to figure out how we can cooperate." Nasr, a Lebanese American equally fluent in English and Arabic, was in Doha by the 14th.
Read the entire article here.
Looks like CNN was in bed with the terrorists as early as 2001. I'd say that qualifies as TREASON (see What's so wrong with showing Patriotism in the Media?), not purveyors of "the unvarnished truth."
Just in case you're wondering, the TBS on that site is not Ted Turner's OTHER network. Here's the copyright at the bottom of the page: "Copyright 2001 Transnational Broadcasting Studies - TBS is published by the Adham Center for Television Journalism, the American University in Cairo."
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