Will this channel tell the truth about the elements of Islam that give rise to violence, and the hard choices Muslims must face in order to prevent the continued growth of jihad radicalism and terrorism among them? Or will it be Taqiyya TV? We shall see.
It’s interesting, meanwhile, that the “derogatory comments” that Hassan’s wife heard on the radio are presented here as if they just came out of nowhere, with the assumption that although they followed 9/11, there was no real cause or justification for them. Why is it that Buddhists and Hindus don’t feel the need to create media outlets in the U.S. to counter attacks? Why is it poor Muslims who are always getting their feelings hurt? What we have here is an example of the peculiar refusal by moderate Muslims and sympathetic non-Muslims to face up to the Islamic roots and motivations of international terrorists. They do not admit there is any problem within Islam, and so they stand as one of the greatest obstacles to actually setting to work to fix the problem.
From Reuters, with thanks to Kemaste:
NEW YORK (Reuters) – A new television channel that claims to be the first U.S. Muslim lifestyle network in English debuts next week, bringing to fruition an idea born in the aftermath of the Sept. 11 attacks.
Bridges TV founder and Chief Executive Muzzammil Hassan, who came to the United States from Pakistan in 1979, said on Friday his wife came up with the idea in December 2001 while listening to the radio on a road trip.
“Some derogatory comments were being made about Muslims that offended her,” Hassan told Reuters ahead of Tuesday’s launch. “She was seven months pregnant, and she thought she didn’t want her kids growing up in this environment.”
A former banker and marketing executive, Hassan drew up a business plan and raised backing from U.S. investors for the channel, which he says will have 50,000 initial subscribers by cable and satellite.
He has signed a deal with Comcast, the largest U.S. cable operator to make it available nationwide.
Hassan said the Buffalo, New York-based channel is focused on lifestyle and entertainment, and programs will include Muslim cartoons, educational shows and animated Koran stories. It will also have daily news and current events program and aims to offer more objectivity than its competitors.
“Our target audience has told us some of the foreign channels are pretty one-sided and some of the domestic channels are pretty one-sided the other way,” Hassan said.
Really? Like which ones?
The station will differ from popular Arabic satellite channels like al-Jazeera in that it is focused on life in America, in English and backed by U.S. money, he said.