Al Jazeera buying Current TV with the intent of turning it into “Al Jazeera, America” is great news. For the most part, the Qatar-owned broadcaster already does a better job of journalism than the American networks. That became painfully obvious to anyone watching their coverage during the Gulf War (s). They already have 5 bureaus in the U.S. and plan on setting up 5 to 10 more following the acquisition of Current TV from Al Gore, which means job creation for U.S. journalists and a greater diversity of opinion from a broadcast news outlet that appears to be striving for a fair and objective presentation as opposed to what we now have, business people who care more for business than journalism, seeking greater profitability through the presentation of entertainment or by blatantly slanting the news, turning it into disinformation.
The Arabs, riding into town possibly to to resuscitate American broadcast journalism? How interesting is that? One can only hope.
Keep hope alive!
Great observation Ron! Lately I’ve been surfing around on my cable channels and picking up some video streams from Al Jazeera America and others like RT News (Russia Today, headquartered in Moscow) and rediscovered that, as your old channel used to slogan, “There is more to life than news, weather and sports,” corporate American style. It is interesting to see how the discussion about Al Jazeera shapes up.
Less tabloid journalism and more in-depth reporting is needed in America. Watch out America, here comes the real stuff!
Less tabloid journalism, more in-depth reporting, and the death of propaganda on the air (including AM radio) would be fine with me.