[30/October/2009]

DOHA, Oct. 30 (Saba) –The Arabic satellite TV channel Al Jazeera has finished its preparations for the launch of new programming grid, with changes to its look to coincide with its 13th Anniversary due on November 1st, Qatar News Agency (QNA) reported on Friday.

The Qatar-based channel will mark the 13th anniversary of launching the main Arabic channel, the 6th anniversary of launching al Jazzera sport and the 3rd anniversary of launching al Jazeera English and al Jazeera Documentary.

The channel, will reveal a new colorful look, with a more attractive music background and the state of the art technology used in its new studios, a statement issued by the channel said.

According to a recent study by Nielson's Brand Equity Index, Al Jazeera has obtained the highest percentage of news channel viewers in the Arab world, a major reason behind the new changes, the statement said.

The new grid seeks to attract a new sort of audience, specially the youth, providing the most detailed and comprehensive analysis without boredom, said the director general of al Jazeera network Wadah Khanfar.

Al Jazeera is the largest and most controversial Arabic News Channel in the Middle East offering news coverage 24 hours a day from around the world with focus on the hottest regions of conflict.

Programming also includes a wide selection of high-pitch political talk shows and documentaries and emotional debates and sensational arguments covering events of the moment.

Founded in 1996, the Al Jazeera news network is the fastest growing network among Arab communities and Arabic speaking people around the world. With programming focusing primarily on news coverage and analysis, the station has earned the loyalty of a large audience and the enmity of various critics who argue that Al Jazeera is overly sensational with a bent on showing bloody footage from various war zones as well as giving disproportionate coverage to various fundamentalist and extremist groups.

Al Jazeera's programs are available worldwide through various satellite and cable systems. In the US, it is available through satellite, the fastest growing satellite network in the country.

Programs in Al Jazeera are devoted to various topics with an emphasis on pan-Arabic issues such as the Palestinian / Israeli conflict, the war in Iraq…while being careful in its coverage of internal political issues of Arab Gulf countries.

While political programs tend to be the most popular, other shows covering news about Business, Culture, Sports, Health also get their share of the audience.

Interactive programming that involve audience participation are also highly popular since they are considered ground breaking in that region of the world.

These shows tend to be very sensational and presented in such a way as to increase the emotional pitch and arguments among the panelists.

Regardless of the political bent given to news coverage at Al Jazeera TV, the audience watching is always large and numerous.

Saba