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Â鶹Éç Arabic Television service begins recruiting
Â鶹Éç World
Service has started recruiting senior editorial staff for the Â鶹Éç
Arabic Television service to be launched in autumn 2007.
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Salah Negm, who has joined the channel as News Editor,
says: "We'll
be initially recruiting output editors - and one for newsgathering.
We're aiming to be fast, modern in style and outlook; strong on analysis
with a wide international perspective.
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"It will maintain the Â鶹Éç values
of accuracy, editorial independence, impartiality, while balancing
a wide diversity of views. Ìý
"Â鶹Éç Arabic Television will have broad appeal - free from commercial, political and religious affiliations or pressures. We are now looking for the key senior staff to help us turn this vision into an exciting reality."
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Applications for the current Editor vacancies can be made through bbc.co.uk/jobs.
Other journalist and technical roles are to be advertised later this year,
and bbcarabic.com gives brief details.
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Salah
Negm explains: "The new channel will not simply be another satellite
news station. It's
part of a wider vision to introduce a multi-media Â鶹Éç Arabic Service - drawing
on the great traditions and strengths of its radio and online operation to better
serve audiences across the Arab world.
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"We will be unique among international broadcasters in the Middle East, a region that witnessed a boom in satellite television news and media consumption in the last few years.
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"Â鶹Éç World Service Arabic Television will supply high
quality rolling news and information. Dynamic, relevant and modern,
it will introduce to the Arab television viewers all the values that
made Â鶹Éç Arabic radio an icon in the region over nearly 70 years.
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"It will explain the wider context of events for
audiences in a region that is witnessing an extreme polarisation
in views and attitudes; bringing into conflict the old and new,
tradition and modernity."
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Â鶹Éç Arabic already broadcasts 24-hours a day through FM and online.
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Â鶹Éç Arabic Television will draw on the Â鶹Éç's huge newsgathering network around the world and will expand its journalistic presence across the Arab world: latest technology will provide its reporters with greater mobility, speed and quality.
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Jerry Timmins, Head of Africa and the Middle East at Â鶹Éç World Service, says: "The
measured weekly audience for Â鶹Éç Arabic radio is over 12 million and bbcarabic.com
is one of the region's most visited websites with monthly page
impressions peaking earlier this year at 21 million and rising.
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"With the television station to broaden our appeal further, Â鶹Éç Arabic is very ambitious to increase its audiences across all media over the next five years."
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The Head of Â鶹Éç Arabic, Hosam El Sokkari, added: "This offer across all media will be designed to cater for the different economic and social conditions across 21 countries.
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"We have a unique opportunity with one service creating content across three media in the same place under a unified editorial leadership and with a shared technical backbone."
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The Â鶹Éç announced plans to launch an Arabic Television operation in October 2005 as part of Â鶹Éç World Service's multi-media strategy for the next three years.
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Â鶹Éç World Service is accelerating its transition from
being seen as primarily a radio and online operation to a true multi-media
producer, capable of responding to audience demands for information
via whatever medium they choose.
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Jerry Timmins adds: "The Â鶹Éç Arabic Service is at the cutting edge of developments at Â鶹Éç World Service. Our aim is to strengthen our appeal to
our audiences using latest technology.
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"With the Arabic Service's trusted reputation in the Middle East and our new found ability to provide news and information across any device the audience chooses, the Â鶹Éç will be in a unique position in the Arab World.
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"I believe we have a real advantage given that
we will be creating a carefully co-ordinated and compelling multi-media
news service."
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Â鶹Éç Arabic TV will initially broadcast for 12 hours a day - available free-of-charge to everyone in the Arab World with a satellite or cable connection.
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A service of Â鶹Éç news and information in audio and text in Arabic is planned for the remaining 12 hours of the day on the channel.
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Repeated audience research in seven capital cities
across the region indicates that between 80 and 90 per cent of
those surveyed would be "very likely" or "fairly likely" to tune
in.
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Potential users cited the trusted nature of the Â鶹Éç brand and
its strong record in news coverage for their strong interest.
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The operating costs of £19m a year for Â鶹Éç Arabic TV will come from existing grant-in-aid funding from the UK Government. The grant for 2006/7 is £246 million.
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The newly redeveloped Broadcasting House - the Â鶹Éç's central London headquarters - will be the home of the Â鶹Éç's Arabic Television service.
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The whole Â鶹Éç Arabic service, including the new Arabic language television service, will occupy two floors of the new purpose-built East Wing from launch.
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The service will create multi-media news and current affairs output across radio, television and online for Arabic speakers around the globe.
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Jerry Timmins says: "Broadcasting House is going to be the main centre for the Â鶹Éç's national and international news operations when the redevelopment of the building
is complete.
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"I'm really pleased that the Â鶹Éç's Arabic Service will be the first part of the Â鶹Éç's Global News Division to move in. It will ensure the Arabic Service is close to the heart of the Â鶹Éç's overall news operation.
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"The Â鶹Éç Arabic Service is at the cutting edge of developments at Â鶹Éç World Service. Our aim is to to strengthen our appeal to our audiences using latest technology.
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"With the Arabic Service's trusted reputation in the Middle East and our new found ability to provide news and information across any device the audience chooses, the Â鶹Éç will be in a unique position in the Arab World.
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"I believe we have a real advantage given that
we will be creating a carefully co-ordinated and compelling multi-media
news service."
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The new base at Broadcasting House for the Â鶹Éç's multi-media Arabic Service will process and edit news feeds from Â鶹Éç bureaux and studios throughout the Middle East and worldwide - as well as handling material from news agencies and the public via mobile phones and email.
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It will be staffed by some 200 journalists working
together to process material for radio, television and online.
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Notes to Editors
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-
The Â鶹Éç's Arabic Service was launched in 1938 and has been located in the Â鶹Éç World Service's central London headquarters in Bush House since 1940.
- Â鶹Éç World Service Arabic radio has an audience of
12.3 million a week. Â鶹Éç Arabic online attracts more than 21 million
page impressions a month.
- Â鶹Éç World Service has a total weekly
audience figure of 163 million - up from 149 million last year.
- Â鶹Éç World Service broadcasts in 33 languages and
is available on high quality FM sound in 150 capital cities - up
from 145 last year.
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Â鶹Éç World Service
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