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Alhurra and Radio Sawa to Broadcast Live Coverage of Obama


Alhurra and Radio Sawa to Broadcast Live Coverage of President Obama's Speech to the Muslim World

(Springfield, Va.) - On Sunday, May 31, Alhurra Television and Radio Sawa initiated their special programming leading up to President Barack Obama's keynote speech to the Muslim world from Cairo on June 4th. Both networks will broadcast the President's speech live, with simultaneous Arabic translation, to millions of viewers and listeners in the Middle East, North Africa and Europe. Alhurra and Radio Sawa will provide their audience three ways to keep up with President Obama's much anticipated speech from the domed hall at Cairo University, through Alhurra Television, Radio Sawa and on the Internet through Radio Sawa's all-news Web site, www.radiosawa.com and live streaming on www.alhurra.com.
Alhurra and Radio Sawa commenced their special programming to cover President Obama's visit and speech aimed at increasing U.S. engagement with the Muslim world with extensive and dedicated programs to discuss his efforts to bring stability and peace to the Middle East, build bridges between the United States and Arab and Muslim worlds and open dialogue to overcome misunderstandings.
Alhurra is focusing on the significance of President Obama's concerted efforts to speak directly to citizens across the Middle East. Extensive coverage of the June 4 speech will begin at 12:00 a.m. (All Times Eastern) with Alhurra's "Special Report" and "Free Hour" which will host political analysts and commentators from the United States and key Middle Eastern countries to discuss their expectations of President Obama's speech. Starting at 3:00 a.m., fourteen hours of live news reporting, analysis and commentary will feature political experts who will give insight to the President's message before and after the speech. Alhurra will also feature the reactions of activists, scholars and the viewing public from across the Middle East.

Radio Sawa will also provide its listeners in the Middle East with live radio coverage and lengthy newscasts leading up to the much-anticipated speech, on Thursday, June 4. In the days leading up to the speech, Radio Sawa's news magazine program, "Sawa Magazine," provided a comprehensive examination of the significance of President Obama's direct approach to the Muslim world and will feature topics that are of much interest to citizens in the Middle East such as the Palestinian-Israeli peace negotiations, stability in Iraq and civil and human rights in the Middle East region.

Alhurra Television's three hour live evening program, "Al Youm," is asking its viewers to share their expectations of President Obama's remarks through emails and Al Youm's Facebook page. On Wednesday, June 3 and Thursday, June 4, Alhurra's reporters will feature reactions from political analysts and scholars, as well as from the public, from Turkey, Israel, Egypt, Palestinian Territories, Lebanon, Morocco, Iraq, Indonesia and the United Arab Emirates. The program will also interview students from Alazhar University in Cairo before and after the speech and persons from the American-Arab community in Astoria, New York to explore their reactions to the speech.

Recent surveys of the Middle East by research companies such as ACNielsen show that together Alhurra and Radio Sawa have an unduplicated weekly reach of an estimated 35 million adults.

Alhurra is broadcast on the Nilesat and Arabsat satellites in the Middle East and the Hotbird satellite system in Europe. Alhurra is operated by the non-profit corporation "The Middle East Broadcasting Networks, Inc." (MBN). MBN is financed by the U.S. Government through a grant from the Broadcasting Board of Governors (BBG), an independent federal agency. The BBG serves oversight and as a firewall to protect the professional independence and integrity of the broadcasters. For more information on Alhurra go to www.alhurra.com

MBN also operates Radio Sawa which seeks to effectively communicate with the youthful population of Arabic-speakers in the Middle East by providing up-to-date news, information and a mix of Western and Arabic popular music on its 24/7 FM and medium wave radio stations throughout the region. Its secondary target audience is news-seekers of all ages. Radio Sawa is committed to broadcasting accurate, timely and relevant news about the Middle East, the world and the United States, to the highest standards of journalism, as well as the free marketplace of ideas.

Radio Sawa broadcasts on FM in Morocco, Sudan, Lebanon, Jordan, Palestinian Territories, Kuwait, Bahrain, Qatar, U.A.E., Iraq and Djibouti. Radio Sawa broadcasts on medium wave to Egypt, Yemen and Sudan. Radio Sawa streams its programming at its all-news Web site www.radiosawa.com.



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