wow, Burlington and Al Jazeera
From Z Net:
apparently, the city of Burlington, where I spent several interesting years in my late teens/early 20's, has municipally owned cable company! Now that's cool! I had no idea! I found out from reading this article which is about how a bunch of what seems to be islamophopbes are agitating to get the municipally owned cable company to stop carrying Al Jazeera English. I really hope the city continues to carry al jazeera. although I have heard claims before, like the one quoted in the article, that al jazeera is all about promoting radical islam and hatred of jews, I've not yet ever seen evidence of that (if you have some, show it to me!). According to the article, the stated goal of al jazeera english is is to balance "the current typical information flow by reporting from the developing world back to the West and from the southern to the northern hemisphere. The channel gives voice to untold stories, promotes debate, and challenges established perceptions."
even though I don't live oin burlington, or vermont, even, I think I'm gonna send the mayor a letter, since apparently the right wing, muslim hating blogosphere ahs been mobilized on this issue. If they can make a stink, then I can do my part to try to balance it out.
Burlington Debates Dropping Al Jazeera
June 02, 2008 By Greg Guma
Source: Maverick Media
Greg Guma's ZSpace Page
Join ZSpace
May 29, 2008 -- The municipally-owned telecommunications company launched two years ago by Vermont's largest city - Burlington, also known as the "People's Republic" - is struggling with a divisive dispute over whether to continue airing Al Jazeera English, the 24-hour news and public affairs channel headquartered in Qatar.
Al Jazeera English was added to the Burlington Telecom line up in December 2006, shortly after the channel started airing. Since then it has become one of the three largest global English language news sources, reaching an estimated 100 million households worldwide. According to the New York Times, it has distribution deals in markets as far-flung as Portugal, Ukraine and Vietnam.
The Burlington controversy escalated after BT General Manager Chris Burns decided to drop the channel in response to "dozens" of complaints from angry customers. Only a few other US cable systems - in Ohio, Texas, and Washington, DC - currently carry it, although Al Jazeera is available via broadband portals and some public access operations.
About 75 people attended a May 27 meeting at Burlington City Hall of the two citizen committees that monitor BT management. Comments from 28 area residents ran three-to-one in favor of keeping the channel on the air. Burlington's Progressive Mayor Bob Kiss had suggested that a "broader discussion" should take place before a final decision is made.
Those in favor of keeping Al Jazeera cited the fact that the channel is extremely popular in Israel and provides a different perspective on international events. Rep. Bill Aswad, a Burlington Democrat, said the channel gives Burlingtonians the opportunity to learn about Muslims and Islam, and that "if someone doesn't want to learn more they can switch to a different channel." One person even pointed out that the channel is virtually the only news outlet that airs unedited speeches by Vice President Dick Cheney and Secretary of State Condoleeza Rice.
Those opposed argued that Al Jazeera is intolerant and endorses terrorism, and that Burlington should "shun Jew hating." One speaker called its local carriage as an insult to "any patriotic American." In a report on the meeting, WCAX, the state's largest commercial TV station, noted that some people blame the network for the deaths of US soldiers. Several on both sides of the issue threatened to drop their BT subscriptions if the decision went against their position.
Several speakers compared the Middle East-based channel with Fox News, arguing that Fox's content is a greater "threat to liberty." Regardless of how Burlington resolves the issue, a representative of RETN, the local educational channel, said that it will continue to air Al Jazeera broadcasts.
Frustrated with their cable company Adelphia (later purchased by Comcast) and phone company Verizon, Burlington citizens voted for a municipal fiber network in 1997. Two years later, the publicly-owned Burlington Electric Department partnered with Aptus Networks to build a citywide network. Since BT's launch in 2006 it has attracted about 2100 customers and is rapidly expanding its reach. Basic service is available at half the cost of Comcast, and provides 20 channels, Internet service, and two cent per minute local phone calls.
Channels are selected based on what the competition offers, but so far BT has also included any channel that provides free content. That policy brought Al Jazeera's English version to the city, but there is no contract between BT and the channel. Until recently, most of the opposition has come from blogs and people outside of Burlington.
According to the Boston Globe, Al Jazeera's presence on Burlington TV screens became an issue due to the lobbying of the Defenders Council of Vermont. "The group, with 15 to 20 members, formed last year and says its mission is to ‘educate the citizens of Vermont about the nature, reality and threat of radical Islam,' and to ‘honor the men and women of the armed services and their families,' the Globe reported.
"In a city that gave both ice cream mavens Ben & Jerry their start in capitalism and socialist U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders his start in politics, the debate over Al-Jazeera was bound to be a lively one," the newspaper added.
The City Council has the authority to decide what channels are carried but has avoided becoming involved in content issues. When some subscribers complained about the titles of adult programs being available for anyone to see, BT decided to offer adult content only to those who wanted it, blocking even the channel listing for the rest.
Local roots and accountability to the community set BT apart from private companies. Both must provided funding and space for public access channels, but Burlington Telecom goes farther. When the community asked for additional channels for live coverage of events and a video-on-demand option for local programming, BT worked to provide it.
At the public forum the debate over Al Jazeera was described by some as a free speech issue. Others argued that the US is "at war" and that the channel is "a subtle way of undermining what we take for granted." On its website, Al Jazeera English says that its purpose is to balance "the current typical information flow by reporting from the developing world back to the West and from the southern to the northern hemisphere. The channel gives voice to untold stories, promotes debate, and challenges established perceptions."
Greg Epler-Wood, who chairs both the Citizens Advisory Committee and the Burlington Telecommunications Advisory Committee appointed by the City Council, says another public forum will be held in June before any recommendation is made. Epler-Wood also has invited written comments either via e-mail (greg@burlingtontelecom.net) or care of Burlington Telecom, 200 Church Street, Burlington, VT 05401. In the end, BT and Mayor Kiss will make the call.
I wrote a letter, sent it to the local paper and the the person who's email is in that article (obviously, I am avoiding my job right now, LOL)
To Whom It May Concern:
As a former UVM student and former resident of Burlington (as well as a native Vermonter) I read about the current controversy around Burlington Telecom offering it's viewers English Al Jazeera with interest.
I no longer live in Vermont (although i miss it and dream of moving back) and I generally don't speak up about local issues in areas other than my own local area. However, I note that the main reason there is a controversy about Burlington Telecom offering English Al Jazeera is that right wing extremists in the blogosphere, with physical locations mostly NOT in Burlington, have gotten all frothed up about this and made it an issue. If their voices are being heard on this question, it seems only fair that those of us outside of the Burlington area with a more reasonable perspective also weigh in.
The islamophobes make the mistake of assuming (and asserting) that anything from the middle east or the muslim world that does not mirror their view of the world is automatically from radical islam and dangerous to america. What is dangerous to america is the idea that only one narrow viewpoint should be heard. In these days of media conglomeration, the more varied sources of media available the better. Al Jazeera English brings news, information, and viewpoints from a region of the world that most Americans should be much better educated about, given the way our government's involvement there is affecting not only the economy, but the lives of now over two thousand families who have lost a family member to the US war on Iraq.
When I lived in Burlington, I had the honor of voting for Peter Clavelle for Mayor, and I was delighted when Bernie Sanders (an old friend of my mothers) moved into the Senate. I have always been exceedingly proud to be a Vermonter, to be from a place that is not exactly liberal (at least not in the way, say, that Berkeley or San Francisco is) but that values freedom of expression and independent thought; a place where basic conservative values does not automatically lead to war mongering, scapegoating, and jingoism. Just as a Vermonter who doesn't want a civil union does not need to get one, a Burlington resident who does not want to watch English Al Jazeera is absolutely free not to. But to deny the opportunity to the people who do want to watch English Al Jazeera would be bowing to extremists and going against basic Vermont values.
With love for my home state,
Rahula Janowski
San Francisco
apparently, the city of Burlington, where I spent several interesting years in my late teens/early 20's, has municipally owned cable company! Now that's cool! I had no idea! I found out from reading this article which is about how a bunch of what seems to be islamophopbes are agitating to get the municipally owned cable company to stop carrying Al Jazeera English. I really hope the city continues to carry al jazeera. although I have heard claims before, like the one quoted in the article, that al jazeera is all about promoting radical islam and hatred of jews, I've not yet ever seen evidence of that (if you have some, show it to me!). According to the article, the stated goal of al jazeera english is is to balance "the current typical information flow by reporting from the developing world back to the West and from the southern to the northern hemisphere. The channel gives voice to untold stories, promotes debate, and challenges established perceptions."
even though I don't live oin burlington, or vermont, even, I think I'm gonna send the mayor a letter, since apparently the right wing, muslim hating blogosphere ahs been mobilized on this issue. If they can make a stink, then I can do my part to try to balance it out.
Burlington Debates Dropping Al Jazeera
June 02, 2008 By Greg Guma
Source: Maverick Media
Greg Guma's ZSpace Page
Join ZSpace
May 29, 2008 -- The municipally-owned telecommunications company launched two years ago by Vermont's largest city - Burlington, also known as the "People's Republic" - is struggling with a divisive dispute over whether to continue airing Al Jazeera English, the 24-hour news and public affairs channel headquartered in Qatar.
Al Jazeera English was added to the Burlington Telecom line up in December 2006, shortly after the channel started airing. Since then it has become one of the three largest global English language news sources, reaching an estimated 100 million households worldwide. According to the New York Times, it has distribution deals in markets as far-flung as Portugal, Ukraine and Vietnam.
The Burlington controversy escalated after BT General Manager Chris Burns decided to drop the channel in response to "dozens" of complaints from angry customers. Only a few other US cable systems - in Ohio, Texas, and Washington, DC - currently carry it, although Al Jazeera is available via broadband portals and some public access operations.
About 75 people attended a May 27 meeting at Burlington City Hall of the two citizen committees that monitor BT management. Comments from 28 area residents ran three-to-one in favor of keeping the channel on the air. Burlington's Progressive Mayor Bob Kiss had suggested that a "broader discussion" should take place before a final decision is made.
Those in favor of keeping Al Jazeera cited the fact that the channel is extremely popular in Israel and provides a different perspective on international events. Rep. Bill Aswad, a Burlington Democrat, said the channel gives Burlingtonians the opportunity to learn about Muslims and Islam, and that "if someone doesn't want to learn more they can switch to a different channel." One person even pointed out that the channel is virtually the only news outlet that airs unedited speeches by Vice President Dick Cheney and Secretary of State Condoleeza Rice.
Those opposed argued that Al Jazeera is intolerant and endorses terrorism, and that Burlington should "shun Jew hating." One speaker called its local carriage as an insult to "any patriotic American." In a report on the meeting, WCAX, the state's largest commercial TV station, noted that some people blame the network for the deaths of US soldiers. Several on both sides of the issue threatened to drop their BT subscriptions if the decision went against their position.
Several speakers compared the Middle East-based channel with Fox News, arguing that Fox's content is a greater "threat to liberty." Regardless of how Burlington resolves the issue, a representative of RETN, the local educational channel, said that it will continue to air Al Jazeera broadcasts.
Frustrated with their cable company Adelphia (later purchased by Comcast) and phone company Verizon, Burlington citizens voted for a municipal fiber network in 1997. Two years later, the publicly-owned Burlington Electric Department partnered with Aptus Networks to build a citywide network. Since BT's launch in 2006 it has attracted about 2100 customers and is rapidly expanding its reach. Basic service is available at half the cost of Comcast, and provides 20 channels, Internet service, and two cent per minute local phone calls.
Channels are selected based on what the competition offers, but so far BT has also included any channel that provides free content. That policy brought Al Jazeera's English version to the city, but there is no contract between BT and the channel. Until recently, most of the opposition has come from blogs and people outside of Burlington.
According to the Boston Globe, Al Jazeera's presence on Burlington TV screens became an issue due to the lobbying of the Defenders Council of Vermont. "The group, with 15 to 20 members, formed last year and says its mission is to ‘educate the citizens of Vermont about the nature, reality and threat of radical Islam,' and to ‘honor the men and women of the armed services and their families,' the Globe reported.
"In a city that gave both ice cream mavens Ben & Jerry their start in capitalism and socialist U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders his start in politics, the debate over Al-Jazeera was bound to be a lively one," the newspaper added.
The City Council has the authority to decide what channels are carried but has avoided becoming involved in content issues. When some subscribers complained about the titles of adult programs being available for anyone to see, BT decided to offer adult content only to those who wanted it, blocking even the channel listing for the rest.
Local roots and accountability to the community set BT apart from private companies. Both must provided funding and space for public access channels, but Burlington Telecom goes farther. When the community asked for additional channels for live coverage of events and a video-on-demand option for local programming, BT worked to provide it.
At the public forum the debate over Al Jazeera was described by some as a free speech issue. Others argued that the US is "at war" and that the channel is "a subtle way of undermining what we take for granted." On its website, Al Jazeera English says that its purpose is to balance "the current typical information flow by reporting from the developing world back to the West and from the southern to the northern hemisphere. The channel gives voice to untold stories, promotes debate, and challenges established perceptions."
Greg Epler-Wood, who chairs both the Citizens Advisory Committee and the Burlington Telecommunications Advisory Committee appointed by the City Council, says another public forum will be held in June before any recommendation is made. Epler-Wood also has invited written comments either via e-mail (greg@burlingtontelecom.net) or care of Burlington Telecom, 200 Church Street, Burlington, VT 05401. In the end, BT and Mayor Kiss will make the call.
I wrote a letter, sent it to the local paper and the the person who's email is in that article (obviously, I am avoiding my job right now, LOL)
To Whom It May Concern:
As a former UVM student and former resident of Burlington (as well as a native Vermonter) I read about the current controversy around Burlington Telecom offering it's viewers English Al Jazeera with interest.
I no longer live in Vermont (although i miss it and dream of moving back) and I generally don't speak up about local issues in areas other than my own local area. However, I note that the main reason there is a controversy about Burlington Telecom offering English Al Jazeera is that right wing extremists in the blogosphere, with physical locations mostly NOT in Burlington, have gotten all frothed up about this and made it an issue. If their voices are being heard on this question, it seems only fair that those of us outside of the Burlington area with a more reasonable perspective also weigh in.
The islamophobes make the mistake of assuming (and asserting) that anything from the middle east or the muslim world that does not mirror their view of the world is automatically from radical islam and dangerous to america. What is dangerous to america is the idea that only one narrow viewpoint should be heard. In these days of media conglomeration, the more varied sources of media available the better. Al Jazeera English brings news, information, and viewpoints from a region of the world that most Americans should be much better educated about, given the way our government's involvement there is affecting not only the economy, but the lives of now over two thousand families who have lost a family member to the US war on Iraq.
When I lived in Burlington, I had the honor of voting for Peter Clavelle for Mayor, and I was delighted when Bernie Sanders (an old friend of my mothers) moved into the Senate. I have always been exceedingly proud to be a Vermonter, to be from a place that is not exactly liberal (at least not in the way, say, that Berkeley or San Francisco is) but that values freedom of expression and independent thought; a place where basic conservative values does not automatically lead to war mongering, scapegoating, and jingoism. Just as a Vermonter who doesn't want a civil union does not need to get one, a Burlington resident who does not want to watch English Al Jazeera is absolutely free not to. But to deny the opportunity to the people who do want to watch English Al Jazeera would be bowing to extremists and going against basic Vermont values.
With love for my home state,
Rahula Janowski
San Francisco