FY06 TV CO-OP NOMINATIONS

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 PARIS 007510

SIPDIS

DEPARTMENT FOR PA/OBS/BS, EUR/PD


E. O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: KPAO OPRC OIIP FR
SUBJECT: FY06 TV CO-OP NOMINATIONS



1. We are pleased to nominate two TV co-op project ideas
for consideration under FY06 funding.

THE GENERAL CONTEXT


2. The bilateral relationship was strained by differences
over Iraq, and while relations have improved, the French
media has an ingrained tendency to portray the United
States as a bullying, hegemonic power, and a 'unilateral'
nation when it comes to the United Nations, military
intervention in Iraq, climate change, or trade
considerations. 'Fortress America' is yet another view: an
America that wages war to fight terrorism, abuses detainees
and treats Muslims as potential terrorists. Another common
charge is that the United States wishes to see a weak
European Union, the better to retain its super power
status. Many thoughtful French contacts are worried about
these perceptions and have argued that France and the
United States must strive to explain and understand each
other better given the charged atmospherics.


3. Set against the national media's take on the U.S.-French
relationship, there is the regional television scene that
rarely looks at the United States. The regional,
autonomous stations are well watched by their respective
publics and take a very local focus in their news
programming. We have been working on expanding our ties
with the local television stations throughout the country
to learn about their programming and to see how we could
cooperate on programs of mutual interest. The following
TV co-op proposals are the results of these efforts and
will serve to increase better understanding of the United
States, its society, and its policies.

PROPOSAL ONE: 'ALLAH BLESS AMERICA: A PROFILE OF ISLAM IN
THE UNITED STATES' BY AN INDEPENDENT FILMMAKER IN
COOPERATION WITH FRANCE 3 TELEVISION BASED IN MARSEILLE


4. Documentary filmmaker Jean-Louis Boudart produced a
moving 52-minute documentary entitled 'Beyond the Brooklyn
Bridge' in 2004. It shadowed two American students who
wished to go beyond cliches to better understand Arab and
Muslim culture. The shooting of the piece took place in
New York, Marseille, in the south of France, and Fez,
Morocco. The result was a superb portrait of both
intellectual receptivity and young America's openness to
new ideas and cultures. It aired on France 3 television in
Marseille, France's third largest city and home to one of
France's largest and youngest Muslim populations, mostly
first and second-generation immigrants from North Africa.


5. Boudart is talented, open-minded and highly
professional. He would like to profile American Islam,
which he knows is the fastest growing religion in the
United States, and produce a portrait that, we expect,
would show America's religious pluralism and broad
acceptance of differences. He would like to interview
American converts to Islam, as well as Muslim immigrants
and second generation Muslims, to see how they live their
faith and how they are viewed by mainstream Americans in
the aftermath of the 9/11 terrorist attacks. Are Muslims
excluded from the American way of life? Are they potential
terrorists or new religious pioneers? Boudart has reached
an agreement with France 3 in Marseille to air this
proposed documentary upon his return.

PROPOSAL TWO: 'LESSONS LEARNED ACROSS THE ATLANTIC:
AMERICAN THOUGHTS ON A GROWING EUROPE' BY FRANCE 3
TELEVISION BASED IN ALSACE


6. Unique in its internationalist-slant, France 3-Alsace is
the only television channel in France to specialize in
European issues. It is headquartered in Strasbourg, which
is home to the Council of Europe, with one office in
Brussels. For the past eight years, France 3 Alsace has
produced a show called 'Europeos,' which is also broadcast
on the national France 3 network and via 75 regional
channels throughout Europe. It focuses on trans-European
issues, specifically the challenges and consequences of
'the European construction' on the daily life of citizens.
Some 400 programs are produced annually.


7. Daniel Riot, Chief Editor of 'Europeos,' is eager to
undertake a program on the American perspective of the
construction of Europe. He wants to go beyond the U.S.
government's viewpoint, though he is interested in
'eurocrats' and bureaucrats and American policy. Little
European airtime is devoted to analysis of why many
Europeans believe America wants a 'weak Europe,' not-
withstanding our policy statements. Realistic American
attitudes towards the strengthening European power also
receive scant treatment. His program would focus on
several questions: Is America afraid of losing its
dominant status, or is it excited about the opportunities
that a strong Europe presents? What are those
opportunities? And, how is a developing Europe changing the
lives of Americans and Europeans at the grass roots level?
Recent polls have indicated Americans are in favor of a
Europe playing a larger role on the international stage.
Such a program would help persuade a skeptical Europe that
the U.S. indeed supports a strong Europe.


8. As the program explores these issues, it will also look
at immigration and multi-cultural America. As a country
built by immigrants, America has grappled for 200 years
with integrating minorities into society. Europe today
faces a similar, albeit different, challenge, especially
with the growing Muslim population in France. What can
Europe learn from American examples? From the post-Civil
War South to modern-day integration, America has no
shortage of examples. Mr. Riot wants to demystify this
question and hear candid opinions from citizens of both
sides of the Atlantic about their evolving societies. He
would like to seek out minorities in the U.S. to interview,
including first- and second- generation Muslim immigrants,
as well as Americans who have converted to Islam.
STAPLETON