AL JAZEERA ENGLISH SAYS IT WILL LAUNCH AFTER RAMADAN

UNCLAS DOHA 001384

SIPDIS

SENSITIVE
SIPDIS

STATE FOR NEA/ARPI, NEA/PPD AND S/CT
INFO NSC FOR ABRAMS, DOD/OSD FOR SCHENKER AND MATHENY
LONDON FOR ARAB MEDIA OFFICE

E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: PREL KPAO QA ALJAZEERA
SUBJECT: AL JAZEERA ENGLISH SAYS IT WILL LAUNCH AFTER RAMADAN

REF: DOHA 1301 and previous


1. (U) Summary: The Managing Director of Al Jazeera International
told DCM the English language channel would likely launch in late
October/early November, with limited U.S. distribution, at least
initially. End summary.


2. (U) DCM, accompanied by PAO, made a courtesy call 9/13 on Nigel
Parsons, Managing Director of the English language Al Jazeera TV
channel scheduled for launch this year. Highlights of the
conversation are as follows:

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LAUNCH EXPECTED END OCTOBER/EARLY NOVEMBER
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3. (U) Parsons said that all four AJI hubs (Doha, Washington, London
and Kuala Lumpur) are currently in rehearsal mode. They are to move
to a 24hr/5 days a week rehearsal schedule in the next couple of
weeks, and would be on a 24/7 rehearsal schedule by the end of
September. AJI would be ready to "flip the switch" to go live by the
end of Ramadan, he said. (Note: Ramadan is expected to begin o/a 24
September this year and end o/a October 24. End note.) He said
technical issues with the channel's state of the art
fiber-optic/high definition television technology still remain, but
he expects them to be sorted out "in the next couple of weeks."

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AT HOME ON THE AL JAZEERA COMPOUND
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4. (SBU) Parsons received Emboffs in the recently-constructed,
state-of-the-art AJI offices, located opposite the Al Jazeera Arabic
offices on their compound in Doha. When asked about rumors of
tension between the Arabic and English channels, Parsons said the
move on to the compound, which occurred a month and a half ago, has
contributed to reducing that tension by exposing the two teams to
each other on a daily basis, in the course of joint production,
editorial and other planning meetings. He said the appointment of
Arabic channel director Wadah Khanfar as Director-General of the
overall Al Jazeera Network has also helped, since "now he is
responsible for both of us." He confirmed that the new channel would
retain the name "Al Jazeera International" until launch, but would
at some point thereafter be known as "Al Jazeera English." As
previously mentioned by Wadah Khanfar, the Network prefers to
reserve the "International" designation to also cover future
non-Arabic language Al Jazeera Channels, such as French, Spanish,
Urdu, etc.


5. (U) Parsons described for DCM the proposed format of AJI
programming (reftels),which he said would be geared more toward
analysis than traditional satellite news - fewer and longer stories,
with a focus on field reporting. He said AJI would be fully staffed
at 750 employees worldwide, but is currently short of that number by
approximately 100. He noted difficulties in hiring Arab nationals in
Doha, due to Qatari Interior Ministry's clearance requirements,
which result in frequent hold-ups or denials for Arab nationals.

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U.S. DISTRIBUTION WILL BE LIMITED, BUT PRESENT
-------------- -


6. (SBU) Citing security reasons, Parsons declined to name the U.S.
cable companies which have agreed to carry AJI upon launch. He said
penetration into the U.S. market would not be "coast-to-coast" but
that AJI would have "a couple of cable pockets." He implied that
these would be in areas with significant Arab-American populations.
He noted that U.S. cable carriers are trying to steer AJI toward
"ethnic" subscription bouquets, but AJI is resisting and would
prefer to be included in a basic non-subscription package. Parsons
said he is counting on demand from U.S. customers to drive more
cable companies to offer Al Jazeera. As previously mentioned to
Emboffs by AJN Director-General Wadah Khanfar (reftels),Parsons
said AJI would be available upon launch via broadband to anyone with
a fast internet connection. In his estimation, AJI would exceed an
audience of 40 million upon launch.

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ADVERTISING - STILL LIMITED
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7. (SBU) Asked about advertisers for the new channel, Parsons said
that area was the responsibility of a local company called Qatar
Media, which he characterized as "very reactive rather than
proactive." The channel had "some" advertisers and had turned down
some offers of sponsorship (including Qatar Fertilizers Company, he
said, noting that such a sponsor would not appeal to the youth
audience AJI is targeting). Although the eventual plan is for AJI to
generate revenue, this is not a priority at the moment and in the
final analysis, the Al Jazeera Sports Channel would be looked at
more as the cash cow of the Network, said Parsons.

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PARSONS' FUTURE AT AL JAZEERA
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8. (SBU) Asked about his personal plans, Parsons, who was named as
AJI Managing Director in late 2004, said although he does not see
himself in Doha for an extended period of time (i.e. five years or
more),he would like to stay on to see the channel established after
launch. (Note: unconfirmed local rumor has it that Parsons may not
survive in his position long after the channel launch, due to
friction with senior Arabic channel representatives over the
preservation of the Al Jazeera Arabic "brand" and identity across
both channels. End note.)

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COMMENT
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9. (SBU) Parsons' comments accord with those made to Emboffs in the
past by AJN Director-General Wadah Khanfar (reftels),indicating
that - whatever tensions may exist between the two - they are in
agreement on their public message.
Ratney