TV COOP HIGHLIGHTS FRENCH GOSPEL SINGER IN THE UNITED

UNCLAS PARIS 004634 SIPDIS SENSITIVE SIPDIS DEPT FOR EUR/PPD, EUR/WE, R, PA/OBS/BE, PA/PBS, IIP E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: OPRC KPAO SCUL FR SUBJECT: TV COOP HIGHLIGHTS FRENCH GOSPEL SINGER IN THE UNITED STATES REF: 06 PARIS 7510 Sensitive but unclassified. Please protect accordingly. -------------- SUMMARY -------------- ¶1. (SBU) Based on a proposal from APP Lille and with funding from PA, regional television affiliate France 3 Nord-Picardie produced a twenty-six minute magazine feature on Sabrina Adel, a young musician of Muslim origin whose lifelong dream was to study American gospel music in the U.S. France 3 ran the full story to an audience of 56,000 viewers on June 16. The station also ran a shorter, five-minute version on June 26. End Summary. -------------- BACKGROUND -------------- ¶2. (SBU) Sabrina Adel is a young musician of Algerian origin who hails from one of northern France's toughest inner-city neighborhoods. Clearly talented and highly motivated, Adel had already begun to make a name for herself on the French gospel circuit before she came to the attention of APP Lille. She lacked formal musical training, however, and her life's ambition was to study gospel music at the source, in the United States. She applied to Boston's prestigious Berklee College of Music and was accepted. With the help of supporters from around Lille, she then created an association to raise the money for her studies. She started classes in Fall 2006. -------------- A GOOD STORY ALMOST SELLS ITSELF -------------- ¶3. (SBU) APP Lille followed Adel's progress closely and suggested to France 3 Nord-Picardie (the northern regional affiliate of the national French television station) that Adel's story might make a wonderful human interest story for its viewers. Producers at France 3 were intrigued with the idea, but balked at the high costs and logistical hurdles involved in sending a team to the United States. PA then stepped in with timely co-op financing and a local U.S. producer, which was enough to close the deal. -------------- A FINAL PRODUCT WITH SOUL -------------- ¶4. (SBU) France 3 reporter Setti Dali, herself of North African origin, was assigned to cover the story. She and her team spent three days in Boston watching Adel struggle with sightreading and music theory, deepen her friendships with her roommates, and rock out on stage with Berklee's gospel choir. APP Lille collaborated closely with Dali on the project and its production, even helping her with translation of some of the more colloquial English of Adel's American schoolmates. ¶5. (U) The final story was a twenty-six minute TV magazine piece that ran on France 3 on June 16. According to France 3 producers, viewership for the piece was approximately 56,000, considered a solid result for a local affiliate. France 3 subsequently aired a five minute condensed version on June 26. -------------- COMMENT -------------- ¶6. (SBU) This is exactly the sort of story we want out there: a young French girl of Arab origin is able to achieve artistic success by following her dreams to the United States. The subject comes across as sympathetic and very pro-American, the story highlights American culture, and the piece encourages studies in the United States. The coverage would not have been possible without the enthusiastic, and very flexible, support of PA. STAPLETON