CAIRO: A new free Pan-Arab satellite channel Al Aan recently hit the airwaves, adding to the ever-growing number of regional offerings.
Fast, real and modern are the tools by which the Dubai-based channel hopes to win over a slice of the Egypt’s TV-holics.
Zoya Sakr, head of corporate communication at Al Aan, believes Egypt is key to wide media reach, is the center of data and statistics collection, and hence this special launch in Egypt.
Owned by Tower Media Middle East, this informative channel that combines both news and entertainment, targets the Arab family in general, with a especial focus on contemporary Arab woman.
Egyptian competitors, like recently inaugurated OTV, do not seem to pose any serious challenge to Al Aan, says Sakr, since the latter adds value to the viewer with its contemporary Arab identity. News stories are short and all the programs aired are original.
Al Aan presenters have also had intensive training, which places them a step ahead of their local counterparts. Heba Ghamrawy, an Egyptian news anchor at the new channel explains how she learnt to participate in the news-making process through fast editing and analysis skills during the training program.
While the contemporary image may not appeal to a conservative Egyptian society, Sakr confirms that Al Aan, like its target audience, combines modernity with respect for Arab culture.
She explains how everyone can take what they want from the channel. “We are not here to involve the viewer, we are here to inform the viewer, she told The Daily Star Egypt.
The new channel’s strict adherence to objectivity and neutrality will mean that it will steer clear from problems faced by channels like Rotana, whose star talk show host and manager Hala Sarhan is being investigated for allegedly faking a show about prostitution in Egypt.
Al Aan, says Sakr, does not plan to engage the audience in controversial issues.
Sakr is confident that the new media ‘flavor’ Al Aan will introduce is sure to cultivate a strong and loyal following. “The channel will be part of our audience’s daily lives, and hence Al Aan’s branding slogan ‘What will you tell us today?’
Programs span the gamut from nutrition and fashion to documentaries and current affairs shows, with an underlying emphasis on positive human values, as opposed to the deluge of negative images inundating other channels. The channel will also include some children’s programming.
