04540
December 10, 2004

U.S. Muslim TV station seeks to build bridges 

by Cheryl Heckler
Ecumenical News International

CINCINATTI — The first Muslim television network in the United States says it is very happy with its initial success, with hundreds of subscribers signing up in the first hour the station was on the air. 

            “We’ve gotten tremendous feedback, and it has been highly received,” said Jamalah Fraser, program director for Bridges TV, which launched the network on Nov. 30. 

            The network is both subscriber and advertiser supported and will using the medium of English target primarily the 8 million Muslims of North America. It features programs celebrating U.S. Muslim lifestyle and culture.  

            “Every morning, there are at least 200 emails in my inbox,” Fraser told Ecumenical News International. “Viewers say two things. They never expected to actually have a Muslim-based network and they are surprised by the quality and caliber of the programming.” 

            Bridges TV founder and chief executive officer, Muzzammil Hassan, said, “Every day on television we are barraged by stories of a ‘Muslim extremist, terrorist, militant or insurgent,’” he noted, “but the stories that are missing are the countless stories of Muslim tolerance, progress, diversity, service and excellence that Bridges TV hopes to tell.” 

            Hassan, 40, said he hopes the network will help balance negative portrayals of Muslims that have dominated American media since the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11, 2001 in New York and Washington. 

            “The name Bridges TV is to build bridges with mainstream America,” Hassan said.  

            One show features a Muslim newspaper reporter who solves crime mysteries. A soap opera explores the melodrama of a Muslim father confronted with his daughter’s desire to marry a non-Muslim. The station also includes a Muslim comedy program called “Allah      Made Me Funny.” 

            The network also includes news programming, music videos, animated children’s shows, classic movies and programs about food, travel and culture — all with an underlying theme appealing to U.S. Muslims. 

            Bridges anticipates 50,000 initial subscribers. According to a survey conducted by the Zogby 2000 organization, the U.S. Muslim population of 7 million is expected to more than double to 15 million over the next 10 years.

            The average annual household income of U.S. Muslims is $11,000 more than the overall U.S. average, and Muslims have more bachelor’s and advanced degrees than the norm, according to census data and a 2002 study by Cornell University. Two-thirds of U.S. Muslims are younger than 40.