Livestation

The first thing I noticed about the channels on Livestation was the primary focus is on global news. This is very different from U.S. stations where the main focus is national events and may not even be important issues. I was actually glad to see these stations commenting on serious world topics instead of things like fashion in the White House. I was also surprised at the quality of production. Each of the channels had high production value and looked of similar quality if not better than American news programs. For some reason I had this idea in my mind, and I think others do as well, that foreign news programs are not as aesthetically pleasing as some in America.

1. I don't think Al Jazeera can reach the forefront of Americans minds if the station is limited to the internet. There are too many news sources and websites(whether they are credible or not) for Al Jazeera to become a prominent outlet in American society. If the station moved to cable, it would be one the 100 or so channels people can choose from.

2. Al Jazeera should be allowed to broadcast in the U.S. The quality of reporting seems acceptable and, in my opinion, has less bias than some stations that are on TV right now. It would provide a more global news source and may get Americans the think about issues outside their nation.

3. The biggest differences in style between Al Jazeera and U.S. stations is that Al Jazeera moves at a quicker pace, and seems to not worry about fun feature stories. American anchors use less time transitioning between topics which made a surprising difference in flow. While this allows a chance for more news in the segment allowed, it might not keep the viewers interest as well as American shows. After watching about 15 minutes of the program, I felt like reporters were sort of droning on.

4. From what I have seen, Al Jazeera follows their own guidelines for the most part. They seem to be fair and unbiased. They really focus on the "victims" or people which is exactly what they say in there code of ethics. The only place they stray is distinguishing between material, opinion and analysis. I feel these three are all blurred in the newscasts.