SNIPPETS
The Global Media Partnership

JANUARY 2009

AFRICA

• IVORY COAST:
• A Christian TV programme, “Miel Mortel”, has begun broadcasting on RTI1, the main TV channel in Ivory Coast. The programme is available nationwide with a potential reach of 7 million viewers. Mission Organisation 3xM is supporting the project. “After the first broadcast on RTI1, we couldn’t handle all the calls,” said Gilbert Okoronkwo, President of 3xM’s Parter Organisation PEMA/ACT in Ivory Coast. “We received almost 600 responses within five days.” “Miel Mortel” targets African young people from 12 upwards, to make them aware of the existence and danger of HIV/AIDS. It is also broadcast in Burkina Faso, Togo, Cameroon, Senegal, Benin, DR Congo and Gabon.
• Visit www.3xm-online.org
• NORTH AFRICA:
• In North Africa, a Reuters Press story has highlighted the large number of conversions to Christianity. In Algeria, it is estimated that the number of new followers of Christ is in the tens of thousands. Kabyle Algerian Christian Leaders have come together to produce a Christian Leadership Training TV series with Arab Vision.
• Contact: office@arabvision.org
• ZIMBABWE:
• More than 15,000 cases of cholera have been reported in Zimbabwe, and 774 people have died since the outbreak. Hundreds are crossing the border to seek treatment in South Africa because doctors in Zimbabwe cannot help them. In response to the cholera crisis, Trans World Radio’s “Healthy Life ” radio programmes tell how to identify, prevent and treat cholera, the importance of hygiene and sanitation in disease prevention, the implications of cholera combined with HIV/AIDS and how to manage cholera with no clean water. “Healthy Life” is broadcast from TWR’s Swaziland transmitter and is recorded on CDs that the World Health Organisation distributes among community health workers.
• Visit: www.twr.org

ASIA

• INDIA:
• TWR-India has celebrated 30 years of broadcasting. It began in five languages in 1978 from an AM radio station with a 400,000kw transmitter. 30 years later, TWR-India broadcasts from many locations in 56 languages over AM, shortwave, FM, podcasting, TV audio feed and internet audio streaming. Some 383 programmes are broadcast for 148 hours per week. On average, TWR-India receives approximately 20,000 listener responses per month, as the ministry now includes church planting, evangelism and discipleship.
• Contact: dmccreary@twr.org

AUSTRALIA

• CHRISTIAN COMMUNITY BROADCASTING:
• There are 36 full time Christian Community Radio Stations in Australia. Christian Stations make up 10% of all Community Stations. In an average week  4,519,000 people or 27% of the 15+ population listen to Community Stations. 1,145,000 or 7% listen to Christian Stations.
• Contact renee@christianmedia.org.au
• CHRISTIAN MEDIA AUSTRALIA REPORTS THAT:
• The Vision Radio network has added a number of new stations including Nimmitabel 88.0FM in NSW; 88.0FM Alyangula on Groote Eylandt in the Gulf of Carpentaria (13th station in Northern Territory) and a new repeater at Beerwah on the Queensland Sunshine Coast (128th station in Qld). A significant development has been the addition of a 400watt AM service in Western Melbourne, 1611AM, which came on air in December.
• Contact renee@christianmedia.org.au
• COMMUNITY STATION FORCED TO MAKE WAY FOR ABC:
• A Community Radio Station is being forced to change frequency after Australian Communications and Media Authority, ACMA, gave the channel to the public broadcaster.
• The frequency, used by long-term community broadcaster Otway Community Radio in Colac, will be given to NewsRadio. “Due to FM radio spectrum congestion for high power radio services in Colac, ACMA was unable to identify any vacant FM frequencies that could be used for ABC radio services. ACMA has therefore varied the frequency for 3OCR, operating in the area from 104.7 MHz to 98.3MHz” – the Authority’s Statement said.
• Contact renee@christianmedia.org.au

EUROPE

• EUROPEAN ELECTIONS:
• In meetings with Ger de Ridder and with FEB’s Chairman and Lobbyist Harvey Thomas, many European Members of Parliament – and EU Officials – have one central message that they ask FEB to pass on to our Members and Friends:-
• “PLEASE – TAKE PART IN, AND VOTE, IN THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENTARY ELECTIONS IN JUNE 2009.”
• We are glad to pass on this responsible message to Christian Broadcasters across Europe.
• The European Union and Members of the European Parliament have a powerful impact upon Telecommunications, the Internet, traditional Broadcasting on Radio and Television – and in other important issues such as the Protection of Minors. By taking an active part in the European Elections – and voting as you feel you should – you can contribute to the future both of Christian Broadcasting – and many other important matters – throughout Europe.
• EUROPEAN COMMISSION:
• At a Hearing in the European Parliament, attended by FEB Chairman & Lobbyist, Harvey Thomas, the European Commission agreed to revise its Communication on Broadcasting. “The protest has helped“, said Ruth Hieronymi MEP, after the Hearing on future financing of Public Radio Stations. Director-General Philip Lowe has supported the key demand that public broadcasting cannot be evaluated only on the basis of competition law.
• Head of Netherlands Broadcasters – Henk Hagoort – and Vincent Porter of the European Alliance of Listeners and Viewers Association (EURALVA) supported by other Participants, stressed the need to make few new Regulations but to aim to ensure values and minimum standards are used Europe-wide.
• Members of Parliament and the Commission agreed:
  • that public radio stations may broadcast both conventional and new services on a “technologically-neutral” basis and via all existing platforms;
  • that “market failure ” of private stations shall not be sufficient by itself to define the mandate for new services provided by public broadcasting.
  • Visit www.epp-ed.eu
• FRANCE:
• The Top Chretien Team in France has announced that the website www.connaitredieu.com (Looking for God) is now in 13 languages: French, Chinese, Arabic, Italian, Portuguese, Spanish, Farsi, Russian, Dutch, German, Polish, Turkish and English. More than 10 million visitors from around the world have been through the various “Steps ” on the website. One million email commitments to Christ have been registered. “Real Time” decisions can be watched live on www.godrev.com
• Visit www.topchretien.com
• POLAND:
• Radio CCM in Poland also reports a huge response on its Internet websites “Looking for God” and “WhyJesus?”. Over 110,000 first-time visitors accessed the page; over 15,000 clicked the “I have prayed the sinner’s prayer ” button, and over 2,000 people have registered for follow up. Each one is contacted by an e-coach (counsellor). More Polish speaking counsellors are needed for initial training, and then to give a minimum of 8 hours every week to email correspondence.
• Contact Henryk Krol hkrol@ccm.pl
• UK – BRITS TRUST CHARITIES MORE THAN CHURCHES:
• Public trust in Charities is greater than it is in Churches – according to a survey by the voluntary sector think-tank nfpSynergy’s Charity Awareness Monitor. 65% of respondents to the November 2008 survey had “quite a lot” or “a great deal ” of trust in Charitable Organisations compared with only 36% for the Church. The poll of 1,000 people showed that Insurance Companies were the least trusted, with confidence falling by 5 percentage points in 2008 to 13%.
• Source: Third Sector
• UK:
• An atheist advertising campaign with the slogan, “There’s probably no God. Now stop worrying and enjoy your life” has been reported to the UK Advertising Standards Authority. The advert is being carried on 800 buses in England, Scotland and Wales, and on the London Underground in a four-week campaign costing £140,000 (US$224,000). It is supported by the British Humanist Association and the atheist scientist Richard Dawkins. Critics say that the advertisements break the ASA’s codes on substantiation and truthfulness. “It is given as a statement of fact and that means it must be capable of substantiation  if it is not to break the rules. There is plenty of evidence for God, from people’s personal experience, to the complexity, interdependence, beauty and design of the natural world”.
• Source: The Times
• TURKEY:
• Church Leaders in Ankara recently attended the opening ceremony for Radio Shema. Ihsan Ozbek, Pastor of Ankara’s Kurtulus Church and CEO of Radio Shema, introduced 6 new programmes and their producers to the audience. Rabia Yilmaz Tufan’s programme “My Story” explains how and why people have come to the Lord. The Radio Shema website is accessible from Turkey and from the USA and Europe, a total of 53 countries. 314,754 people have so far visited.
• Visit www.radioshema.com
• UK:
• The BBC has offered fellow UK terrestrials ITV, Channel 4 and Five, free use of the technology behind its popular iPlayer catch-up TV service. The BBC’s suggestion of sharing its iPlayer technology was put forward in its final response to a review of Public Service Broadcasting being carried out by media regulator Ofcom. The BBC also said it had succeeded in persuading ITV and BT to back Project Canvas, that would bring a common standard developed for IPTV.
• Source: C21Media.net
• UK – SLOWCOACH BROADBAND:
• Millions of Britons paying up to £30 a month for high-speed broadband are getting a snail’s pace service, a study by OFCOM, the Telecoms Regulator, has revealed. The average speed delivered by companies including BT, TalkTalk, Sky and Tiscali is less than half the figure advertised. More than 60% of consumers – or 7.6 million homes – are paying extra for packages advertising broadband speeds of up to 8 megabits per second. The report looked at ten million separate tests by different Broadband providers, and also found that there is a growing digital divide between urban and rural areas.
• Source: Daily Mail
• BELGIUM / HUNGARY:
• Hungarian Churches initiated a December Exhibition in the European Parliament of European Bibles, “to emphasise the Christian spirituality and identity of our continent“.
• The Exhibition was initiated by Bishop Lazlo Tokes, a Bishop of the Hungarian Reformed Church – and a Member of the European Parliament for Romania. It was opened by the President of the European Parliament, Hans-Gert Pottering. The collection contained both original and facsimile editions of the Bible which had been published in Europe and it was prominent in the open first-floor lobby of the Paul Henry-Spak Parliament Building. FEB’s Harvey Thomas and Ger de Ridder were among the non-Parliamentarian visitors.
• DON’T LEAVE IT ALL TO THE BBC, CHURCHES ARGUE:
• Leaving the BBC as the sole provider of public service media could lower media standards and provide less meaningful news, information and other content, the Church of England and the Catholic Conference of Bishops in England and Wales have warned, in their joint response to Ofcom’s 2nd Consultation on Public Service Broadcasting. They say that they are not attacking the BBC, but simply supporting an increasingly well understood factor of broadcasting in Britain today. The Bishops say, “This is an issue which affects us all. The survival and flourishing of public service content is not just an economic or political question; it has implications for the kind of society we want to be. Without more than one public service provider, there is the risk that standards will fall, information is conveyed without the vital context and interpretation that makes it socially valuable and reaches across social and age groups.”
• Source: www.cofe.anglican.org
• UK:
• WRN, the UK-based television and radio transmission company, is providing satellite uplink and capacity services for the newest Radio Station on the Sky Digital platform – the all Bollywood Zee Radio. Zee Radio currently broadcasts in Greater London on 558AM and on DAB digital radio and online at www.zeeradio.com Zee Radio is on Sky 0215.
• Email: sophie.wilson@wrn.org
• ROMANIA:
• Radio Voice of the Gospel Romania has won another (24 hours a day) licence in the city of Hunedoara, and an extension from 12 to 24 hours a day for its licence in Suceava.
• Contact: Lucian Despa rvesc@xnet.ro
• UK:
• An opinion poll has found that 64% of people believe there is too much violence in entertainment programmes on Television. John Beyer, Director of mediawatch-uk, said, “ It is clear that the majority of people want action taken to reduce screen violence but the crucial question now is how broadcasters, film and game producers will respond to this expression of public concern.” The poll, conducted by ComRes, showed that 65% of people agree that the Government should have a role in reducing violence on Screen, but only 47% agree that the regulator, OFCOM, is currently effective in controlling violence on television.Visit: www.mediawatchuk.org
• TWO THIRDS OF ENTERPRISES IN THE EU HAD A WEBSITE IN 2008:
• In the EU, 93% of enterprises of ten or more persons employed had access to the internet in January 2008, and 81% of enterprises had a broadband internet connection, up from 77% in January 2007. On average in the EU, 64% of enterprises had a website in January 2008, compared with 63% in January 2007. Data comes from Eurostat, the Statistical Office of the European Communities.
• In January 2008, the highest proportions of enterprises with internet access in the EU were recorded in the Netherlands and Finland (99%), Denmark (98%) and Belgium, Austria and Slovenia (97% each). The percentage was less than 90% in only 5 Member States: Romania (67%), Bulgaria (83%), Hungary (86%), Latvia (88%) and Cyprus (89%).
• Source: EU Press Release
• UK / IRAN:
• The BBC is to spend £15 million a year on a TV channel aimed at Iran. The corporation launched Persian TV January 14th, hoping it will compete with tightly-controlled State Media in the Islamic republic. But the BBC has come under fire for wasting public money, and there are also fears that its attempts to force its way into the Iranian media market will cause further diplomatic rows.
• Iranian officials claim the TV service, aired in Farsi, will be used by British intelligence for “espionage and psychological warfare”. The BBC says that the service, manned by 150 mostly London-based staff, will be available to an estimated 70 million Persian speakers in Iran, another 20 million in Afghanistan and 10 million in neighbouring Tajikistan.
• Source: Daily Mail
• UK GOVERNMENT REBUKES CHANNEL 4 TV FOR MAHMOUD AHMADINEJAD BROADCAST:
• Channel 4 has been rebuked by the UK Government for its decision to broadcast an address by the President of Iran as the Channel’s alternative Christmas Message. In the address, Mr Ahmadinejad made a thinly veiled attack on the United States by claiming that Christ would have been against “bullying, ill-tempered and expansionist powers.” He added, “If Christ were on earth today, undoubtedly He would hoist the banner of justice and love for humanity to oppose warmongers, occupiers, terrorists and bullies the world over. If Christ were on earth today, He would fight against the tyrannical policies of prevailing global economic and political systems, as He did in his lifetime.” President  Ahmadinejad surprised many by curbing his rhetoric and offering the British people his warm wishes. He offered his congratulations to “the followers of Abrahamic faiths, especially the followers of Jesus Christ, and the people of Britain.” He said that the ills in the world had come about through nations failing to follow the teachings of the Prophets, including Jesus.
• Source: The Times
• POLAND:
• Voice of the Gospel in Poland, sister Ministry to Good News Broadcasting in the UK, is running a weekly teaching and testimony service in many of the country’s Prisons; a drug awareness campaign in Schools, giving Christian testimony to over 20,000 students this year - and original TV Documentaries showing lives changed by God.
• Visit www.gnba.net
• COUNTRY FACTS SWEDEN:

Official Country Name	KingdomSweden
Region	Europe
Population	8,875,073
Language	Swedish
Literacy Rate	99%
Size	449,964 sq km
GDP	227,319 (US$ millions)
Number of TV Stations	169
Number of TV sets	4,600,000
TV Sets per 1,000	518.3
Number of Radio Stations	267
Number of Radio receivers	8,250,000
Radio Receivers per 1,000	929.6
Number of individuals with computers	4,500,000
Number of individuals with Internet access	4,048,000
Internet access per 1,000	456.1

GLOBAL

• YOUTUBE GOES HD:
• Video share website YouTube has added a high-definition option, allowing viewers to see video in HD. The function was quietly added before Christmas, following a series of improvements to video quality on the site. YouTube is also looking at moving news, movie and music videos on to their own dedicated landing pages.
• Source: C21Media.net
• “STEPPING STONES ” TO FAITH:
• Dutch TV Evangelische Omroep (EO) – the largest Broadcaster in the Netherlands – in partnership with other Christian organisations around the world, has developed various websites which relate to the personal situation and questions of online seekers. The websites offer visitors the opportunity to share questions and thoughts with a personal e-coach and exchange opinions with other visitors (and participants of online courses).
• Through e-coaching, they help visitors take a step closer to Jesus, discover who He is and what the Christian faith can mean for their personal lives. As a next step, EO and its Partners offer follow-up with an Alpha course or a visit to a local church.
• Contact Jan-Willem Bosman, Tel: +31 35 647 4331 or jan.willem.bosman@eo.nl
• DEUTSCHE WELLE’S MASTERS DEGREE:
• Deutsche Welle will award full-scholarships for their International Media Studies Masters Degree to 15 applicants from Africa, Asia, Latin America or Eastern Europe.
• Applicants need a Bachelor’s degree and more than one year of professioinal experience in a media-related field. The Master’s Programme is bilingual. Applicants must have good verbal and written communication skills in both German and English. The Course is a four-semester, full-time programme for further education. It combines topics such as media and development, journalism, communication science and media economics, and also develops practical skills and competencies. It is a joint project from the University of Bonn, the Bonn Rhein-Sieg University of Applied Sciences and Deutsche Welle, Germany.
• Visit: www.dw-world.de/dw/0,2692,12276,00.html
• ONLINE VIDEO:
• The debate about “net neutrality” has started again on both sides of the Atlantic. Virgin Media in the UK suggests it will charge broadcasters for distributing content over its new high-speed network. However, the US Federal Communications Commission (FCC) has made it clear that it believes in upholding the principle of net neutrality. As the internet shifts from a predominantly text-based medium to one that’s more and more about video, the pressure on the infrastructure that supports it grows. Some internet service providers (ISPs) have advocated the practice of “traffic-shaping” – controlling the flow of certain kinds of data, in particular the BitTorrent protocol often used to transmit large media files. Then the Wall Street Journal reported that Dr Lawrence Lessig, a technology advisor to US President Barack Obama and possible future FCC chief, had “shifted gears” on the issue of net neutrality and said that content providers should be forced to pay for faster service. The debate continues.
• Source: C21Media.net

LATIN AMERICA

• ECUADOR – UNSION:
• The National Religious Broadcasters of North America (NRB) has awarded Unsion Network of Ecuador the 2009 NRB International Award for television ministry. It will be presented at the NRB Convention on February 9th 2009 in Nashville. Unsion’s Executive President, Eduardo Gonzalez, of Cuenca, Ecuador will receive the award. He said: “Our team is very honoured to have received this recognition. We work hard to be effective story tellers in order to help shape the Hispanic world for Christ.”
• Contact David Olson dolson@utnusa.com

MIDDLE EAST

• TURK-7:
• TURK-7, Turkish production partner with SAT-7,  has launched a new website that includes six mini “channels “. To watch the Turkish streams, go to www.turk7.com The daily channel streams include Children’s programmes, youth programmes, dramas, personal devotions, documentary / magazine shows and in-depth teaching. TURK-7 works with Turkish Christian writers, actors, technicians and producers to create TV programmes in Turkish. SAT-7 provides a satellite broadcast platform for TURK-7, giving it four hours a day on the same frequency as the SAT-7 PARS (Persian) channel. Turkish and Persian / Farsi are complementary languages.
• Contact sat7news@sat7.org
• KINGDOM OF SAUDI ARABIA:
• Arab Vision reports that they hear regularly from viewers in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia professing faith in Christ and wanting to learn more about Christianity. The internet, and especially forums on Arabic Christian sites, has made communication with believers easier and quicker.
• Contact: office@arabvision.org
• MIDDLE EAST MEDIA:
• In the Middle East, over 40% of the population are under the age of 15. Middle East Media broadcasts to these children on TV channels they watch every day, through colour animations containing biblical truths. Four popular satellite stations now air MEM’s animations for children including “His Kids” and “Glimpses of Glory “. Over 30 million families saw the biblical messages in the series during a one month period.
• Email: info@mem-eu.org
• EGYPT:
• SAT-7 provided special programming for Coptic and other Christians, especially in Egypt, who celebrated Christ’s birth on January 7th 2009. This was due to a difference between the Western (Julian) calendar and the Eastern (Gregorian/Coptic) calendars. In 2003 Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak declared the date as a national holiday, not only for Christians but for all Egyptians. SAT-7 ARABIC and SAT-7 KIDS continued to broadcast special Christmas programmes until January 7th. They included the first live programme for children, with children from countries including Egypt, Lebanon, Syria, Kuwait, the Gulf and Iraq phoning in to talk to hosts live on air. The programme also received many SMS messages from children living across the region.
• Contact sat7news@sat7.org

NORTH AMERICA

• NATIONAL RELIGIOUS BROADCASTERS CONVENTION:
• Meet FEB Chairman, Harvey Thomas at the Fellowship of European Broadcasters’ Booth #225 for the NRB Convention in Nashville from February 8-10 2009.
• GLOBAL NEWS ALLIANCE:
• Members of the Global News Alliance will meet together for the first time – at NRB in Nashville in February. Scheduled time is Monday Evening, February 9th 2009.
• Email Stan Jeter stan.jeter@cbn.org
• “USA FAIRNESS DOCTRINE “:
• The Broadcast Freedom Act of 2009 has been re-introduced in both the House and Senate. It was first introduced in 2007 – aimed at stopping re-establishment of the Fairness Doctrine. Senate sponsor Jim DeMint  says the Act “would keep radio airwaves free from government censorship and suppression“. The bill has 24 co-sponsors on the Senate side and more than 10 in the House. This bill has the full support of the NRB.
• Source: Inside NRB
• SURVEY SAYS CHURCHES LESS ACTIVE IN ‘08 ELECTION:
• A survey by Pew Research Center for the People & the Press found that significantly fewer voters who attended religious services said that they received information about political parties and candidates at their place of worship during the 2008 election.
• Among all voters who attend religious services at least once or twice a month, only 15% say they received election information at their church. In 2004, 27% said they were given such information. The difference was greatest among white evangelicals, who reported a 17% drop (31 to 14%). Black Protestants (29%), were the most likely to hear about candidates and parties in churches during this election.
• Source: Christian Post
• PUERTO RICO :
• Steve Dendrinos has been appointed Manager of Missionary Radio Stations WIVV, WBMJ and WCGB for Calvary Evangelistic Mission (CEM). The Rock Radio Network covers Puerto Rico and the Leeward Islands of the Caribbean. Steve served with CEM in the 80s and 90s, managed Heaven 97FM in the Cayman Islands, and was a Communications Professor at Toccoa Falls College while managing CEM’s WTXR-FM. CEM President Janet Luttrell says, “Steve’s experience makes him a perfect fit for this Missionary Radio Network”.
• Email Janet Luttrell jluttrell@therockradio.org

• GRIZZLY ADAMS PRODUCTIONS :
• GAP have released their first movie in 10 years “Friends for Life “. The story tells how four wolves demonstrate truths in life to a young man. The Company has also announced new TV shows including “Walking with Lincoln“, “Miraculous Messages” and “What the Bible Code Predicts“.
• Visit www.grizzlyadams.com

DIARY DATES

• FEB CONFERENCE 2009:
• THE FEB CONFERENCE is in SOFIA, BULGARIA at the PARK HOTEL VITOSHA from MARCH 19 - 22 2009.www.feb.org
• “PRAYER FOR THE EU< U>” DAY:
• A number of Christian Groups across Europe have set Sunday 3rd May 2009 as “Prayer for the EU” Day across the continent.
• Contact: ignace.demaerel@scarlet.be
• CHRISTIAN MEDIA AUSTRALIA’S 2009 CONFERENCE<>:
• Registration for CMA’s 2009 Conference from May 6 – 9, “No Limits – Create, Inspire, Impact” is now open.
• Contact cheryl@christianmedia.org.au
• UK CHURCHES’ MEDIA CONFERENCE 2009<>:
• Bookings are now open for the CMC Conference being held from 8th to 10th June 2009 at the Hayes Conference Centre, Derbyshire, UK.
• Visit www.churchesmediacouncil.org.uk