New channel for moderate Islam to be launched

Al-Azhar announces launch of new satellite channel to challenge extremist distortions of Islam.

Middle East Online

By Paul Schemm - CAIRO

Azhari is set to be launched in mid-August A group of Muslim clerics connected with Egypt's prestigious Al-Azhar University have announced the creation of a new satellite channel to propagate moderate Islam and challenge what it describes as extremist distortions of the religion. The announcement comes just ahead of President Barack Obama's address Thursday to the Muslim world from Cairo in a speech co-sponsored by Al-Azhar University, Sunni Islam's premier educational institution. Sheik Khaled el-Guindy, a member of Egypt's Supreme Council of Islamic Affairs and a driving force behind the "Azhari" channel, said the idea is to use the knowledge and skills of Al-Azhar graduates to combat ignorant interpretations of the religion. "Azhari will promote the idea that Islam is a religion of moderation free from extremism," he told The Associated Press on Tuesday. "Several satellite channels right now promote a strict interpretation of Islam and issue incorrect religious opinions that fill young people with extremist ideas." read more

INTERVIEW - Egypt's al-Azhar to launch Islamic TV channel

CAIRO: In a bid to bridge cultural gaps and clear misconceptions about Islam, Azhari TV is reaching out to a wider audience and is now available in English, French, Urdu and Pashto in addition to its original Arabic language programming.
Azhari TV was first launched following US President Barack Obama's address to the Muslim World in June 2009 where he called for a dialogue based on mutual respect and understanding between people of different faiths.
One year later, Azhari TV, the educational and entertainment satellite channel created to promote moderate Islam, has decided to expand.
“[Through Azhari TV] we're trying to show the people in the west and the rest of the world that the problem isn't in Islam but it's the misinterpretations by certain people that's the problem,” said Hassan Tatanaki, chairman of Azhari TV, in an interview with Daily News Egypt.
The satellite channel was founded with the aim of promoting a moderate interpretation of Islam and intends to counter extremist rhetoric which they saw dominating the debate.
Breaking language barriers
Operating on a new channel, Azhari TV 2, the dub of the Arabic language channel's original content into four additional languages, will enable the station to reach homes across Europe and Asia, spreading its message of reason and tolerance.
The channel aims to serve as a direct counterweight to more confrontational and aggressive interpretations of Islam that have proliferated in the last several years and exacerbated the turmoil that has plagued much of the Muslim world.
Through the expansion, Azhari will be reaching non-Arab Muslims that don't have access to a correct interpretation of Islam because they are limited to certain outlets. continue reading