BURLINGTON, Vt. - As political turmoil spread throughout theMiddle East in recent weeks, from Tunisia to Egypt to Libya, MousaIshaq and his wife, Kristin Peterson-Ishaq, began hearing fromfriends who know the Ishaqs follow overseas news closely, and whowanted their thoughts on what might happen next in that volatilepart of the world.
Their opinions are not just highly informed ones. The couple havea personal connection to the region, having met in Cairo in the1970s. He's Palestinian-American; she holds a master's degree inArabic literature. In addition, unlike the vast majority ofAmericans, their primary news sources go beyond American newspapers,television networks, and websites to include Al Jazeera English, anoffshoot of the Arabic-language news channel. The Ishaqs regularlyturn to the station for boots-on-the-ground reporting and analysis.
Based in Qatar, Al Jazeera English reaches 220 million households in more than 100 countries, yet it is available on a full-time basis to only a tiny sliver of US cable TV subscribers in threedomestic markets: Toledo, Ohio; Washington, D.C.; and Burlington,Vt., a modest-sized (population 42,400), university-centric city inthe northwestern corner of the state.
Known for its citizens' liberal political views and interest inglobal issues, Burlington is nevertheless an odd candidate to havemade Al Jazeera a staple of its broadcast news diet. For starters,few Arab-Americans live there.
Yet as Al Jazeera's profile continues to rise, both in the UnitedStates and abroad - news analysts and diplomats regularly cite the"Al Jazeera effect" behind media-fueled uprisings in the Arab world - Burlington viewers can claim credit for being ahead of the curve.
In the meantime, Al Jazeera has been expanding its US operations,which are based in the nation's capital, and recently added a LosAngeles bureau. On its website, visitors are urged to lobby theirown cable providers to add the news channel to their programmingmenus. Over the past several weeks, tens of thousands of such e-mails have poured in, according to an Al Jazeera Englishspokesperson.
Burlington Telecom, which reaches 15,000 households, begancarrying Al Jazeera in 2006 - making Burlington the first US cityto offer subscribers 24-hour access to the channel, which isavailable in two of its premium-channel packages. Other cablecarriers provide a condensed version of Al Jazeera's broadcast,typically an hour or two daily. Al Jazeera is available on the Web,where it is the third most-popular channel on YouTube.
For the Ishaqs, watching Al Jazeera instead of, say, CNN or NBChas been an easy call.
"They cover all areas of the world and with tremendous breadthand depth," Peterson-Ishaq said. "Our own mainstream media are sodumbed down. I've been telling everybody `If you want context and afull range of opinion, go to Al Jazeera.' "
"Their correspondents are from the area. They speak thelanguage," said her husband. "I love [CNN's] Anderson Cooper; he'sbetter than most Western newsmen. But he's not from the area."
Interviews with more than a dozen Vermonters who faithfully watchAl Jazeera yielded similar thoughts on why they do so. Though hardlymonolithic in their media habits - many also rely on NationalPublic Radio, the BBC, and other news sources for global coverage -they particularly value getting a non-Western perspective on what'shappening in the Arab world today.
Mark Hage of Montpelier, another loyal viewer, made a 2004 visitto Egypt that sparked a keen interest in Egyptian politics. Beyondthat, however, it has been the volume and depth of the network'scoverage that's most impressed Hage. On a night when Cairo waserupting in nonviolent revolution, he flipped to ABC News' eveningtelecast, whose lead story was a blizzard bearing down on theMidwest.
"Newsworthy? Sure," Hage said. "But couldn't it be the secondstory? Particularly when there's a revolution unfolding that affectsus all? Diane Sawyer's talking about a snowstorm? It was one examplewhere Al Jazeera can open a window on the world that the US mediacan't. Even they admit they're playing catchup."
Burlington resident Greg Epler-Wood, a media consultant andformer communications professor, watches for much the same reason.Following developments in Libya one night, he heard from threeLibyan ambassadors explaining why they'd resigned from MoammarKhadafy's government. "There were no interruptions, no fluffstories," said Epler-Wood, who calls it his "go-to source" forMiddle East and North African news.
Testimonials like these aside, access to the channel, never mindtrusting it as a news source, remains controversial here. Threeyears ago, a threatened cancellation by Burlington Telecom, amunicipally chartered provider of phone, Internet, and cable TVservices, caused an uproar, pitting free-speech advocates againstcritics who accused Al Jazeera of promoting pro-Muslim; anti-Israeland, in some cases, anti-American views.
Burlington Telecom's manager of government and regulatoryaffairs, Amber Thibeault, could not provide the number ofsubscribers getting Al Jazeera but estimated it at one in five.
Comcast Corp., the country's largest cable provider, with 23million customers, does not carry Al Jazeera and declined to discusswhether it might someday. However, reports surfaced this month thatComcast and Al Jazeera representatives had met to discuss futurearrangements. Al Anstey, Al Jazeera English's managing director,presented 13,000 viewer e-mails to Comcast in support of his channeland told MarketWatch.com, "We engaged in good discussions."
The controversy over Burlington Telecom's initial decision tocarry Al Jazeera intensified two years after its launch, in 2008,when its original contract with the news channel expired. Newmanagement at Burlington Telecom proposed dropping the channel.After hundreds of subscribers protested, public hearings were heldand the proposal scrapped.
Critics like Jeffrey Kaufman were not mollified, however. Aretired physician who serves on Burlington Telecom's advisory board,Kaufman has been calling for a public referendum on the issue,saying he will not subscribe to Burlington Telecom as a matter ofprinciple until the city puts the matter to a vote. He is hopefulthat then Al Jazeera would be canceled for good.
"They're taking our name collectively to support Al Jazeera, butthey're doing it without public approval," Kaufman said. He'sespecially troubled by what he calls Al Jazeera's "agenda" topromote Sharia, the sacred law of Islam, as worldwide law.
Nonsense, say many Vermonters who not only defend BurlingtonTelecom's decision to carry Al Jazeera but contend that its criticshave not even watched the channel.
"Without citizens - I mean normal citizens - really gettinginvolved, it would have been taken off the air," said Burlingtonattorney Sandy Baird, who also serves on the advisory board. ABurlington College professor, Baird has assigned students in herhistory course to watch Al Jazeera, something she's been doingherself each night lately. For most young Americans unfamiliar withnon-Western news sources, Baird added, the experience has been"consciousness-raising."
Zach York, a Burlington College freshman enrolled in one ofBaird's classes, has been closely following reporting from countrieslike Egypt and Libya. York lives in student housing, where cable TVis not available, but has been a frequent visitor to the channel'swebsite. At a recent campus panel discussion on Middle Eastpolitics, he says, Al Jazeera's coverage was both watched anddiscussed.
"They just seem to know the local customs better," he commented.
Another cluster of viewers lives at Burlington Cohousing EastVillage, a mixed-age residential complex near the University ofVermont campus. Residents Peter Lackowski and Barbara Grant saycommunal dinner discussions have been enlivened by the overseas newsthey've been processing.
"Al Jazeera doesn't have the usual biases that American newssources have," said Lackowski. Not long ago, he drove round-trip toNew York City, spending his day listening to NPR and BBC reports onLibya. None explored the country's tribal makeup and how it mightaffect a potential civil war, he recalls. The next day, Al JazeeraEnglish reported extensively on tribal Libya.
"Our regular media either miss these stories," Lackowski said,"or they don't care."
Joseph P. Kahn can be reached at jkahn@globe.com.
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