Iraq TV show wins viewers, breaks ground as part of media �sea change�
KIRKUK, Iraq - Shattered glass, body parts, a blood-splattered blue sedan: the grainy video pans over the scene as Iraqi officers comb the site of a drive-by assassination.
It�s �Cops� Iraqi-style, minus the �Bad Boys� soundtrack but otherwise roughly modeled after the American TV show.
Created to make government more transparent, �The Cops Show� featuring Kirkuk officers in action is the first of its kind in the country and is breaking new ground in Iraqi television. A live call-in portion gives the public the chance to praise the security forces or gripe about them.
Screened weekly on Kirkuk Television, which broadcasts in this northern city of nearly 1 million people, �The Cops Show� has opened the floodgates in a community long suppressed.
�During Saddam Hussein�s time, it was very different,� station manager Nasser Hassan Mohammed said. �You were unable to ask questions. You couldn�t say anything bad about police.
�Now people can call in directly. Anyone has the right to do this. This is the difference now. This is freedom.�
The show�s popularity has not gone unnoticed by its enemies, and the studios are heavily guarded. The station�s employees regularly get threats, Mohammed said, adding that he himself was hit by more than two dozen bullets during an assassination attempt in May 2004.
The station remains undeterred, Mohammed said.
�After liberation, many things changed. Many dreams were realized. We use freedom and democracy,� he said. �Our duty is to show people that freedom.�
4 comments:
What a great story,
Listen to the word "freedom" throughout the story. Where are the rest of the MSNM on this.
You have to give credit to MSNBC for covering this, lord knows I criticize them enough for their shortcomings elesewhere.
J.R.
Blogging about food
Beginning today, St. Petersburg Times food critic Chris Sherman and food editor Janet K ... Brad-Jen divorce update A judge has signed off on the divorce of Jennifer Aniston and Brad Pitt, but under California law, the couple's split won't be official until Oct.
Bookmarked, nice to see some decent content for a change. FYI have you seen this we've got a new feature, the 'Flag blog' button, which is inconveniently located between the 'Get Your Own Blog' and 'Next Blog' buttons so that we would presumably be getting some flags on error alone (although if one happens to notice it, you can unflag a blog). I don't know about this, what one person finds offensive is anothers cup of tea? Just my 2 cents, Psychic Spells .
The 25 Book Challenge
Your source of information and conversation about education in Georgia and the nation.
Hey, you have a great blog here! I'm definitely going to bookmark you! I have a rosegarden site. It pretty much covers rosegarden related stuff. Come and check it out if you get time :-)
J.R. Thanks for the link to the Natalie Healy story... I was beginning to think that Muther Sheehan was the only mother who has suffered a loss in this war.
It reminded me of Janet Norwood of Pflugerville Texas, who's son died in the battle for Fallujah. His memory and her parents were honored at the State of the Union speech where she hugged the Iraqi woman also present who had lost her family to Saddam's evil.
The look on Mrs. Norwood's face says more than an battalion of Muther Sheehans:
http://mikesamerica.blogspot.com/2005/02/no-greater-love.html
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