"Open Up The Airwaves to Us", Say Young Egyptian Broadcasters
CAIRO, 11 December 2005 – Young Egyptians say they're ready to play a bigger part in the making of quality television programmes for child and adolescent audiences. The message came from youngsters involved in a UNICEF-sponsored pilot television show that was launched today to coincide with the annual International Children's Day of Broadcasting (ICDB). The pilot show – entitled "SOTNA" (Our Voice) – involved some 30 children and adolescents who worked alongside a professional video production team and contributed to various phases of the production. At an inaugural screening of SOTNA attended by executives and personalities from the world of broadcasting and cinema, youngsters involved in the project spoke enthusiastically about their experience, and of the show's potential to bring a new dimension to children's television in Egypt. "It was an amazing experiment," said 14-year old Nouran. "I think it would be great if children could prepare and make their own programmes on TV. I've been dreaming of something like this". Another SOTNA participant, 15-year old Asmaa said: "Of course our minds are closer to the children who we would make the programmes for. We will know what they want to watch." Other youngsters relished the new skills SOTNA had offered them. "I really enjoyed being a cameraman, said 13-year Mohab, whose video diary was used in the pilot show. "While I held the camera, I was really the producer of the programme -- setting the decor and the background." UNICEF Egypt Representative Erma Manoncourt spoke of the challenges in turning SOTNA from an experimental production into a must-see feature on Egypt's airwaves, "a show that millions of young Egyptians will want to tune into", with a presence in radio, the internet and print. Ms Manoncourt urged broadcasters to join together and "give a new fresh voice to Egypt's children, and in so doing reach out to the generation of the future."
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