Content
By focusing its content on the experiences of the estimated eight million Muslims living in North America, Bridges TV differentiates itself from such foreign language programming as Geo TV (which broadcasts in Urdu), Prime TV (which broadcasts in Urdu) and Arab Radio and Television Network (which broadcasts in Arabic). Around the time of its inception, the network announced that it would seek to feature sitcoms that represent American Muslim family life in a positive way and identified The Cosby Show as a model for such programming.
In late 2005, Bridges TV started airing "Current Issues", a show produced in Lafayette, Louisiana about Palestinian and other Middle Eastern concerns. The Palestinian American host, Hesham Tillawi, is known for vocalizing criticism against Israel's treatment of Arabs and Muslims. The Anti-Defamation League called his show "a megaphone for Holocaust deniers and white supremacists seeking to broadcast their hatred and anti-Semitism into American homes with a "who's who" of notable American antisemites including David Duke, Willis Carto, Edgar J. Steele, Mark Weber, and Bradley Smith.
Another program shown on Bridges TV, "American Pilgrimage", featured Rabbi Brad Hirschfield visiting homes and mosques of leading imams and Muslim religious thinkers across North America in cities including Halifax, Detroit, San Francisco, New York City and Washington, DC. The series has been described as "groundbreaking" and has been characterized as having a "Charlie Rose meets Charles Kuralt" format.
World heavyweight champion Muhammad Ali, a subscriber and spokesperson for the network, said: "Bridges TV gives American Muslims a voice of their own on the airwaves for Americans of all races and religions to hear." Network official expressed the opinion that a channel like Bridges TV was long overdue and market research sponsored by the network revealed American Muslims' willingness to pay as much as $10 per month above and beyond their current cable television or satellite television fee for the channel.
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