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 'SPEAK
UP'
Raising the voice of young people; empowerment and
beyond...
Alli Sotak Program was first broadcasted in 2002, on the
occasion of the International Children's Day for
Broadcasting (ICDB) [celebrated by UNICEF globally].
With help from UNICEF, PYALARA managed to convince the
Palestinian Broadcasting Corporation (PBC); the umbrella
PA organization for Palestine TV
(terrestrial and satellite channels), and the Voice of
Palestine (public radio).
In 2004, the program took a different dimension. The outreach
and participation of youth was transferred from the
shear reality of a youth TV program, into a new reality
that combines both a platform for young people to
express themselves, and a new form of media on Palestine
TV, where young people are the producers, presenters and
the core of the work.
The 60% information and 40% entertainment program tackled
several issues of the youth concern. These issues
include political themes, youth issues, health topics,
educational awareness-raising, arts, psychosocial youth
problems and highlighting of different religious,
national and international events. Even when touching
base with political topics, shown to be with the largest
percentage due to the political circumstances in the
region, the young people have a different way of
presenting and producing these episodes. In addition to
presenting information, the program explores space for
analyzing the information, and fertilizing the soil for
constructive discussions. Hence, young people were
always looking for and questioning their ROLE in
any political development. Thus, whether the issues
discussed related to the apartheid wall, the death of
President Arafat or elections, young people had heir own
angle and way of looking at things.
The program usually consists of several segments:
1.
Introduction
2.
Main theme: generally a guest is
hosted, 1-3 reports are carried out, and sometimes a
comic sketch is prepared by young people, and a
vox-pop reflects the opinions of people about the
main topic.
3.
Light news
4.
Sports news, and
5.
quizzes and prizes.
On a weekly basis, the TV crew, consisting of media graduates
and young people, work side-by-side to produce the
weekly episode. At the beginning of the week, a
production meeting is held to plan the episode;
selecting the topic, planning for the reports, and
highlighting the main ideas.
As mentioned, each
episode carries a different theme relating to young
Palestinians. When observing the themes, we have
narrowed them into seven main categories. When tackling
themes related to politics, the program highlights
political developments, in addition to raising the
awareness of young people about the civic-political
rights, and lobbying for their active participation in
the Palestinian political system, as well as tackling
the issue of youth immigration. Themes related to
education include discussing educational curriculum,
extra-curricular activities, and school drop-outs. In
addition, the program, during 2004, focused on
youth-related health issues, such as nutrition, hygiene,
and diarrhea. Within the category of arts, Palestinian
artists, singers, and actors were highlighted as
role-models for expressing themselves and coping with
the difficult circumstances through alternative ways.
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