Futurists and the media

They broke our Internet, but still not content with their new-fangled brilliance, the already stale ministry of cultural disinformation has set about fixing Bahrain's TV and Radio. Or so they say. 

Fixing stuff is good, especially when the stuff in question is as antiquated as Bahrain TV and Radio. Bahrain's mass media has been sub third-world forever, because, surprise, it is completely run from within a Ministry. No matter how good their intentions are, it is, and will remain, a civil service. And, as everyone knows, nothing smells more of bureaucracy than a civil service. 

So forgive me for being sceptical. I live in hope of a new, competitive, free and objective media in Bahrain, but I will not hold my breath. Instead, I expect, rather pessimistically, that the national media will get a facelift. It will look 21st centuryish. It may even feel modern. But for the media to change, a fundamental shift in the structure of our media is necessary. 

Unfortunately, such a shift seems unlikely. According to the one and only GDN, "Vaheed Associate Brand Future company... was tasked with overhauling the establishment in a nine- to 18-month period" First of all, I would like to point out that the company in question is actually called Vahid associates, a Bahrain-based self-described 'brand futurist'. A brief visit to their website (http://www.vahidassociates.com) doesn't really tell us much more. In fact, it is alarmingly amateur in many regards- from the overly abundant use of flash to the startling lack of actual information on display (the portfolio and news sections of their site are 'coming soon', despite the site dating back to 2006), one cannot help but conclude that the choice of company reflects the intentions of the Ministry. Image is apparently more important than substance. 

It gets better. The BRTC have "signed a six-month contract with renowned Monte Carlo presenter Huyam Hmoy". You've probably never heard of her. I certainly haven't. And neither has Google. Not one result. Not a single hit. Nothing. Some justification would be nice when bandying about terms like 'renowned'. Surely a famous TV presenter would exist somewhere in the world of the great wide web. At least give us some more information- you are, after all, the Ministry of Culture and Information. 

No talk about the development of Radio, aside from KFH shelling out for the redevelopment of the Holy Quran radio channel. Perhaps they believe that Radio Bahrain is perfect, and are adopting an 'if it ain't broke, don't fix it' approach. Hah.

So, here we have an announcement from the Ministry of culture and Information, about redeveloping the media, reported in Bahrain's incredibly shallow media outlet of choice, that contains NO REAL INFORMATION. Should this be taken as an example of how our media is to develop? Were any questions asked before publishing the story in the oracle that is the GDN? Was any research done? They couldn't even spell the name of the company that was hired to carry out the alleged redevelopment, much less provide us with a nugget or two of insight. 

Qatar has Al Jazeera, the Emirates have Al Arabiya and Bahrain has... Bahrain TV. Does anyone even watch Bahrain TV? The middle east, Bahrain included, has one of the highest penetration rates of Satellite TV in the world. Everyone has either Showtime, Orbit or more likely, Dreambox- which gives them access to almost every other channel in the entire world. How can they be expected to tune into BTV when the competition is that fierce? Making it shinier wont encourage people to watch it. Making it worth watching might. 

Here's a suggestion. Dispose of every last bit of international programming. Develop BTV into a channel or two that only airs Bahraini and regionally produced television. Use the money you aren't paying for Fresh Prince and other decades-old sitcoms to develop a channel that can compete with the other regional players. Nurture a new, creative generation of Bahraini media and commit to turning Bahrain, the 'Freest economy in the region', into a place where media is respected, not just tolerated. 

And for the love of God, put Radio Bahrain down. Surely letting something as trivial, incompetent and amateurish exist is cruel. Kill it now and start it from scratch. Please.