Now that MTV has answered the letter criticizing their bullying techniques and their stigmatization of minorities in Lebanon, it is time to take it to the next level.
The people at MTV have told me that they are going to work on an internal review of their material, then get back to me.
I prefer not to wait around doing nothing, and so I have decided to put together a list of suggestions that we can discuss when (and if) I meet with them. It can also be used when I meet with another TV station in a couple of weeks.
But this is all turning out to be a bit overwhelming for me, and I would really appreciate your help. MTV has already pointed out that they read the comments made on the letter, so I thought maybe you could all throw out ideas of how TV in Lebanon could change from an agent of hate and stigmatization, to a center for empowerment and civic responsibility (yes, I know I’m dreaming big, but why the hell not?).
So, please, please, please write your ideas in the comment space here. I’ll bring everything together and present it to the TV stations that have contacted me.
Just one rule though: Please be constructive. No point in insulting people. Just throw out ideas and let’s do this.
Tell me what bothers you, what you feel is missing, how things can be changed, and so on. (Anything from airing Public Service Announcements to hiring more women to broadcasting documentaries on child abuse…) If it is focused on empowerment and human rights and TV, then it is a good idea.
You can also email me your ideas if you prefer: omhinbeirut(at)gmail(dot)com.
Thanks!
ohmyhappiness 
anthsz
March 1, 2012
TV stations could re-brand themselves as supporting equality and social justice through producing new shows that address tolerance and respect for everybody;
documentaries that show (in a positive light, whose purpose is not to make people say “haram”… ) how marginalized people and communities (the poor, queer, old, fat, disabled, bullied children, people living with HIV, black people living in Lebanon, adopted children, the list goes on…) live their daily lives, the challenges they face and how they overcome them!
An overhaul re-branding by publicly announcing the visions and values they believe in might fix the ugly, mocking, and discriminatory attitude and image they created for themselves.
Karima
March 2, 2012
-agree with all in first comment-
and,
I think all TV shows, especially those dealing with political matters, should host people who can actually think for themselves. I could not care less about them hosting a politician I already know what he is going to say, and I would prefer to hear NEW ideas from ANYONE else…there are people with innovative ideas everywhere, and they deserve to be heard.
I would like to see Lebanese TV and other media handle social matters away from the views of religion, i.e. I do not need to see a priest and a sheikh getting interviewed about anything that is a citizen’s business. Seriously, Lebanese TV needs to keep up with the rest of the free thinking population, and be a tool of change for the better where it is needed.
And what I would LOVE to see is media naming and shaming public figures when they make mistakes FOR REAL. This should not be a piece of news that fades away the next day; it should be a continuous process.
Michael Aswad (@MichaelAswad)
March 2, 2012
I think your message was clearly interpreted and well received by MTV. However was it a ruse to just justify that they are listening to the public? Let us face it their ratings are pretty high with the show, but at whose expense? We have to start changing the rhetoric of the public at its source. I believe if they do not address the issue you should bring it up again and file a suit against the station for defamation.
Ephemeral Wave
March 9, 2012
There was a show on Future TV that talked about foreigners in Lebanon. The show was nice and I used to enjoy watching it whenever I caught it airing. However, its downside was the fact that it hosted mainly empowered foreigners (mostly Europeans and Americans) working in well paid jobs. Now I don’t have anything against this category of foreigners, but they are the minority. The majority of foreigners in Lebanon are marginalized, poor, work in bad conditions, and suffer from lots of discrimination.
I suggest they do a documentary, a series, on these foreigners: the workers, the underpaid, the XYZ…I think it would help everyone to realize that they are humans with hopes and dreams like just about anyone instead of the generic nationality label we apply to them: Souri, Sirilanki (-kiye), Athiopeh (-piye), with the loads of prejudice that come with these labels.
However, I strongly doubt MTV would produce such a show, I am sorry to say that, but they are just too racist to even realize that there is something wrong with the way they think.
Paul Moore (@ppaulkane)
May 12, 2012
Your plans sound great. I’m a gay man in Australia (Lebanese mum) and in my experience it is hard to change public views until the appropriate laws also change. I don’t know what the level of anti gay and lesbian and transexual legal discrimination is in Lebanon, but you need to target that in a big way too. Seek the help of GLBTI Lebanese legal professionals. You may be able to set up a recognised organisation that fights for GLBTI rights in Lebanon, if you don’t have one already. Good luck.