Lebanese businessman Michel Murr, owner of the Lebanese MTV channel, is preparing to launch a new media project targeting Syrian audiences called "Syria Today."
The channel, which will broadcast from MTV's studios in the Naccache area north of Beirut, is described as an "independent platform" concerned with Syrian affairs and is expected to include a team of Syrian and Lebanese media professionals.
However, what is being promoted as a step to support Syrian media freedom raises fundamental questions about its funding, credibility, and intentions.
MTV, the parent company, has been suffering from accumulated financial crises over the past years, leading to layoffs and reduced program budgets. How can it launch a new media arm that requires a complete editorial and production structure? Where will the funding come from? And who is behind this project at this sensitive regional time?
More importantly, can a broad Syrian audience engage with a media project overseen by an organization that has been one of the most prominent platforms for incitement against Syrian refugees in Lebanon?
Over the past few years, MTV has played a pivotal role in escalating hate speech against Syrians, devoting successive coverage to portraying them as a demographic and security threat.
In April of last year, the channel announced that, through its lawyer, Mark Habaka, it had filed a lawsuit against the "Syrian presence in Lebanon," citing the need to avoid "the risk of explosion at any moment." Habaka stated at the time: "We are living under a disguised occupation, and the lawsuit is being filed in the name of the station to rid Lebanon of the political bazaar."
These statements were widely condemned by Lebanese activists and human rights advocates, who viewed them as direct incitement against refugees and a continuation of the channel's long-standing hostile approach.
Can a media outlet that embraces hostile rhetoric against Syrians suddenly transform into an open platform for Syrian opinion? Or does the project aim to redirect Syrian public opinion through "independent content," subject to the conditions of funders and cross-border policies?
"Syria Today," as a title, may sound promising... but "Who Pays? Why? And How?" will remain the most important questions in testing intentions and content.
Hussein Shishakli - Zaman al-Wasl
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