OIC TV Channel to Counter Islamophobia

Libreville, Republic of Gabon: The 57-member Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) has announced its plan to establish a satellite channel and promote investment in the media to fight Islamophobia and enhance exchange of information among the member states. “We have a number of important proposals to strengthen Islamic media activities. They including the launch of an OIC satellite channel,” OIC Secretary-  General Ekmeleddin Ihsanoglu stated at a conference of the 9th Session of “The Islamic Conference of  Information  Ministers” in Libreville, Gabon, last fortnight. The OIC chief also called on Muslim businessmen and women to finance the new channel as well as to invest in major media organisations that are already making substantial profits in order to “exchange information and news of the Muslim world and project the true picture of Islam.” The OIC, which is the second largest international organisation after the UN, has set out a strategy to combat what it calls “rising intolerance against Islam and Muslims in the West.” The OIC also plans to create awards for excellence in unbiased journalism, reporting, photography and publishing.