Madinat al-Muslimeen Islamic Message Board
| The Islam Project! |
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| se7en |
| 09/25/01 at 01:14:35 |
| [center] T H E I S L A M P R O J E C T Two Major Television Events - on ABC and PBS ------- America's most focused look at what it means to be Muslim at the turn of the 21st Century [/center] [i] "My polls have shown that when Americans learn about Islam, their levels of acceptance more than double - from 24% to 58%. These programs will take a major step forward in Americans' acceptance of Islam." -- John Zogby, President and CEO, Zogby International "Americans are woefully ignorant about Islam. Sadly, the press is in part responsible. The Islam Project promises to provide an important corrective through a journalistically solid documentary about this important faith. This work needs to be supported, produced, and watched." -- Ari Goldman, Graduate School of Journalism, Columbia University "The Islam Project could not come at a more crucial moment in American life and in the wider sensitivities of the world. This documentary will show the way Muslims really live, think, and believe all over the world - and not the stereotypes that are so often in the media. Everyone will have to see it." -- James Parks Morton "In today's global village, a world divided against itself cannot stand, much less grow to be what it truly can and should be. Understanding Islam's religious and spiritual impulse is indispensable for reasons not only political and economic, but for those purely human." -- Feisal Abdul Rauf, Founder ASMA Society; Islamic Culture & Arts [/i] The key elements of the Islam Project: [*] Four half-hour ABC News Nightline specials for broadcast in late 2001. We are attempting to have the broadcasts coincide with Ramadan. [*] A two-hour primetime PBS special for broadcast in late 2002. [*] An extensive educational outreach program including: - a study for high school and junior high use - educational and home videos - a comprehensive website [*] Expanded visibility of the programs through international broadcasts The Islam Project: An Overview Muslim society is experiencing worldwide transformation. In the West this resurgence has been portrayed as predominantly political and militant. For more than twenty-five years, media images of urban terorism, beseiged embassies, Hamas and the Taliban have led American audiences to believe that Muslims may ber anti-democratic, oppressive, and prone to violence. But is this a true picture of Islam? Does it accurately represent the diversity of today's more than one billion Muslims? How representative is the "Islamic threat"? If it has been exaggerated, why? Why is Islam growing in popularity, vitality, and influence - from the markets of Malaysia to the halls of the US Capitol? What are the implications of Islam's resurgence for the United States? The Islam Project will address these questions. Providing safe and satisfying answers to Western viewers is best done by portraying Islam in vocabulary and images powerfully evocative of their Judeo-Christian heritage. The Islam Project proposes to place the diverse ways Muslims live their faith in the 21st century within such contextual understandings. And, through the compelling stories of Muslims from Asia, the Middle East, Africa, and America, and opinions from experts on religion and international affairs, the Islam Project will report to an American audience about the history and cultures of Islam, and how Muslims live in the modern world. These documentaries, accompanied by an authoritative website, will step outside the black-and-white characterizations of most media coverage, to present an objective and informed portrait of the Muslim world. Project origins and development: Initiated and developed by the International Conflict Resolution Program at Columbia University, Dr. Andrea Bartoli, Director, in collaboration with a diverse group of scholars. Initial research and development funded by the William and Mary Greve Foundation and the Carnegie Corporation of New York. Television Production: Research and development was accomplished by Alvin Perlmutter, Director, the Independent Production Fund (IPF). Staff and consultants included representatives from the Muslim academic and religious communities. Distribution and Promotion: Initial broadcasts on ABC television and PBS in the United States. Programs will also be available to foreign broadcast outlets. Secondary distribution on educational and home videos. A major educational outreach effort will accompany the series, with an internet component, and the publishing of a study guide for high school and junior high school use. Time Frame: PHASE 1: Research and development - June 99 - April 00 Interviews with over sixty Muslims and non-Muslim scholars, authorities and specialists in various phases of Islamic religious, cultural, political, and economic life. PHASE 2: Location surveys in seven countries - July - October 00 On-site research and interviews with approximately 150 potential program participants in Egypt, Senegal, Turkey, Iran, Malaysia, Israel, and the US. Preperations were made with national and local authorities for shooting during the later production phase. PHASE 3: Pre-production and Production - June 01 - January 01 During this phase, the production teams and crews spend two to three weeks filming in each location. PHASE 4: Editing - November 01 - April 02 In the editing process, two fully equipped editing rooms work for twelve weeks to shape the stories to be told in the documentaries. COMPLETION: Anticipated ABC News Nightline broadcast in late 2001. Anticipated broadcast of PBS two-hour special in late 2002. Funding Needs: Our budget is $3.2 million. We have received $1.2 million in grants from the Pew Charitable Trust and the William and Mary Greve Foundation, who agree with Professor Goldman of the Columbia University's Graduate School of Journalism that documentaries like these which correct the impression of Islam need to be supported, produced, and watched. Is the Muslim community keen to endorse such programming and make its support count? The endorsement of the Muslim community is very important to us. The PBS special Islam: Empire of Faith, which focused on Islamic history, was watched by 2.5 million U.S. households. This demonstrates the growing interest and ratings attributable to fair and intelligent documentary coverage of Islam and sets the stage for The Islam Project's exploration of Islam in the 21st century. After two years of solid effort, we are now working very hard to have the four ABC News Nightline specials completed in time to air this Ramadan 2001, and the PBS special a year later. Your support is critical in enabling us to meet these objectives. Please Make Your Vote Count No donation is too small, and any and all amounts are welcome. Send to: The Islam Project The Independent Production Fund 45 West 45th Street, Suite 808 New York, NY 10036 Wire Information: Name: The Independent Production Fund Inc. Account #: 610049941 Bank: HSBC 452 Fifth Avenue New York, NY 10018-2706 ABA #021001088 The Independent Production Fund (IPF) is a non-profit 501 (c)(3). Its projects have been aired on PBS since its inception in 1988. All grants to IPF toward the production of The Islam Project are fully deductible in accordance with IRA regulations. Advisors: John Esposito Center for Christian-Muslim Understanding Washington, DC Maha ElGenaidi Executive Director Islamic Network Group San Jose, CA Ari Goldman Associate professor Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism NY, NY Martin E. Marty Director The Fundamentalism Project Chicago, IL The Very Reverend James Parks Morton President, Interfaith Center of NY NY, NY Azim Nanji Director Institute for Ismaili Studies London, England Imam Feisal Abdul Rauf Founder ASMA Foundation NY, NY Abdul Karim Soroush Director Research Institute for Human Sciences Tehran, Iran Amatullah Sharif Publications Manager WDM Ministry Publications Hazel Crest, IL Hamza Yusuf Director Zaytuna Institute San Ramon, CA T h e I s l a m P r o j e c t The Independent Production Fund Alvin H. Perlmutter, Director 45 West 45th Street, Suite 808 New York, NY 10036 Phone: 212.221.6310 Fax: 212.301.1854 Email: ahp@ip45.org |
| Re: The Islam Project! |
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| se7en |
| 09/25/01 at 01:16:36 |
| as salaamu alaykum, Aiite y'all.. above is most of the important info from the booklet on the Islam Project I got at ISNA. I didn't type up the parts about the cool stuff you get the higher your donation is (25Gs gets you identified on the broadcast programs, press releases, videotapes and all printed materials!) and I didn't type up the names of the key staff. Sister Nazia made a great comment earlier.. she said, if there was *ever* a time when we needed something like this, it's now.. so do what you can inshaAllah! take care :) wasalaamu alaykum wa rahmatAllah. ps - what's a "very reverend"? |
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