AJE Launch: Initial Impressions

Send your impressions to tvnewser@mediabistro.com or drop them in the tip box…

Al Jazeera English’s premiere featured stories from Russia, Israel, Afghanistan, and Iraq — all “important, no doubt, but not exactly the most pressing issue when the BBC, Sky and others were reporting that people in Japan had been warned to flee a tsunami which was expected to hit the coast within the next few minutes,” the Guardian’s Brian Whitaker blogs. “Al Jazeera mentioned it in passing but then plunged on with an exclusive five-minute report about … well, Al Jazeera, actually.”

Thankfully, the tsunami turned out to be minor. “If this had been a major wave AJE would be in serious trouble,” an e-mailer says…

> Here’s a summary of blog reaction to the launch…

Create a social media strategy, launch your campaign, and track the results in our Social Media Marketing Boot Camp starting February 16. The online event and workshop will feature speakers including The Onion‘s Baratunde Thurston (left), Facebook’s Morin Oluwole, and bitly’s Tim Devane. Register now.