! Here is the news:QUOTE
MTV will channel
Asian pop culture
By MARISA GUTHRIE
DAILY NEWS STAFF WRITER
MTV is broadening its multicultural niche with three new digital channels.
The first, MTV Desi, will launch before the end of the year and cater to U.S. viewers who trace their heritage to India. Channels aimed at Korean- and Chinese-Americans will debut early next year.
"We recognize that many young people are bicultural," said Nusrat Durrani, general manager of MTV World. "Many kids have a transcontinental view of life, but they live in the United States. And not only are these channels going to connect with those young people, but they also are going to shine a light on their culture and the artists from these communities."
MTV Desi will include content from MTV's international channels as well as original shows produced in the U.S.
"It looks very different," said Durrani. "It's very exciting and very fresh. [MTV Desi] will be music-driven, but it takes the best of our international programming while doing a lot of programming locally. We'll have veejays who are hired locally that speak the language. We're really tapping into the subcultures in the U.S. rather than just repurposing what we already have."
The channel's first language will be English, said Durrani. "There will be a lot of video product," he said. "But as we evolve, we'll stay true to [MTV's] mission, to be a pop-culture destination."
MTV Desi isn't the only Indian-American channel on the horizon. American Desi will start up early next month on the DISH Network. As on MTV Desi, programming will be presented in English and produced stateside. New Jersey-based American Desi will take a broader approach to content, including talk shows, interview and news programs, and Bollywood movies.
WABC/Ch. 7 reporter Sree Sreenivasan will produce and host the the network's news and public-affairs programs. Videos will feature artists like Sri Lankan singer M.I.A., Temple of Sound, Ganga Dev and DJ Cheb i Sabbah. And "Points of View" will be the Desi answer to "The View," with women of various generations sounding off on everything from fashion to arranged marriages.
American Desi will also be the only network carrying American Pro Cricket, the first professional cricket league in the U.S.
Asian pop culture
By MARISA GUTHRIE
DAILY NEWS STAFF WRITER
MTV is broadening its multicultural niche with three new digital channels.
The first, MTV Desi, will launch before the end of the year and cater to U.S. viewers who trace their heritage to India. Channels aimed at Korean- and Chinese-Americans will debut early next year.
"We recognize that many young people are bicultural," said Nusrat Durrani, general manager of MTV World. "Many kids have a transcontinental view of life, but they live in the United States. And not only are these channels going to connect with those young people, but they also are going to shine a light on their culture and the artists from these communities."
MTV Desi will include content from MTV's international channels as well as original shows produced in the U.S.
"It looks very different," said Durrani. "It's very exciting and very fresh. [MTV Desi] will be music-driven, but it takes the best of our international programming while doing a lot of programming locally. We'll have veejays who are hired locally that speak the language. We're really tapping into the subcultures in the U.S. rather than just repurposing what we already have."
The channel's first language will be English, said Durrani. "There will be a lot of video product," he said. "But as we evolve, we'll stay true to [MTV's] mission, to be a pop-culture destination."
MTV Desi isn't the only Indian-American channel on the horizon. American Desi will start up early next month on the DISH Network. As on MTV Desi, programming will be presented in English and produced stateside. New Jersey-based American Desi will take a broader approach to content, including talk shows, interview and news programs, and Bollywood movies.
WABC/Ch. 7 reporter Sree Sreenivasan will produce and host the the network's news and public-affairs programs. Videos will feature artists like Sri Lankan singer M.I.A., Temple of Sound, Ganga Dev and DJ Cheb i Sabbah. And "Points of View" will be the Desi answer to "The View," with women of various generations sounding off on everything from fashion to arranged marriages.
American Desi will also be the only network carrying American Pro Cricket, the first professional cricket league in the U.S.