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Economy

Tale Of Two Als: Al Jazeera Buys Al Gore's Current TV

AL JAZEERA (Qatar), FORBES, THE WALL STREET JOURNAL, CNN (USA)

Worldcrunch

Al Jazeera Media Network has announced that it has acquired Current TV, a U.S. cable channel created seven years ago by former U.S. Vice President Al Gore.

We are excited to announce a new U.S.-based news channel and the acquisition of @current TV. aje.me/S5JWw5#AJEUS

— Al Jazeera English (@AJEnglish) January 3, 2013

The Qatar-based network said that with the acquisition it plans to create Al Jazeera America, a New York-based news channel.

“Al Jazeera, like Current, believes that facts and truth lead to a better understanding of the world around us,” Current TV’s co-founder Joel Hyatt is quoted as saying by the business magazine Forbes.

Current TV, CNN recalls, attracted more media attention than ratings in the U.S., particularly in 2009 when two of its reporters were arrested in North Korea and tried for illegal entry into the country -- requiring former U.S. President Bill Clinton to intervene by traveling to Pyongyang to meet with former leader Kim Jong-il.

Details about the deal have not yet been disclosed, but The Wall Street Journal reveals that figures mentioned in reports vary from a few hundred million dollars to as much as $500 million.

Long limited in its U.S. reach, Al Jazeera hopes the purchase of Current will allow it to reach millions more American homes. Still, after the deal was announced, Time Warner Cable, which runs Current TV in New York and Los Angeles, has pulled the plug on Current TV.

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Society

Tales From A Blushing Nation: Exploring India's 'Issues' With Love And Sex

Why is it that this nation of a billion-plus has such problems with intimacy and romance?

Photo of Indian romance statues

Indian romance statues

Sreemanti Sengupta

KOLKATA — To a foreigner, India may seem to be a country obsessed with romance. What with the booming Bollywood film industry which tirelessly churns out tales of love and glory clothed in brilliant dance and action sequences, a history etched with ideal romantics like Laila-Majnu or the fact that the Taj Mahal has immortalised the love between king Shahjahan and queen Mumtaz.

It is difficult to fathom how this country with a billion-plus population routinely gets red in the face at the slightest hint or mention of sex.

It therefore may have come as a shock to many when the ‘couple-friendly’ hospitality brand OYO announced that they are “extremely humbled to share that we observed a record 90.57% increase in Valentine’s Day bookings across India.”

What does that say about India’s romantic culture?

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