Cairo Comes to Life on Alhurra TV
Alhurra Television goes to the heart of Cairo through its new series Our Neighborhood. Each week, Our Neighborhood takes an in-depth look at the communities that encapsulate this vibrant and eclectic city, which is home to more than 18 million people. The series launches Saturday, Dec. 6th, at 10 p.m. (Cairo time).
In each episode, the program profiles two to three communities within Cairo, by following a inhabitant of each community as they share their lives with viewers; both the challenges and the triumphs. Filmed without a script or staged interviews, Our Neighborhood delves into the stories of the people it profiles and shows how they interact with their neighborhood while striving to achieve a personal ambition. Our Neighborhood compares and contrasts the lives of the people living in different communities.
“We are very proud of this Alhurra produced series, it shows the essence of Cairo through the people and communities that encompass it,” stated Brian Conniff, President of Middle East Broadcasting Networks, Inc. (MBN). MBN manages and operates Alhurra. “These stories resonate with viewers, both in Egypt and in other countries. These are people who want to make an impact on their community and that is something everyone can relate to.” 
The first episode follows Karim and AbdulRahman from Ma’adi. They are looking for ways to clean up Cairo and make it more environmentally friendly, from planting trees to showing a video about the effects of pollution on a street corner in Ma’adi. This episode also profiles Ahmed and Safa who are close friends and share the love of pantomime as a way of educating people about tolerance. The cameras follow them as they work to stage a performance in their neighborhood of Atabi.
Surveys by research companies such as ACNielsen show that Alhurra has a weekly reach of more than 20 million adults. Alhurra is operated by the non-profit corporation The Middle East Broadcasting Networks, Inc. (MBN). MBN is financed by the U.S. Government through a grant from the Broadcasting Board of Governors (BBG), an independent federal agency. The BBG serves oversight and as a firewall to protect the professional independence and integrity of the broadcasters.
