Iraq (MNN) — A new study by a secular research company, in partnership with several other Arab news networks, brought good news to SAT-7.
So far, only information from Iraq has come in. But the viewer ratings, equivalent to the
Nielson Ratings in the U.S., report that 10 percent of families in Iraq watch SAT-7's programs during the year. Even in a predominantly Islamic population, that is more than any Christian network in the U.S.
It is likely that much of the viewership is due to the enthusiasm children have for SAT-7's kids shows. Kids often end up in charge of the remote in many families, which means the parents are also viewing the programs their kids watch.
The message of hope and acceptance that SAT-7 presents is in stark contrast to the message of conventional
Arab television. Arab television often promotes devotion to the culture and religion, obligation, legalism, acceptance of oppression, retaliation, hatred and very little hope.
Often, children write in requesting more reading materials like the story of Moses, or asking for a children's Bible. Terry Ascott, CEO of SAT-7, shared an experience he had in Palestine
last January, recounting that he met a nun who was the principal of a local orphanage. She told him that each night she battled the kids for the remote control: they wanted to watch SAT-7, and she wanted to see the news.
Ascott wrote, "I believe this phenomenon is being repeated daily and every night throughout the Middle East. Remember that children under the age of 15 represent 100 million people of the region. Through SAT-7 KIDS, child-by-child, family-by-family, for the first time in their lives, millions are being exposed to the truth, the Gospel, and the Word of God."
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