Time Warner drops Current TV following sale to Al Jazeera

GlobalPost

Time Warner Cable has pulled the plug on Al Gore's Current TV, following the channel's sale to Al Jazeera. 

The cable provider has not given a reason for pulling the channel off the air, although The Atlantic Wire cited speculation that Time Warner may simply be prejudiced against Al Jazeera.

The perceived prejudice towards the Qatar-owned news organization is nothing new. In August 2011, Al Anstey, managing director of Al Jazeera English, told The Huffington Post that "in the United States of America, there were myths and misconceptions that needed to be tackled about what Al Jazeera stood for and what Al Jazeera English stood for and stands for." 

Al Jazeera plans to convert Current TV to Al Jazeera America and station its new headquarters in New York City.

In a memo to the Current TV staff obtained by Talking Points Memo, Joel Hyatt, the co-founder of Current TV, noted that Time Warner Cable "did not consent to the sale to Al Jazeera." Hyatt added, "Consequently, Current will no longer be carried on TWC. This is unfortunate, but I am confident that Al Jazeera America will earn significant additional carriage in the months and years ahead."

According to The New York Times, Al Gore personally lobbied the cable companies to support the sale of Current TV to Al Jazeera, as the carrier agreements come with the sale of the news organization. It's reported that all other providers will be honoring the agreements they held with Current TV previously.

Sign up for our daily newsletter

Sign up for The Top of the World, delivered to your inbox every weekday morning.