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Little Nepali media capital grows near big US Capitol
WASHINGTON DC, DEC 18 - The multicultural capital of the United States of America now boasts a little Nepali media capital.
With modest beginnings though, the Nepali media centre in recent years has seen the development of a television, a radio and an online Nepali news portal in the Washington DC area.
All with Nepali contents produced for the consumption of Nepalis, and sometimes, friends of Nepal, too.
The target audiences of Sagarmatha Television, Radio Dovan and Nepali Post (www.nepalipost.com) are Nepalis living in the US, particularly in the East Coast. For the rest, they are available in the Internet.
"Here, we’re promoting the true identity of Nepal and the Nepali people. We’re also popularizing Nepal," says Ram Kharel, chief executive officer of Sagarmatha Television, which was launched in August. 1997. "Nepalis in the US are often mistaken for Indians."
Sagarmatha TV goes on the air every Sunday morning from 9:30 to 10:00 am on WNVC TV or Channel 56, in Washington DC and its vicinity. The 30-minute programme starts with the Nepali national anthem. Nepal-related news, songs and document ~ ~ ries are its other highlights.
At 1:00 pm every Sunday, many Nepalis – those relaxing in their houses and those moving around in their cars alike – tune into WMET Radio at 11:50 am that announces "Yo Radio Dovan ho..." ["This is Radio
Dovan..."].
The half-an-hour radio programme hits the Washington airwaves with Nepali patriotic songs, news and commentaries on contemporary Nepali politics. That has been happening since February 2001, thanks to the initiative of Nagendra Poudel.
Born and raised in Chitwan and having come to the United States in 1992, Poudel, a survey engineer, works for the NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center, and spares his free time for Radio Dovan.
Programmes are produced in the cellar of Poudel’s house, where contributors gather every weekend to put things together.
For those who wish to read about Nepal
and Nepalis online, there’s Nepali Post (www.nepalipost.com), another unique initiative from a Nepali journalist in the US
"This is a common forum for Nepali journalists in the US to write and exercise the true freedom of expression," says Girish Pokharel, editor of the Nepali Post. According to him, the portal attracts about 17,000 hits everyday.
Hailing from Dhankuta, Pokharel came to the United States in 1998. He works in the audio-visual section of a Washington hotel and spends his free time writing and editing for the portal, which he started in 2001.
These media ventures, however, are not making profits.
"We have managed to keep it up and running – of course, with support from our Nepali friends," says Kharel of Sagarmatha TV.
Kharel, who came here 1991, currently owns a sound equipment company.
"We have the responsibility to preserve our cultural heritage," says Poudel of Radio Dovan.
Such development of Nepali-language media in the US, hailed by many as encouraging, comes as the size of the Nepali diaspora continues to swell.
US-based Nepali organisations estimate the total number of Nepalis at 60,000. Of them, between 5,000 to 7,000 live in the DC area, which includes parts of Virginia and Maryland.
And many seem to be proud to have Nepali-language media in their new-found-land.
"It feels great to read, listen to and watch Nepali stuff in America," said Ganesh Lama, who originally hails from Bouddha, Kathmandu,
and currently lives in the Virginia area with his family. "You do feel at home."
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