SARAJEVO, Bosnia Herzegovina
The Anadolu Agency has launched an Albanian language service as part of its vision to rank among the world's five most-influential news agencies.
The new service, launched Wednesday, will report news to its subscribers via its media outlets in Albania, Kosovo, Macedonia, Montenegro, Serbia, Bosnia-Herzegovina, the EU, Turkey and the U.S.
With its pledge to be "reliable, impartial, ethical and fast," AA will supply a breath of fresh air to the Albanian media landscape.
The Anadolu Agency's Chairman of the Board and Director-General Kemal Ozturk said the agency aimed to become one of the top five in the world within the framework of its "centennial vision."
"We already have the necessary infrastructure in the Balkans and this background will further improve with our Albanian broadcast," Ozturk said.
The Albanian service, which will conduct news gathering operations as a part of the agency's Europe Publishing Desk, will widely report on developments in politics, economy, sports and culture in the Balkans and the world.
Professor Genriana Sakura of the University of Tirana said the Albanian service would contribute significantly to the media landscape in the Balkans.
"Anadolu Agency is a worldwide agency and, as a carrier of Turkish journalistic values, it will contribute significantly to Albanian media," he said.
Macedonian journalist Kim Mehmeti welcomed the launch as an exciting and important development for Albania.
"AA's Albanian service will be a new window to the world for the Albanians," he said.
Euge Saracini, the general manager of TV station 21 in Kosovo, added: "I do not doubt that Kosovo’s media will cooperate well with AA. I believe cooperation between TV21 and AA would be useful for both sides."
The service aims to produce 45 news articles, 50 photos and five videos per day during 2014.
Some of its news, photographs and videos will also be available to the public on the AA website.
The inclusion of Albanian will bring the agency's broadcasting languages to eight, including Turkish, English, Arabic, Bosnian/Croatian/Serbian (BCS), Russian, Kurdish and French.
AA aims to broadcast news in 11 languages by 2020 -- its centennial anniversary.
http://www.aa.com.tr/en
