Revelation TV

Revelation TV is a UK Christian television channel started by Howard (an ex-Jehovah's Witness) and Lesley Conder in 2003; the channel broadcasts on Sky Digital channel 585.

Programming

Revelation TV broadcasts much in-house programming, producing their own shows World In Focus, Church In Focus and R-Mornings.

They also feature many programmes discussing the End times and Israel's role in it. They are strong supporters of Zionism and feature appearances by Messianic Jews. The channel is multi-cultural with participation from black and Asian Christians, though 'multi-culturalism' is regularly criticised by presenters. Revelation TV has also had programming from Arab Christians as well as Christian converts from regions like Pakistan.

Revelation TV previously had an online forum that was suspended due to a minority of users being offensive to other users.

On Monday April 3, 2006 Revelation TV launched its own music channel, called 'RMusicTV' on Sky Digital channel 370 in the UK. The channel's aim was to provide what it called "positive music", a playlist they declared free from the negative influences of sex, violence and worldly values. Many of the songs derived from various branches of Christian music though it is largely Contemporary Christian Music. Much of the music on the channel was broadcast live from the Revelation TV studios in London. Much of the live programming on RMusicTV ceased towards the end of 2006 and the channel itself ceased to exist at the beginning of February 2007.

The key shows on the channel were "Out the Box", a show that featured a mix of contemporary styles of Christian music, "UK Gospel Live" a show that brought in live gospel music acts from the UK and "RChart hits", the channel's own music chart show. Revelation TV made use of extended newspaper reviews, focusing especially on the Daily Mail, Daily Express and The Mirror. Presenters discussed the headlines amongst themselves, relying on their own personal expertise and not that of others. A feature of these discussions was the contributions by British presenter Yemi Balogun with Nigerian background, criticising aspects of British life. Immigration was a regular topic.

For a brief period the channel aired a secular show called "TasteBuds", a once a month show of contemporary singer/songwriter style music. The show was hosted by Dannii Evans and was affiliated with a once a month night at Balham based nightclub The Bedford called "OneTaste". This was a purely secular show in contrast to the normal contemporary Christian music of the channel.

Revelation TV shows a wide variety of live programs, such as 'R Mornings', which is broadcast on weekday mornings. This is a live show with a variety of presenters and guests. The show includes news items with clips from Reuters, commentary on the daily newspapers, and an open forum on emails and a live phone-in. The presenters listen to the various views expressed and often challenge any comment which could be perceived as negative towards a particular group, such as those with ‘same sex attraction’ or ‘homosexual orientation’.

African spiritual emphasis

Revelation TV has a strong interest in aspects of African religion which may be encouraged by much of its UK based audience. For instance, regular presenter Yemi Balogun recently described a stool which was possessed by a demon, and members of the family had been turning to the stool for guidance in life decisions.

Balogun has also expressed the view that Christians in the West have lost the ability to discern demons or evil spirits in inanimate objects. He gave as an example the Boxing Day tsunami in 2004 in Asia. Animals were able to pickup vibes that indicated to them something was wrong, and flee to higher ground, whereas the humans had lost this ability and were drowned. The presenter further explained some basic Christian exorcism practices that demons must be cast out, and they normally leave through the body orifices as demonstrated in the ministry of Jesus Christ in the New Testament.

In a recent programme, there was a description of miraculous provision of gold teeth by God. Worshippers at some Christian meetings discovered that gold teeth appeared where there had been none before, taking it as evidence of God's deep care for his followers' dental well-being. A new presenter, Don, who joined the channel in January 2008, claimed to have some of these miraculous gold teeth in his own mouth.

Criticism

Revelation TV has been accused of promoting strong 'conservative' and family values, as well as providing criticism of Islam. Through live call-in shows Muslims have called in and responded to issues raised.

Broadcasts on health issues have revealed a divergence between presenters with fairly mainstream views, and a conflicting strand.^[1] Some presenters have concerns about blood transfusions and organ transplants in case these convey the donor's personality to the recipient. Ancient Jewish idioms referring to personality traits as residing in the heart, liver, kidney or bowels are taken literally by some presenters, causing them to say they would refuse to accept a transplant or to authorise one for their child.

Meanwhile, Revelation TV has been under fire from regulators OfCom with regards to their views about homosexuality after complaints from gay rights campaigners and members of the public. OfCom has warned Revelation TV that they must in future be fair and express all points of view when approaching this subject, or they face mandatory sanctions.^[2]

Spanish broadcasting

Revelation TV has reportedly explored the obtaining of a Spanish broadcasting licence. Whilst they would continue to operate out of London, a Spanish licence would exempt the station from British broadcasting standards in relation to homosexuality and other aspects of the 'human rights culture' which constrains their programming. Mrs. Conder has reassured viewers that the channel will not be leaving London, but simply taking advantage of what she called a 'loophole' of setting up a studio with a sofa in Spain in order to register there.

Fundraising

Formerly, channels like Revelation TV which operate from the UK were unable to ask for funds on-air, due to OfCom restrictions. With the lifting of these restrictions, this is no longer the case and Revelation TV can now ask for funds on air.^[3][4] Once a month the network asks viewers to give financially to the network in order to support them. This is referred to as "Building the Foundation". Presenters such as Howard Conder, Lesley Conder, Gordon Pettie and Lorna Pettie tell viewers how their finances are doing and encourage them to give to the network if they enjoy their programmes. The presenters have stated they will only do fundraising programming one night every month and they do not have large fundraising appeals like other Christian television networks.

Genesis TV

Another channel, Genesis TV which is an extension of Revelation TV was recently launched at Sky Channel 592 and continues to play much of the same content from RMusicTV, and recently premiering a hit music show, The One to One Show, produced and hosted by upcoming Presenter and Gospel personality, Michael Owusu. It is broadcast every Sunday evening on Genesis TV.^[5]

References

1. ^ "The show is like a coffee morning in slow motion". Guardian Newspaper. Retrieved on 2009-05-08.
2. ^ "The show is like a coffee morning in slow motion". Guardian Newspaper. Retrieved on 2009-05-08.
3. ^ "Television evangelists given blessing to pass collection plate round viewers". Times Online. Article dated 2007-01-22. Retrieved on 2007-02-25.
4. ^ "The Lord will provide... we hope". The Telegraph Newspaper. Retrieved on 2009-05-08.
5. ^ "The One to One Show". Retrieved on 2009-11-01.

External links

• "The Lord will provide... we hope", The Telegraph Newspaper
• "Genesis TV and Revelation TV", Article giving analysis of Revelation TV's theological position
• "The show is like a coffee morning in slow motion" Guardian Newspaper [accessed 8 May 2009]
• "2006 Oasis Pre-Awards Celebrates Gospel Music in UK" Christianity Today [accessed 8 May 2009]
• "Mission to London Lights Fire Again for Thousands" Christianity Today [accessed 8 May 2009]