Hmong TV expanding reach from Web to KJEO
Posted at 05:13 PM on Wednesday, Sep. 01, 2010

By Rick Bentley / The Fresno Bee
The Fresno-based Hmong TV Network, which has only been available online at hmongtvnetwork.com since its launch 14 months ago, has found a home on local television. It's now airing on KJEO (Channel 32.6), a channel that's part of Cocola Broadcasting.

Merced's Chee Lee, president of the Hmong TV Network, says the channel is aimed at the more than 30,000 Hmong who live in the Fresno area.

"There are a lot of Hmong people who live here, and they have had no outlet. That is what we want to provide through education and information programs," Lee says.

The channel airs 24 hours a day, seven days a week. There are eight hours of original programming produced each weekday that are then rebroadcast twice more during the day. The most popular program is "Hmong TV News Live," which airs at 8 p.m. and covers both local and national stories.

Live talk shows fill the weekend schedule.

About 40% of the programming is produced at the station's downtown office. The remainder -- movies, documentaries and cultural programming -- come from Southeast Asia.

If the channel does well, Lee wants to expand to Minnesota and Wisconsin where there are also large Hmong populations.

Gary Cocola says the Armenian TV Network that had been airing on KJEO will move. No decision has been made as to the new channel location.
 

Starting September 1, 2010, Hmong TV Network will launch the first 24-hour Hmong television channel in Fresno, CA.  Hmong TV Network started about 5 years ago, but its broadcast was mainly seen on the internet and by those who had the company's set top box.  Now Hmong TV Network has decided to go local, meaning those within the Fresno area can now watch Hmong TV for free 24-hours a day, every day.

If you live in or near Fresno, you can tune into Hmong TV Network on channel 32-6.  Hmong TV broadcasts news and entertainment to enlighten the Hmong population.  If you do not live in Fresno, you can also still view Hmong TV anywhere around the world via the internet and on your tv using its set top box.  For more info, visit Hmong TV at http://www.hmongtvnetwork.com or call 559-475-0045.

Starting September 1, 2010, Hmong TV Network will launch the first 24-hour Hmong television channel in Fresno, CA.  Hmong TV Network started about 5 years ago, but its broadcast was mainly seen on the internet and by those who had the company's set top box.  Now Hmong TV Network has decided to go local, meaning those within the Fresno area can now watch Hmong TV for free 24-hours a day, every day.

If you live in or near Fresno, you can tune into Hmong TV Network on channel 32-6.  Hmong TV broadcasts news and entertainment to enlighten the Hmong population.  If you do not live in Fresno, you can also still view Hmong TV anywhere around the world via the internet and on your tv using its set top box.  For more info, visit Hmong TV at http://www.hmongtvnetwork.com or call 559-475-0045.

Many years ago, agent orange was used on the Ho Chi Minh trail to defoliate the trees so that planes could see Viet Minhs marching into Laos.  After the US pulled out, the remaining chemical was used against the Hmong in the jungle by the Lao government.  Because the chemicals was previously used by America, the US denied that what the LPDR (Lao government) used against the Hmong was illegal.  Instead, the US stated that the chemicals Hmong people saw falling from planes were not chemicals at all; they were "bee droppings".

Now, as agent orange is killing Americans who were exposed many years ago to the chemical, the US is beginning to pay.  See article below:

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Government expands Agent Orange care 
Vietnam vets exposed to Agent Orange may soon be able to claim disability compensation for heart disease as well as Parkinsons and some forms of leukemia. They can already claim benefits related to diabetes as well as certain other types of cancer.

According to the Department of Veterans Affairs, vets will only have to prove that they were in Vietnam when Agent Orange was used and later got one of the illnesses (possibly) linked to it.

Close to 12,000,000 gallons of Agent Orange were used by the military to defoliate the jungles in Vietnam, Laos and Cambodia during the Vietnam War from 1961 to 1971 in an attempt to “deprive enemy guerillas of cover and food. It was also “part of a general policy of forced draft urbanization by destroying the ability of peasants to support themselves in the countryside.”

Agent Orange was given its name from the color of the orange-striped in which it was shipped. “It is a roughly 1:1 mixture of two phenoxyl herbicides in iso-octyl ester form, 2,4-dichlorophenoxyacetic acid (2,4-D) and 2,4,5-trichlorophenoxyacetic acid .”

According to Vietnamese Ministry of Foreign Affairs, 4.8 million if itsople were exposed to Agent Orange, resulting in “400,000 deaths and disabilities, and 500,000 children born with birth defects.”

The VA estimates that the extended coverage for veterans will cost the givernment about $42 billionover the next decade as Vietnam veterans get older. The new rules will go into effect in November (unless Congress intervenes).

To learn more, please contact The Department of Veteran Affairs, 287 West St., Rocky Hill, CT 06067 860 616-3600. Veterans Info. Line 866 928-8387.
 

There are two groups in Fresno gearing up for the Hmong New Year Celebration in Fresno this year. Listen to my radio show about it.

There appears to be two Hmong groups competing to hold the annual Hmong New Year Celebration in Fresno.  You can listen to my radio show to see how they attempted to resolve this issue here

What do you think of this issue?

Mloog txog Hmoob Tsiab 30 - Bee's Show

Mloog txog Hmoob Tsiab 30 - Bee's Show

Mloog txog Hmoob Tsiab 30 - Bee's Show

Hmong New Year should be a time for happiness

Dr. Christopher T. Vang
CSU, Stanislaus

While the New Year is approaching, Hmong community in Fresno, California is caught in the middle of a political firestorm between two rival groups.  Local Hmong radio talk-show hosts open up the airway to listen to all callers’ concerns and frustrations.  Apparently, there are no easy answers and quick fixes to resolve disputes and conflicts.  The whole situation is now inevitable. So, let's learn more about the evolution of celebrating Hmong New Year.       

The Bee article “Hmong New Year Organizers Split Up” was no surprise to many Hmong Americans who have lived in this community for a long time.  Tribal disputes among Hmong clans and leaders are not uncommon, and financial mismanagement is an insidious side effect of intertribal squabbling. Questions surrounding the Hmong New Year celebration have been ignored for too long; it is time to reexamine the event’s purposes and financing. 

From the early 1980s, local Hmong put on the New Year festivities as a joint community effort and public celebration.  In the mid to late 1980s, the annual event seemed profitable, and some believed it could generate substantial revenues that might fund non-profit organizations that would help the Hmong community grow and thrive; thus it began to be privately organized.  Ironically, the private organizers incurred tremendous financial debts and the event became a political firestorm as bitter disputes arose over finances and unequal distribution of power, privilege, and social esteem. 

The original purpose of the New Year celebration was to preserve Hmong culture and traditions and so pass on Hmong values, customs, and beliefs to younger generations.  In other words, it was and still is a pluralistic event that keeps Hmong culture alive in a diverse society.  Additionally, the annual celebration educates both non-Hmong and Hmong Americans, especially Hmong-American children, about the richness and beauty of the Hmong culture.  It is a focal point for cultural identity, pride, and practices. 

Over the years, the weeklong event has become an incubator for many Hmong businesses worldwide.  Hmong merchants around the globe travel to Fresno each year to conduct business. Many rent space and sell their products while others visit family and friends.  In fact, Hmong entrepreneurs constitute the financial backbone of the celebration, and Hmong citizens are the prime source of revenue.  The Hmong New Year celebration would not be possible without the Hmong community and entrepreneurs. 

Having two celebrations and two sets of organizers will not change anything because neither group is committed to the greater good of the people.  Each proclaims itself the leader of the Hmong people, but for years the dreams and hopes of ordinary Hmong have been shattered by the broken promises and futile rhetoric of their leaders.  Perhaps having two events and the associated public bickering will further tarnish the image of Hmong.  As always, the organizers are looking for some kind of financial leverage and political propaganda with which they can stir up more socio-political controversies and create more tribal conflicts within the larger Hmong community. The organizers should not use the Hmong New Year as a battleground for political, social, and personal gain. 

The Hmong community in Fresno and elsewhere has yet to receive the promised financial benefits generated by the event.  Most of the money has gone to pay for contractual services provided by the county, city, and private firms, such as rental of the Fairgrounds and provision of security by local law enforcement and private firms.  For revenues remaining after payment of these debts, there is no oversight; only loose policies and procedures are in place to govern spending. 

Many are more concerned about the financial burden imposed on the Hmong community than by the fact that two rival events might take place.  All financial records have been kept from the public since the early 1980s.  The Hmong community should not have to pay the price for egregious misdeeds, misleading propaganda, and financial greed of some individuals who try to scam the community for their own financial or political purposes.  Hmong people have got to stop this kind of monopolization that would not only bankrupt the community but demoralize the integrity of Hmong culture and traditions. 

In order to earn public trust, now is a good time to reevaluate the cost effectiveness of this event. What the Hmong community needs is a group of community leaders, educators, business owners, elected officials, and private citizens who are passionate about Hmong values to help coordinate the New Year celebration in a way that is reflective of and responsive to Hmong culture and traditions. The Hmong do not need self-made leaders who are driven by personal politics and financial appetite and would ultimately lead them in the wrong direction.  Perhaps the split up is a turning point toward a new beginning.   

Hopefully, both groups will put their tribal spats aside and return to a community-organized celebration that really portrays the culture and traditions of the Hmong people.  Despite their differences, there is no winner or loser in this tribal warfare.  In fact, Hmong community deserves social civility and peace. Like so many other racial and ethnic groups in America, Hmong use the New Year celebration as a time to enjoy friends and family and celebrate prosperity and happiness.  It should not be a point of splintered relationships, financial disputes, and political animosities.  Every Hmong American deserves a peaceful and happy New Year celebration.