MUMBAI: The G8 Summit which will deal with the challenges of Africa and climate change kicks off on 6 July in Scotland
As a prelude to the event MTV will organise an exclusive forum All Eyes On Tony Blair. The UK Prime Minister will chair the G8 Summit.
The forum is part of Tony Blairs outreach to young people in advance of the G8 Summit. It will air globally across MTVs international channels from Friday 1 July.
Bob Geldof, the leading force behind Saturdays Live8 concerts, will also participate in the programme alongside the studio audience. Meanwhile artists including Destinys Child and Kanye West will pose questions via videotape.
All Eyes On Tony Blair will take the form of a one hour live question and answer session. It will give young people from the UK and around the world an opportunity to ask the UK Prime Minister searching and provocative questions on Africa and climate change.
Hosted by Trevor Nelson who is one of the UKs most respected youth presenters All Eyes On Tony Blair will also include questions from young Africans filmed by MTV base, MTVs recently launched pan-African channel and MTV Networks flagship 100th channel around the world. All Eyes On Tony Blair will be recorded tomorrow 30 June.
MTV Networks vice chairman Bill Roedy said, MTV has a long history of giving audiences a direct dialogue with some of the worlds most influential leaders. Young people in particular have the power to help change the world, and its critical that they have the opportunity to express their opinions on important issues that affect their future.
The 40-strong audience of young people wil represent 24 different countries from all corners of the globe including India, UK, US, France, Sweden, Russia, China, Korea, Canada, Uganda and South Africa. The participants were selected via MTV Internationals partnerships with Unicef, the Department of Education and Skills and Virgin Unite (Virgins independent charitable organisation). In addition, MTVs global audiences have had input into the key themes of the upcoming forum via a web survey, hosted across MTVs network of fully localised international websites, which asks for their views on issues such as the G8 Summit, Live8, poverty, Africa and climate change.
MTV states that it has a long history of giving young people a platform to express their views on pro social issues, and regularly offers its audiences opportunities for direct dialogue with world leaders. In 2003 Blair took part in An MTV Forum With Tony Blair: Is War The Answer?. During a debate with young people from across the globe, he revealed he would be prepared to wage war on Iraq without a second resolution authorising military action.
In the aftermath of the events of 9/11 in 2001, MTV US had hosted a global discussion with US Secretary of State Colin Powell giving young people from around the world the opportunity to ask questions on the war on terrorism, and other issues affecting them.
In addition, MTVs pro-social activities include MTV Internationals Staying Alive campaign which aims at increasing awareness and prevention of HIV/Aids. Staying Alives next project is Transit.
This is a two- hour television film that uses fiction to deliver HIV/Aids prevention messages to young people. MTV UK also offers school children the opportunity to express their opinions and ideas creatively via the Boom! Music Video Academy, a government-endorsed project that enables students to create music videos as part of the national curriculum.
