I do not usually watch Kyrgyz TV channels that often, as the “mainstream” content they create often lacks journaistic approach. However, I have been following Channel 5′s prime-time “Maydan” live show for a long time. What makes Maydan unique is that they put the question and invite experts, both pro and con, and have a live discussion, and often answer phone calls from the audience.

And every time I watched Maydan, I felt there was something western in it. I could not tell it untill my cable TV had CNN back, and I watched Larry King Live show again. “Maydan” had simply copied the studio interier from Larry King’s show. Just look a the pics.

Larry King Live

Maydan of Channel 5

There are just two differences. First, the map on the back – Larry King has a world map, while Maydan has the Kyrgyzstan’s. Second, the quality – Maydan does not often meet the criteria of live discussion shows. Well, lets hope Kyrgyz TV is evolving in terms of quality and will catch up with western TV soon.