The channel — which broadcasts satirical programs on a low budget — is called Sah (True) and is aimed at young men and women, said its founder Tariq Al-Hassani. Although there are online sites such as YouTube where surfers can view videos, Sah is different in that it broadcasts channels on a fixed schedule, he said.

Al-Hassani said the programs that Sah broadcasts are also available to view on YouTube and Facebook. He added that other Arab groups have tried doing something similar to what Sah is doing, but have not been successful.

Sah began a month ago. Its founders say they opted to broadcast online, as it is easier to criticize over the Internet. “We don’t need to be as careful as conventional channels, which can be stopped from airing criticism of a newspaper story,” said Al-Hassani referring to Sah’s “Quarter to Nine” program that pokes fun at stories that appear in local newspapers.

The program, which is presented by Mohammad Bazaid, also makes fun of advertisements that appear in newspapers and which may be vague, ineffective, poorly written and deceitful.

Al-Hassani said the majority of the channel’s viewers are men and that there are no women presenters as they are struggling to find anyone qualified. “We’re also facing the problem of not knowing what women viewers want to see,” he said.

Asked whether they want to include women presenters, he said, “We would love to but where are they? There is a lack in the number of people who know how to write scripts,” he added.

Although Sah is presently making little money from advertisements, it will continue to operate. “Money is not our ultimate goal. Even if we don’t make much money, we’ll still continue with our work,” he added.

Al-Hassani said there is a group of youths who work on the channel part-time. One of the problems they face includes dealing with officials while filming in public. In such situations they avoid telling officials they are shooting for TV.

Al-Hassani said since they are working on a small budget, shooting is confined to Riyadh and in rented studios. He also said Sah will continue with satirical programs as this is now part of the channel’s identity.

The channel has already canceled one of its three programs: “7 Questions.” Al-Hassani said the program was canceled as it involved interviewing people, something that they found challenging and difficult.  Besides “Quarter to Nine” the channel has another program called “Different People,” which criticizes mundane and boring television interviews of ordinary run-of-the-mill people.