OSN, the region’s major pay-TV network, is further strengthening its community engagement with the launch of a first-of-its-kind show dedicated to the largest demographic of Saudi Arabia, its youth.

The new show titled Al-Jamiaa premiered on April 29, on OSN Yahala HD, OSN’s flagship Arabic channel.

It is described as a platform for Saudi youth to express their views and address big questions in a university-style setting with interactive debates and voting. It also highlights OSN’s investment in the Kingdom in original "made in Saudi" content creation.

Through Al-Jamiaa, young Saudis can express their opinions on subjects that matter most to them. The show presents a chance for Saudi youth to confront modern-day issues in an open and transparent debating theater.

The show will host a mix of guests, including sport personalities, intellectuals, business leaders and government officials. Al-Jamiaa is presented by Saudi online celebrity 28-year-old Omar Hussein.

Khulud Abu Homos, EVP, Programming & Creative Services, said: “Saudi youth are tech-savvy and connected, and leverage the strong broadband connectivity and smart phone penetration to communicate their viewpoints. Through Al-Jamiaa, we are providing them a credible platform to engage in meaningful discussion.”

Reinforcing its commitment to delivering compelling and competitive talk shows, the university-style theme is made up of top students from some of Saudi Arabia’s academic institutions such as Batterjee University, Alghad University, Al Farabi University, King Saud University, King Abdul Aziz University, Dar Al Hekma University, Effat University, Technology and Business University, Ibn Sina University and Umm Al Qura University.

The audience is split into two gender groups, reflecting the diversity of the Kingdom, while the participants are selected based on their academic performance.

Filmed in Jeddah, the one-hour talk show gives Saudi youth the opportunity to pose questions and seek answers from the special guest invited on the show.