New boss is determined to keep the faith at Al-Jazeera

Tony Burman, the new boss of Al-Jazeera English, turns 60 on Friday, but he may choose to keep the champagne on ice for a while. There is little to celebrate at the international offshoot of the controversial Arabic network, which is struggling to match the global influence and political clout of its parent more than a year after it launched.

After a 35-year career at Canadian state broadcaster CBC, Burman, appointed managing director last month, will have to restore morale at the network, whose ambitious aim of beaming an Arabic perspective on the world to American living rooms has been dented by a failure to secure airtime in the US.