World Have your Say Extra – special interactive bulletin on BBC World News TV

- global audiences have their say on developments in the Middle East-

Friday 4 March, 2011, London. A new BBC World News evening update bulletin, World Have your SayExtra, launches on Friday 4 March to accommodate the large volumes of calls and social media traffic generated by the interactive news discussion show World Have your Say.

WorldHave your Say - the BBC's award-winning global interactive news discussion show (BBC World Serviceradio) - launched a weekly TV edition of the show on BBC WorldNews last month which now broadcasts every Friday at 15:00 GMT. The special World Have Your Say Extra bulletin, airing at 19:30GMT, will follow the main programme. Hosted by Ros Atkins, the bulletin will cover a round-up of the best audience online, email and telephone interactions.

Mark Sandell, Editor of World Have Your Say comments; “Over the past three weeks the audience reaction to discussions around the Middle Easthas been overwhelming – with callers from a diverse range of countries taking part in the debate. The range has allowed us to cover developments in the Middle East in a completely different way – letting audiences in the region and those in other parts of the world have their say on what is happening and how it's impacted on their lives. It gives us a truly global perspective on the events as they unfold. This special bulletin is a great way of accommodating the volume of interactions coming into the show and provides a forum for as many different viewpoints and opinions as possible.”

Since the television launch, the show has focused on developments in the Middle East, engaging audiences around the world in a range of talking points and discussions including: When should President Mubarak go? (4 Feb), What next after the fall of Mubarak (12 Feb), Unrest across the Middle East and North Africa (18 Feb) and What should the World do about Libya? (25 Feb). In the past three weeks, the show has generated calls from a large volume of countries, peaking on 25 February with viewers from 49 countries taking part in the debate around Libya.