Tweet
THIS WEEK: THE EUROVISION SONG CONTEST IN BAKU, AZERBAIJAN
TVLatest.com
http://www.tvlatest.com/article/3185/This+Week%3A+The+Eurovision+Song+Contest+in+Baku,+ Azerbaijan
May 21 2012
After over a year of preparation, 42 entries, and a little controversy
here and there, the Eurovision Song Contest will be held in Baku,
Azerbaijan this week. Semi-finals on Tuesday and Thursday will
culminate with the Grand Final Saturday, May 26.
Azerbaijan won the right to host this year's contest after duo Ell &
Nikki won the 2011 edition of the Eurovision Song Contest with the song
"Running Scared" in Dusseldorf, Germany. Since then, the Crystal Hall
was constructed in Baku, Azerbaijan's capital, 43 countries expressed
interest in participating, and now 42 countries will try to win the
right to host next year's event.
The Contest has managed to stir a bit of controversy since the
song selection process began last December. Armenia had initially
expressed interest in competing despite its territorial conflicts
with Azerbaijan. However, Armenia pulled out after the registration
deadline, putting the country's future participation at risk. San
Marino almost faced disqualification after its initial entry "The
Facebook Song" was declared ineligible just days before the song
submission deadline. Azerbaijan has also come under fire (no pun
intended) with alleged rights violations during the construction of
the Baku Crystal Hall and the challenges of hosting an event with a
significant gay following in an environment that is not particularly
gay-friendly. A number of websites in the past week have experienced
hacker attacks with gay rights being cited as a reason for the online
assaults.
Controversies aside, there are 42 songs from 42 countries competing
this week, hopefully offering fantastic shows over the course of three
nights. 18 will compete on Tuesday and Thursday in the semi-finals,
with 10 songs from each night advancing to the Saturday's Grand Final.
They will join the Big 5 - France, Germany, Italy, Spain, United
Kingdom - and host Azerbaijan with the goal of earning votes from
juries and televoters to win the Contest and host next year's event.
Here is the running order for the events. Click on the name of a
country to read the review of its entry. The livestream of the events
can be viewed at the Official Eurovision Website at 11:59pm AZST /
9pm CET / 3pm EDT Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday.
From: A. Papazian
TVLatest.com
http://www.tvlatest.com/article/3185/This+Week%3A+The+Eurovision+Song+Contest+in+Baku,+ Azerbaijan
May 21 2012
After over a year of preparation, 42 entries, and a little controversy
here and there, the Eurovision Song Contest will be held in Baku,
Azerbaijan this week. Semi-finals on Tuesday and Thursday will
culminate with the Grand Final Saturday, May 26.
Azerbaijan won the right to host this year's contest after duo Ell &
Nikki won the 2011 edition of the Eurovision Song Contest with the song
"Running Scared" in Dusseldorf, Germany. Since then, the Crystal Hall
was constructed in Baku, Azerbaijan's capital, 43 countries expressed
interest in participating, and now 42 countries will try to win the
right to host next year's event.
The Contest has managed to stir a bit of controversy since the
song selection process began last December. Armenia had initially
expressed interest in competing despite its territorial conflicts
with Azerbaijan. However, Armenia pulled out after the registration
deadline, putting the country's future participation at risk. San
Marino almost faced disqualification after its initial entry "The
Facebook Song" was declared ineligible just days before the song
submission deadline. Azerbaijan has also come under fire (no pun
intended) with alleged rights violations during the construction of
the Baku Crystal Hall and the challenges of hosting an event with a
significant gay following in an environment that is not particularly
gay-friendly. A number of websites in the past week have experienced
hacker attacks with gay rights being cited as a reason for the online
assaults.
Controversies aside, there are 42 songs from 42 countries competing
this week, hopefully offering fantastic shows over the course of three
nights. 18 will compete on Tuesday and Thursday in the semi-finals,
with 10 songs from each night advancing to the Saturday's Grand Final.
They will join the Big 5 - France, Germany, Italy, Spain, United
Kingdom - and host Azerbaijan with the goal of earning votes from
juries and televoters to win the Contest and host next year's event.
Here is the running order for the events. Click on the name of a
country to read the review of its entry. The livestream of the events
can be viewed at the Official Eurovision Website at 11:59pm AZST /
9pm CET / 3pm EDT Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday.
From: A. Papazian