Alhurra (Arabic: الحرة al-Ḥurrah [alˈħurrah],[note 1] "the Free One") is a U.S. government-owned Arabic-language satellite TV channel that broadcasts news and current affairs programming to audiences in the Middle East and North Africa.

Its stated mission is to provide "objective, accurate and relevant news and information" to its audience while seeking to "support democratic values" and "expand the spectrum of ideas, opinions, and perspectives" available in the region's media.

The network also maintains bureaus in Baghdad and Dubai, production centers in Beirut, Jerusalem, Cairo, Rabat, Erbil and Washington, D.C., as well as correspondents throughout the Middle East, North Africa, the United States and Europe.

Street Pulse won the prize of the best documentary in the Middle East for the year 2013, especially for the episode the Tragedy of Quarry Workers in Minya (مأساة عمال المحاجر في المنيا).

surveys by international research organizations including ACNielsen show that Alhurra has consistently averaged approximately 26 million weekly viewers in its broadcast region from 2009 to 2011.

[14] A USAGM-commissioned poll in February 2011 found that 25% of Egyptians living in Cairo and Alexandria tuned into Alhurra during the protests in that country in January 2011, surpassing Al Jazeera's 22% viewership during the same period.

[15] Although not a traditional viewership survey, University of Maryland/Zogby polls of several Arab nations (Jordan, Lebanon, Morocco, Saudi Arabia, and the UAE) asked which channels viewers tuned into most often.

[18] In its FY2010 budget submission, the U.S. Agency for Global Media (USAGM), formerly the Broadcasting Board of Governors (BBG), noted that the channel's viewership had improved to 5th place in the Iraqi market.

Some notable incidents include: The fact that Alhurra is funded by the U.S. Congress through the U.S. Agency for Global Media (USAGM), formerly the Broadcasting Board of Governors (BBG), has led some critics to claim that the channel is "state propaganda" and presents its news with a pro-American bias.

In 2007, conservative columnist Joel Mowbray wrote a series of harshly critical op-eds in The Wall Street Journal, claiming that Alhurra had become a "platform for terrorists."

[33] Mowbray also cited unnamed Alhurra staffers who accused news director Larry Register of "trying to pander to Arab sympathies" to make the channel more like Al Jazeera.

Register – a veteran CNN producer who had been appointed as Mouafac Harb's successor with a charge to overhaul the channel's operations and increase viewership – was forced to resign as a result of the public uproar created by Mowbray's articles.

Inspector General's office report noted that Alhurra has taken significant steps to tighten its procedures and policies in order to protect the credibility that is critical to fulfilling its mission.

The report criticized Alhurra's top executives and directors for either lacking Arabic-language proficiency or possessing a media background to ensure that the broadcasts met basic journalistic standards.