Al Antsey, managing director of  the Al-Jazeera English-language news network, has met with officials from Comcast, hoping to convice the biggest cable operator in the U.S. to carry the network, reports Bob Fernandez in the Philadelphia Inquirer.

According to the story, "Hauling four boxes that contained the printouts of 13,000 supportive e-mails, Al Antsey of the Al-Jazeera network came to the Comcast building on Tuesday [Feb. 22, 2011] looking for a major U.S. platform for the 24-hour, Qatar-based news channel that at one time was viewed as just a mouthpiece for Osama bin Laden.

"It’s time, he told officials with the nation’s largest cable operator, to cast aside misperceptions of the Arabic news station as tainted with anti-American bias, and join the rest of the world."

The article adds, "A Comcast spokeswoman confirmed that the cable operator met with Al-Jazeera officials but would not comment on programming negotiations or discussions."

Antsey said the meeting was "very fruitful," according to the story.

Currently, the story notes, the Al-Jazeera English cable network "has viewership in three U.S. markets: Washington; Burlington, Vt.; and Toledo, Ohio."

To read why TVWeek Open Mic blogger Aaron Barnhart–who is also the TV critic for the Kansas City Star newspaper–thinks cable networks should carry Al-Jazeera, click here.