A Jordanian-American businessman has launched what is believed to be the Western world's first English-language online Muslim radio station from his studio in Irvine, California.

Nour Matar, 32, hopes his OneLegacyRadio.com station, which airs talk shows covering a range of every day issues from a Muslim perspective, will help improve the well-being of his local community but also promote understanding among non-Muslims in the post-9/11 world. The programs cover issues from weight loss and relationship advice to the issue of the radicalization of Muslim youth.

"We don't just talk about what the Quran says and that's it," Matar, a technology business owner and father of three, told the Orange County Register. "We talk about social issues, but from an Islamic perspective or Islamic background. We're a place where people can come in and learn about Islam and communicate with the Muslim community," he said about the station that he and his brother Sami run.

"As a community we feel very frustrated by the misconception and misinformation portrayed by the media. We can understand that there are a lot of bad actions done in the name of Islam. In order for us to combat that, we have to let our voice be heard as Muslim Americans living in the United States," Matar said.

Community leaders say the station is yet another sign of the growing influence of Orange Country's Muslim community.

"This shows the maturity of the American-Muslim community [in Orange County]," said Munira Syed, spokeswoman for he Council on American-Islamic Relations' local office in Anaheim. "They're more organized. They're coming of age," Syed said, estimating that Orange County has about 150,000 to 200,000 Muslims.

Ahmed Akbar, chair of Islamic Studies at The American University in Washington, D.C., and a leading expert on Islam in America, said it was natural that the station originated from Irvine's well-established and well-to-do Muslim community.

"I'm not surprised that Muslims are responding in this way, in light of the area they are in," Akbar told the Orange County Registrar. "It'll put in the perspective of what dominates in California, especially the Los Angeles-area media with film, radio or television."

Akbar recently completed a book entitled Journey in America, about visits he and fellow researchers made to Muslim communities throughout America.

"In Orange County, we found the Muslim community confident, secure and optimistic about the future," he said. "You could ask why. First the reason is that they are far from the scene of 9/11," Akbar said comparing the Muslim communities in Orange Country and New York.

Akbar, who has advised U.S. Army General David Petraeus, Middle East diplomat Richard Holbrooke, and various U.S. agencies on Islam, said now is a critical time for Muslim Americans and Matar's radio station presents a great opportunity to foster understanding among non-Muslims.

"Muslims need to explain themselves and they need to explain Islam. They need to explain their traditions and customs and this is what they're doing with this station. In that sense it becomes an important tool," he said.

"The idea is to establish a voice for us in the Muslim community," Matar said. "Ultimately we want to be the Muslim media outlet in the United States. This is just the start."

The article published by the Orange County Registrar in regards to the station and Matar's hopes of creating an understanding between the Muslim and non-Muslim communities generated many comments – many of which were negative.

"We didn't expect so much negative comment," Matar said. "We want to expand this dialogue and invite people to listen and connect with us."

Tomasina posted a comment on the Register's website saying, "Surprised about the negativity... hmmmmmmmmmm, what rock have they been under. Until the leaders of Islamic people stand up to all the madness this religion is causing in the world then negativity is going to continue. Wake up fellas!"

Sdlad0 agreed with the anti- Islamic sentiments. "Islam is the most intolerant religion. Show me a country where Muslims are in majority and I will show you a country where minorities are treated like cattle."

But not everyone had negative comments. Debtfree1 wrote, "This new station is a good thing. American Muslims will hopefully be the bridge for deeper understanding & tolerance between the Western world & the Islamic world. The Western world as we know it needs to see and realize that not all Muslims are over zealous terrorists. I don't know if my Middle Eastern neighbors are Muslim but they are friendly and seem to want the same things as the rest of us."

OneLegacyradio.com can be downloaded as an application on an iPhone, Blackberry or Android phone.