Media Bias Special Report: Making Sense of the Jerusalem Crisis

A look at the key context and realities behind a US-Israeli dispute over Jerusalem. HONEST REPORTING - Media Critqiues Communique - March 18, 2010 The past week has witnessed a flurry of media reports as Jerusalem finds itself in the eye of a diplomatic and political storm. A poorly timed announcement on the part of the Israeli Interior Ministry during US Vice President Joe Biden's visit has escalated into a diplomatic spat between the Israeli and US governments. Taking advantage of the already existing tensions in Jerusalem, the Palestinians have actively encouraged rioting to keep the flames burning. Events that would normally be ignored by the world media, such as the rededication of the Old City's Hurva Synagogue, have become flashpoints while other stories such as the dedication of a West Bank town square in memory of a Palestinian terrorist have been barely covered. Not to mention the debate that is now taking place in the US and international media, asking questions of the special relationship between Israel and the US - with some enemies of Israel actively calling into question the very relationship itself. With so many interwoven threads forming this major story, many media outlets have, either deliberately or simply due to ignorance, left out key context, thus contributing to the confusion and misinformation. Here, HonestReporting attempts to clear up some of that confusion, recentering where the media should have been focused. ... Edited :: See Original Report Here http://www.honestreporting.com/articles/45884734/critiques/new/Special_Report_Making_Sense_of__the_Jerusalem_Crisis.asp Also: Jerusalem on the Media Frontline HONEST REPORTING - Media Critqiues Communique - March 9, 2010 The Economist misrepresents a municipal plan to improve the lives of Jerusalem's Arab residents. Perhaps no other issue generates such emotion and conflict as the status of Jerusalem. We do not intend to prejudge the outcome of any discussions that may or may not eventually take place between the various interested parties that have a stake in the holy city. However, many media outlets have done precisely that - drawing upon a one-sided and selective narrative that seeks to delegitimize Jewish rights in Jerusalem. Only recently, HonestReporting critiqued a biased BBC Panorama documentary focusing on tensions in the area of eastern Jerusalem adjacent to the Old City. Indeed, with a settlement freeze on the West Bank excluding the eastern part of Jerualem, the media's new frontline has moved to Israel's capital city. The media have, in many cases, played into the hands of those on the Palestinian side who need little excuse to stoke existing tensions or create new ones. A prime example is The Economist, which simply parrots the Palestinian narrative and downplays the Jewish character of Jerusalem. ... Edited :: See Original Report Here http://www.honestreporting.com/articles/45884734/critiques/new/Jerusalem_on_the_Media_Frontline.asp

What New Settlement? Some media mistakenly imply that Israel is building new settlements. HONEST REPORTING - Media Critqiues Communique - March 9, 2010 Israeli Defense Minister Ehud Barak announced the exemption from the West Bank settlement freeze of 112 housing units in Beitar Illit for safety and infrastructure reasons. One can agree or disagree with this decision. What is patently clear, however, is that these housing units are located within the third-largest Jewish city in the West Bank, with a population of 36,000. These 112 housing units do not represent the construction of a new settlement. So why then did the BBC produce the following caption on its headline news story? US Vice-President Joe Biden leads the latest Mid-East peace drive, after Israel enrages Palestinians by approving new settlements. Unedited :: Link to Original Posting http://www.honestreporting.com/articles/45884734/critiques/new/What_New_Settlement.asp

Double Standards? Nato's Afghan Errors Why are Afghan civilian casualties "accidents" but Palestinian civilian casualties are "war crimes"? HONEST REPORTING - Media Critqiues Communique - February 28, 2010 Nato and Afghan government forces have recently launched the largest military operation against the Taliban since the beginning of the conflict in Afghanistan in 2001. Like the IDF during Operation Cast Lead, US and British troops face an enemy that cares little for the well being of its people. Like the IDF, US and British forces operate under a military doctrine that aims to prevent civilian casualties. Like the IDF, US and British forces have found that in a conflict situation, mistakes inevitably occur and civilians are the tragic victims. ... Double Standards? We sympathize with the forces currently taking on the Taliban and recognize the difficult dilemmas and decisions that have to made in the course of a military operation. However, we have to ask why, when the IDF also makes every effort to avoid civilian casualties, is Israel accused of "war crimes" and pilloried in the media when Palestinian civilians are accidentally killed, while the very same media shows a remarkable understanding when similar mistakes occur in Afghanistan. Can we expect international condemnation in the media or from so-called human rights NGOs when civilian deaths occur in Afghanistan and calls for an immediate end to the military operation? Will there be a Goldstone-style commission of inquiry with the potential for legal action against the US, UK or individual commanders and soldiers? Unlikely. ... Edited :: See Original Report Here http://www.honestreporting.com/articles/45884734/critiques/new/Double_Standards_Natos_Afghan_Errors.asp

Jewish Groups Geared to Fight 'Apartheid Week' ARUTZ SHEVA (Israeli National News) - By Maayana Miskin - February 26, 2010 Jewish and human rights groups are gearing up to counter "Israel Apartheid Week" events next week. "Apartheid Week" is an annual event organized on college campuses in the United States, Canada and elsewhere by extreme anti-Israel groups. The week-long event includes lectures and exhibits aimed at convincing students that Israel is a racist, colonial state. Participants are asked to sign a document opposing Zionism while supporting the creation of a state for Palestinian Authority Arabs. One of the groups fighting Apartheid Week is Bnei Brith Canada, which called this week to ban "Apartheid Week" events completely. The group praised MPP Peter Shurman for proposing a resolution to condemn Israel Apartheid Week. The resolution was passed by the Ontario legislature. ... The Committee for Accuracy in Middle East Reporting in America (CAMERA) has also put materials online to assist those interested in countering anti-Israel rhetoric. The site, http://www.israeliapartheidweek.com/, includes information on the radical nature of Apartheid Week, the double standard implicit in criticizing Jewish self-determination and not that of other national groups, and genuine oppression elsewhere in the Middle East. Edited :: See Original Report Here http://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/136219 Israel Apartheid Week Comes to Town The insidious analogy returns to college campuses as part of the campaign to delegitimize Israel. HONEST REPORTING - Media Critqiues Communique - March 4, 2010 The false analogy between apartheid South Africa and Israel - particularly since the UN's racist 2001 Durban Conference - has played a key role in the campaign to delegitimize Israel and threaten its existence. The strategy of boycotts, divestment and sanctions (BDS) is based on convincing the public that Israel is no more legitimate than the apartheid regime in South Africa, and can be removed with enough public pressure. Now, this insidious delegitimization campaign has returned to university campuses around the world, including the US, UK and Canada, as part of Israel Apartheid Week. ... Edited :: See Original Report Here http://www.honestreporting.com/articles/45884734/critiques/new/Israel_Apartheid_Week_Comes_to_Town.asp

The True Colors of Israel Apartheid Week CIF WATCH - March 11, 2010 Video of the anti-Israel IAW protesters in New York City March 9, 2010 http://cifwatch.com/2010/03/11/the-true-colors-of-israel-apartheid-week/

BBC Cited for 2 Blatant Anti-Israel Reports ARUTZ SHEVA (Israeli National News) - By Hillel Fendel - January 27, 2010 Internationally renowned pianist Evgeny Kissin, CAMERA, and various media analysts have joined the fray of complaints against BBC for its "bias against Israel." The two issues reported on unfairly by BBC relate to Israel's alleged organ-harvesting of Palestinian Authority residents and its treatment of Arabs in Jerusalem. Last month, in what was essentially a rehash of a 15-year-old story, British media reported on an admission by an Israeli pathologist that there had been incidents of "harvesting" of organs from Israeli soldiers and Arabs. The BBC's headline screamed that Israel was harvesting Palestinian organs, without mentioning that Arabs were not the focus of the misguided policy, illegal in Israel. BBC's response ... was even more misleading than the original article, London's Jewish Chronicle reports. ... "This report was not created by the BBC, but was a translation of a news story which appeared on Israeli television... I am also assured by the World Service that the Israeli government has not denied the story since it broke." The reason Israel did not deny the story is because it was true; until it was stopped, there had, in fact, been illegal organ harvesting, irrespective of ethnic origins. But, as an Israeli Embassy spokesman said, the problem with the BBC report was that it was a "despicable attempt" to claim that Israelis have been involved "in the specific harvesting of Palestinian organs." Israel protested the BBC's emphasis on "simply one component" and called it "an attempt to manipulate the hearts of the readership." Mideast media analyst Tom Gross noted that some countries, such as China, "do remove live organs for transplant. There is scarcely a word about this in the British media. The Iranian-backed Lebanese terror militia Hezbollah has been accused of harvesting the organs of Lebanese Christians, with hardly any investigation of this charge by the so-called human rights groups of America and Europe." Gross also noted that BBC, unlike other media, "used a sensationalist and shocking photo, which was not even from Israel, to give the false impression that the Israeli government had been involved in wrongdoing." ... Edited :: See Original Report Here http://www.israelnationalnews.com/SendMail.aspx?print=print&type=0&item=135725 FAIR USE NOTICE: This blog contains copyrighted material the use of which has not always been specifically authorized by the copyright owner. We are making such material available in our efforts to advance understanding of religious, environmental, political, human rights, economic, democracy, scientific, and social justice issues, etc. We believe this constitutes a 'fair use' of any such copyrighted material as provided for in section 107 of the US Copyright Law. In accordance with Title 17 U.S.C. Section 107, the material on this site is distributed without profit to those who have expressed a prior interest in receiving the included information for research and educational purposes. For more information go to: http://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/17/107.shtml. If you wish to use copyrighted material from this site for purposes of your own that go beyond 'fair use', you must obtain permission from the copyright owner.