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Slanted Coverage In Boston and Philly
Two examples of bias against Israel: from the Boston Globe, and the Philadelphia Daily News.
HonestReporting members have long complained about the Boston Globe's frequent omission of the word "Palestinian" in headlines, when reporting on Palestinian attacks against Israelis.
In response, Boston Globe Editor Martin Baron wrote:
"The word 'Palestinian' is nearly twice as long as the word 'Israel', which is one very obvious limitation on headline writers. I doubt that anyone is seriously wondering 'who did such a horrific thing?'..."
That may or may not be the reason for the Globe's frequent omission of the word "Palestinian" in headlines.
Yet on January 14, the Globe ran the following headline:
"TWO PALESTINIANS ARE KILLED BY ISRAELIS IN GAZA BUS ATTACK"
http://www.boston.com/dailyglobe2/014/nation/Two_Palestinians_are_killed_by_Israelis_in_Gaza_bus_attack+.shtml
This terribly misleading headline suggests that two Palestinians were killed when Israelis attacked a bus in Gaza.
Yet as the article goes on to describe, the real sequence of events was that two Palestinians threw grenades at an Israeli bus in Gaza, and were then shot by Israeli troops.
When an HonestReporting member complained about the headline, Globe Editor Martin Baron acknowledged:
"In this instance, you're absolutely right, and there was hell to pay on our copy desk yesterday for such a sloppy, misleading headline."
HonestReporting encourages members -- particularly in Boston -- to monitor http://www.boston.com/globe/ to see how headline writers are reporting violence in the Mideast.
Comments may be submitted to:
letter@globe.com
===== PHOTO FLOP IN PHILLY =====
Last week, HonestReporting took issue with Time magazine's photo essay which presented a heavily distorted picture of Israel as the aggressor and Palestinians as the victims. (http://www.honestreporting.com/articles/critiques/Times_Photo_Flop.asp)
This week, the Philadelphia Daily News set a new low with "Cycle of War," a photo essay of life in Nablus.
All 19 of the photos depict Israeli aggression and Palestinian victimhood. This is not, as the title implies, a balanced look at the "Cycle of War."
Further, the photo essay presents no background or context to explain the reason for Israeli curfews, roadblocks and tanks in Nablus.
See "Cycle of War" at:
http://www.philly.com/mld/dailynews/news/local/4893913.htm
http://www.philly.com/mld/dailynews/4900609.htm
Submit comments to the Philadelphia Daily News:
http://www.philly.com/mld/philly/contact_us/feedback_np2/
===== ISRAELI ELECTIONS ON CAMPUS =====
College campuses throughout North America are conducting "Mock Israeli Elections" in conjunction with the upcoming Israeli elections on January 28. These "mock elections" will showcase how Israel is the only true democracy in a region dominated by totalitarian regimes.
Besides actual voting stations on campus, students will also be able to vote online at
http://www.israelvotes2003.com/.
If you, or someone you know, would like to run a mock election on campus, contact the Hasbara Fellowships - http://www.israelactivism.com/.
===== CANADA UPDATE ======
On Sunday, January 19, Norman Spector, Canada's former ambassador to Israel and the Palestinian Authority, is scheduled to debate CBC news director Tony Burman. Spector has stirred a scandal by protesting against CBC's biased coverage of the Mideast situation. One example is CBC's policy not to use the word "terrorist" to describe Palestinian suicide bombers.
After the debate at 1 p.m., some pro-Israel groups will be holding a protest in front of the CBC building, at 250 Front St. West in Toronto.
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