Numerous major news organizations (see here, here and here) acted swiftly and rightfully to expose US lawmaker Marjorie Taylor Greene’s support for bizarre antisemitic conspiracies and related comments she made before being elected to the House of Representatives. However, the silence surrounding Rep. Rashida Tlaib’s participation at a recent event that featured several known supporters of Jihad – understood as a holy war to expand the territories ruled by Muslims at the expense of territories ruled by non-Muslims – is troubling.
Join the fight for Israel’s fair coverage in the news
Reported: ‘Jewish Space Lasers’ Theory Widely Mocked By Media
In January, the media revealed that Greene had claimed in a 2018 Facebook post that a wildfire ravaging California was started by “a laser” beamed from space and controlled by a prominent Jewish banking family.
In the post, Greene implied that the Rothschilds, along with Pacific Gas and Electric (PG&E), Solaren and California officials had all colluded to profit from the disaster.
So comprehensive and widespread was the reporting of Greene’s inflammatory language, that “Jewish Laser Beam” began trending on Twitter, as many people on the platform ridiculed the freshman legislator’s unhinged musings.
The intense backlash to the Greene story even reached the halls of Congress. On February 4, the House of Representatives ousted the lawmaker from two congressional committees because she, among other things, had spread dangerous and bigoted misinformation.
Unreported: Rashida Tlaib Participates in Event With Known Supporters of Terrorism
But while Greene dominated the headlines and national conversation, the mainstream media were silent when Michigan Rep. Rashida Tlaib spoke at a February 5 webinar sponsored by an offshoot of the Islamic Circle of North America, an organization with strong ties to Gaza Strip-based Hamas, Pakistan-based Jamaat-e-Islami and other Islamic terror groups.
The Kashmir Solidarity Day event also featured Ahmed bin Qasim, a hardcore terror sympathizer. In addition, UK parliamentarian Afzal Khan spoke at the virtual gathering. In a previous webinar, Khan eulogized Jamaat-e-Islami’s Syed Munawar Hasan. In 2016, Hasan said that people like Osama bin Laden do not die but continue to live in the hearts of people, adding that “we need to develop readiness for Jihad and passion for shahadat [martyrdom].”
Tlaib’s participation is part of a disconcerting pattern. She is one of only a few members of Congress who has publicly voiced support for BDS, a worldwide movement that supports a one-state solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, which, in practice, would ultimately lead to the end of Jewish self-determination.
And in 2019, Tlaib hosted a private dinner that featured anti-Israel activists who praised Hezbollah and Palestinian terrorists and called for Israeli “Zionist terrorist” Jews to return to Europe.
Related Reading: Media Blackout: Panel on Antisemitism to Feature Notable BDS Proponents
News organizations’ apparent inability to effectively cover both these stories is born out by data. HonestReporting examined thousands of articles to gauge how the media reported on Greene’s and Tlaib’s antisemitic remarks over a similar period of time. While Greene’s comments resulted in an average of 106 articles per day throughout the relevant news cycle, Tlaib’s resulted in only six.
Shape-Shifting Antisemitism: Define It to Fight It
With antisemitism on the rise, the way the media report on it has become crucial in order to prevent more such incidents by prominent public figures falling through the cracks.
The media responded with commendable haste to Marjorie Greene’s hate-filled ramblings in part because her brand of Judeophobia is more traditional, and hence easier to spot. Meanwhile, Rashida Tlaib expresses such apparent views in a newer, more subtle way, by delegitimizing the world’s only Jewish state. As a result, media coverage of her controversial remarks has been spotty at best.
To cope with contemporary forms of antisemitism, a new definition has emerged. Drawn up by the Berlin-based International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance (IHRA), it has been adopted and endorsed by a growing number of governments.
Related Reading: Time for the Media to Adopt Antisemitism Definition
In February, the Biden Administration embraced the IHRA definition:
We must educate ourselves and our communities to recognize antisemitism in its many forms, so that we can call hate by its proper name and take effective action. That is why the IHRA working definition of antisemitism, with its real-world examples, is such an invaluable tool.
IHRA’s definition, which includes comparing Israel to the Nazis, calling the Jewish state racist or applying to it double standards, clearly delineates the point at which legitimate criticism of Israel crosses the line into antisemitism.
Guided by the IHRA, journalists would make better-informed decisions in choosing which stories to cover and how to cover them. This is all the more important given that antisemitic tropes and conspiracy theories continue to be spread by individuals across the political spectrum.
These leaders must be held to account for their words and actions.
Featured Image: Shutterstock
