The European Jewish Congress was recently roiled by a message allegedly from the Reuters email address of Svebor Kranjc, a Dutch camerman and picture editor, supporting the Palestinian statehood bid.
According to the Jerusalem Post, the email — which was responding to an EJC press release against the unilateral Palestinian statehood push — said:
“I am going to support it!” the e-mail read, referring to the UN statehood bid. “You have your state but you don’t want others to have their state. So sad . . . ”
In an exclusive email to HonestReporting, Flo Kaufmann, chairman of the the EJC council explained why her organization is pushing for Kranjc’s dismissal:
The impartiality of journalist as observers, is a long held convention of the democracy code.
In my view, it is totally inappropriate for a journalist working for a news media company such as Reuters, and using their headed notepaper or e mails, to express views which clearly compromise his or her impartiality. If the alleged incident to which you refer is found to be substantiated, the journalist in question ought to find his job in jeopardy. The President of The European Jewish Congress, Moshe Kantor, has requested that he be sacked on the grounds that his position as an impartial journalist, and commentator on affairs, has clearly been compromised. Indeed the journalist has not only compromised himself, but the respected and long established organisation for which he works, has arguably been brought into disrepute.
I understand the alleged incident is being investigated and I look forward to hearing whether or not it is verified, and if it is I urge Reuters to take appropriate and strong action.
A Reuters spokesperson confirmed to the JPost that an internal investigation is under way.
