Israel/Palestine
Related: About this forumAli Abunimah, from whose Electronic Intifada I am not allowed to post, is on Democracy now
this morning, in a debate with JJ Goldberg of the Jewish Forward.
bemildred
(90,061 posts)Jefferson23
(30,099 posts)DN is always an allowed source here..thanks for the tip on the interview.
kjones
(1,053 posts)Jefferson23
(30,099 posts)That's all they ever have.
Jefferson23
(30,099 posts)NERMEEN SHAIKH: We turn now to a debate on the U.S. medias coverage of the Israel-Gaza conflict. Two days after Israel launched its offensive on the Gaza Strip, The New York Times drew widespread attention on social media when it ran a story with the headline, quote, "Missile at Beachside Gaza Cafe Finds Patrons Poised for World Cup." One of our next guests, Ali Abunimah, tweeted in response to the Times, quote, "Israeli missile stops by Gaza cafe for a drink and dialogue with its Palestinian friends." The Times later changed their headine to, quote, "Israeli Missile Kills 8 Palestinians at a Beachside Gaza Cafe."
AMY GOODMAN: To discuss this headline and much more, Ali Abunimah joins us from Chicago. Hes the co-founder of the website The Electronic Intifada and author of the new book, The Battle for Justice in Palestine. And here in our New York studio, were joined by J.J. Goldberg. Hes the editor-at-large and columnist at the newspaper The Jewish Daily Forward.
We welcome you both to Democracy Now! Ali, lets start with that headline, the original headline in The New York Times that we just read, "Missile at Beachside Gaza Cafe Finds Patrons Poised for World Cup." Can you take it from there? Explain what happened in that situation?
ALI ABUNIMAH: Well, its very simple. The New York Times headlines makes it sound like the Israeli missile stopped by the cafe for a friendly chat. But what the missile actually did was blew to pieces a number of people who had gone to the beach to try to escape from the horror of Israels pogrom in the rest of Gaza and to watch a World Cup match, like billions of people around the world, and they died there. Thats what happened. But thats not what you would get from the New York Times headline.
And I think that the media are failing to convey the enormity of whats happening to people in Gaza. This morning, I heard from my friend Refaat Alareer. Hes the editor of the wonderful book of short stories by Gaza writers called Gaza Writes Back. Hes outside Gaza now, studying, separated from his family, which is even worse than being in Gaza, for people whose families are there. This morning, he lost his best friend in Israels pogrom in Shejaiya, his best friend Usama, who happens to also be his wifes brother. And his family, his wifes family have lost eight people in the last five days. This catastrophe, this mass destruction in Gaza, the randomness of the slaughter and the killing is not being conveyed. We have to hide from it in this country because if we reveal the full truth about the horrifying pogrom that Israel is carrying out, a lot of people wont be able to handle it.
AMY GOODMAN: J.J. Goldberg, can you first respond to that headline, which the Times then changed to reflect that eight people had been killed, butand then talk about the larger coverage as you see it?
in full with video: http://www.democracynow.org/2014/7/23/a_debate_on_gaza_ali_abunimah
bemildred
(90,061 posts)Jefferson23
(30,099 posts)that exchange..it is pronounced, chutzpah, it is pronounced, Hamas. Geeze..intense.
I commend both of them for agreeing to speak to each other for an American audience,
I wish this kind of dialogue, regardless of how contentious, would take place more often
and without the precursor of hostilities. Americans need to know more and there are
many icky filters in place..too often.
Although this was in Israel, B'tselem on censorship. I can't say enough how I appreciate
their good work.
IBA censors B'Tselem radio spot listing names of Gazan children killed; B'Tselem to petition
HCJ, spot gets massive exposure on social media
http://www.btselem.org/press_releases/20140721_children_killed_in_gaza_have_names
bemildred
(90,061 posts)The censorship of the names of the dead is telling, is it not?
Jefferson23
(30,099 posts)of the dead. I could go on how we here kept out of sight our dead soldiers coffins and the
human carnage of innocent victims in Iraq. In the end these truths usually come out, and they
know this, they're trying to control the tale for the present. Then they wonder why people
around the world don't trust them.
bemildred
(90,061 posts)Sometimes you have to take your lumps and keep on talking, and make your case too, if you want to work things out, sometimes you have to listen.
Jefferson23
(30,099 posts)FBaggins
(26,693 posts)... he sure doesn't seem to understand the meaning of the word "pogrom"
That... or he's dishonest. You pick.