On Thursday, while interviewing Israeli Ambassador Ron Dermer on MSNBC’s Andrea Mitchell Reports about the wave of Palestinian terrorist attacks plaguing Jerusalem, fill-in host Peter Alexander cited Obama administration fears of Israeli police being too hard on the knife-wielding killers: “State Department spokesperson John Kirby said that the U.S. was, in his words, ‘concerned about reports that could indicate the potential use of excessive force.’ Is this excessive force?”
Israel/Palestine
NY Times Again Dismissive of Jewish Victims of Palestinian Violence, Suggesting 'Clampdown' Too Harsh
By Clay Waters | October 15, 2015 | 9:52 AM EDT Once again, the New York Times took sides in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, being dismissive of Jewish victims of Palestinian violence. Isabel Kershner reported from Jerusalem on the wave of stabbings of Israelis by Palestinians under the headline "Israeli Retaliatory Strike in Gaza Kills Woman and Child, Palestinians Say." There is an extremely strange emphasis in both that headline (what, precisely, was Israel retaliating against?) and the underlying article, which skipped what Israel was retaliating against until paragraph seven, while beginning with the deaths of Palestinians during the "retaliation." A follow-up article faulted the Israeli government's "clampdown" for contibuting to the "cycle of violence," a phrase that puts Palestinian murderers and Israeli self-defense on equal moral footing.
By Brad Wilmouth | October 14, 2015 | 11:32 PM EDT
As he interviewed Israeli police spokesman Micky Rosenfeld on Wednesday's The Situation Room, CNN host Wolf Blitzer repeatedly showed concerns that Israelis may be doing too much to defend themselves amid a spate of stabbings against Israeli Jews by Palestinians in Jerusalem.
All five questions posed to the police spokesman had the premise that Israelis are going too far in fending off the terrorist attacks, with Blitzer using three questions to fret specifically over Israeli civilians being encouraged to carry their own firearms for greater security.
By Erin Aitcheson | October 14, 2015 | 4:33 PM EDT
“When I See Them I See Us” is the newest catch phrase of Black Lives Matter and Pro-Palestinian activists. So what on earth do these two movements have in common?
In a video released just today, African American and Palestinian activists answered that question. “What do Gaza and Ferguson have to do with one another? If you ask the black and Palestinian artists and activists who just released a new solidarity video, a lot … Harass, beaten, torture, dehumanized, stopped and frisked…” and the list goes on and on. In a nutshell, self-proclaimed victimhood.
By Tom Blumer | October 10, 2015 | 9:42 AM EDT
In an October 8 item at the New York Times ("Historical Certainty Proves Elusive at Jerusalem’s Holiest Place"), reporter Rick Gladstone pretended that it's an open question as to "whether" the two Jewish temples — one destroyed over 2,500 years ago and the second razed in roughly 60 A.D., ever existed on the 37-acre site known as the Temple Mount. In doing so, Gladstone gave credibility to Palestinians baselessly promoting "doubt that the temples ever existed — at least in that location."
There is no meaningful "doubt" on the subject at all. After what must have been a furious and completely justified backlash, the Times issued a correction on Friday (bold is mine):
By Brad Wilmouth | October 7, 2015 | 9:25 PM EDT
On Wednesday's CNN Newsroom with Carol Costello, in a pre-recorded interview with Jerusalem Mayor Mir Barkat that aired around 9:20 a.m. about a recent spate of Palestinians attacking Israelis with knives in public places, substitute anchor Ana Cabrera brought up her guest's tendency to carry a gun in public and absurdly asked him, "Does that not incite more violence?"
By Tom Blumer | October 3, 2015 | 10:02 PM EDT
On Thursday, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu spoke at the United Nations. As described by George Jahn at the Associated Press, it was "an impassioned speech interspersed with bouts of dramatic silence."
Jahn failed to report the absence of U.N. Ambassador Samantha Power and Secretary of State John Kerry. So did Rick Gladstone and Judi Rudoren at the New York Times. An unbylined Reuters report drily noted that U.S. representation at Netanyahu's speech consisted of "Ambassador Samantha Power's deputy, David Pressman, and U.S. Ambassador to Israel Daniel Shapiro." Breitbart also noted the presence of "Richard Erdman, Alternate Representative to the UN General Assembly." Reuters uniquely explained why Power and U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry, who was in town, did not attend (bolds are mine throughout this post):
By Tom Blumer | September 16, 2015 | 10:53 PM EDT
Nowhere is the anti-Israel bias of so much of the establishment press more evident than in its coverage of terror attacks and crimes committed by Palestinians.
One such example occurred almost a year ago in the Associated Press. In that instance, the story concerned a Palestinian who drove his car into a crowd and killed a three-month old baby girl. He was in turn shot and killed by the police when he tried to flee. The AP's initial headline read: "Israeli police shoot man in east Jerusalem." On Tuesday, the New York Times got into the act in a big way, in a headline and story by Diaa Hadid which gave rocks, which are after all inanimate objects, extraordinary powers (HT Kevin Williamson at National Review via Instapundit; bolds and numbered tags are mine):
By Erin Aitcheson | September 15, 2015 | 11:44 AM EDT
There’s nothing worse than liberal celebrities spouting political commentary — except when such comments are unfounded and serve as a sort of pied piper for younger generations.
Cultural icon and Pink Floyd co-founder Roger Waters recently sat down with HuffPost Live and discussed his views on Israel’s “oppressive regime” and ill-treatment of Palestine. Waters stated that his involvement in the BDS (boycott, divestment, and sanctions) movement began back in 2006, giving him plenty of time to be well-versed on the issue.
Anti-Israel Outbreak in New York Times: 'Jewish?' Chart, a 'Stinging Defeat' for AIPAC, and...a Boycott of Israeli Hummus?
By Clay Waters | September 12, 2015 | 9:50 PM EDT A recent outbreak of anti-Israel bias hit the New York Times. There was backlash over the paper's offensive "Jewish?" chart on Democrats opposd to Obama's Iran deal, as the paper's public editor responded to the chart under the heading, "Times Was Right to Change Insensitive Graphic." Meanwhile, editors placed the "stinging defeat" of a pro-Israel organization on the front page. There was also...Steven Colbert and a boycott of Israeli hummus?
By Mark Finkelstein | September 11, 2015 | 8:34 PM EDT
A few months ago, I took some flack in these quarters for suggesting that, his annoying liberalism aside, Chris Matthews is in his heart an American patriot.
That same patriotic proclivity displayed itself tonight. On the anniversary of 9-11, Matthews profusely praised his guest Rudy Giuliani for his leadership on that day. And in a spontaneous aside, Matthews called RFK's assassin, the Palestinian Sirhan B. Sirhan, "the first terrorist."Can you imagine Rachel Maddow—or Barack Obama for that matter—doing the same?
Too Jewish? Offensive NYT Chart Flags Democratic Lawmakers as 'Jewish?' or not, Removed After Outcry
By Clay Waters | September 10, 2015 | 10:33 PM EDT Like a Monty Python skit gone tragic, the New York Times actually ran a chart labeling Democratic lawmakers against Obama's controversial nuclear deal with Iran as "Jewish?" or not (the "Jewish?" part was removed online after outcry). The four chart headings read: "Democrats against the deal – Jewish? – District and estimated Jewish population – Vote with party." Under "Democrats against the deal," the names were arranged out of alphabetical order solely to enable the Times to stack all the "Yes" names that qualified as "Jewish?" at the top of the chart.