Mohammed Cartoons

Networks Ignore Obama’s Shaky Footing on Publishing Depictions of Muhammad
By Curtis Houck | January 7, 2015 | 9:33 PM EST

On Wednesday night, the “big three” of ABC, CBS, and NBC ignored the contradicting statements made by President Obama in condemning the terrorist attack on the Charlie Hebdo newspaper in Paris as an attack on free speech, but stating in a 2012 speech at the United Nations that “the future does not belong to those who slander the Prophet of Islam.”

When it came to discussing the terrorist attack in France on Wednesday, the President struck a different tone from 2012 when it came to the freedom of speech and expression: “Our universal belief in freedom of expression is something that can't be silenced because of the senseless violence of the few.”

At 4 PM, Politico's Dylan Byers Still Wasn't Sure If Charlie Hebdo Murderers Were Islamic Terrorists
By Tom Blumer | January 7, 2015 | 9:28 PM EST

In an item time-stamped 4:11 p.m. ET at his "On Media" blog at the Politico, Dylan Byers wrapped up a post primarily about the Associated Press removing its "Piss Christ" photo from its image library by claiming, in reference to the Charlie Hebdo Magazine murders in Paris, that "Though there (sic) identity is as yet unknown, the masked gunmen are believed to be Islamic terrorists."

Here's most of Byers' post about the outrageous hypocrisy at AP, which shortly affter the massacre had publicly announced that it would not show any Charlie Hebdo Islamic cartoon images:

MSNBC Guest Equates Jerry Falwell Suing Hustler to Paris Attack
By Matthew Balan | January 7, 2015 | 7:27 PM EST

On Wednesday's Now With Alex Wagner on MSNBC, Eric Bates raised the specter of censorship by Christian conservatives during a panel discussion on the past Muslim backlash against Charlie Hebdo magazine – the target of an Islamic terrorist attack in Paris earlier in the day. Bates, a former executive editor for Rolling Stone magazine, cited Jerry Falwell's lawsuit against porn magazine Hustler in the 1980s as an apparent example of "religious fundamentalists of all stripes and of nationalities have this penchant to say, we want to be able tell you what you can and can't portray."

Financial Times House Editorial Refutes Associate Editor Who Criticized French Magazine For 'Baiting' Muslims
By Tom Blumer | January 7, 2015 | 6:14 PM EST

This afternoon, Matt Balan at NewsBusters covered Tony Barber's disgraceful evening (London Time) column at the Financial Times. In the wake of the terrorist attack at the French satirical publication Charlie Hebdo which killed 12, Barber argued that "some common sense would be useful at publications such as Charlie Hebdo, and Denmark’s Jyllands-Posten." In other words, after sifting out the myriad paragraphs of weasel words and historical rehashes, Barber was contending that these outlets should self-censor to protect jihadists' delicate sensibilities.

Balan indicated that Barber is an associate editor at the Times, so readers could very well have interpreted the columnist's take as speaking for the newspaper. That is not so, as seen in its house editorial:

Lefty Media Complain About Fox ‘Obsessing Over’ Muslim Terror Attacks
By Kristine Marsh | January 7, 2015 | 1:40 PM EST

Whenever a terrorist attack happens, it seems like the media jump through hoops to whitewash the incident to avoid using the dreaded “I” word. While it’s obvious to the public that the guy shouting “Allahu Akbar” during a televised beheading is probably not a practicing Methodist, the media would first speculate that he might be a white conservative, as they initially did with the Boston bombing. The latest deadly shooting on a French newspaper office that killed12 people is turning out to be another case of the media protecting radical Muslims. 

Just yesterday, left-wing news blog Raw Story ran a story that asked why Fox News was obsessed with Islamic terrorist attacks. What perfect timing! Blogger Eric W. Dolan attacked Fox for blaming a beheading that occurred in September on Islamic terrorism. 

After Massacre at Paris Magazine That Mocked Islam, NY Times Tweets It 'Has Long Tested Limits' of Satire
By Clay Waters | January 7, 2015 | 11:37 AM EST

After a massacre that killed at least 12 at the offices of the satirical Paris magazine Charlie Hebdo, the New York Times issued this tweet: "The weekly #CharlieHebdo has long tested limits with its satire..." So the Times is the self-proclaimed arbiter of satire, at least when it comes to mocking one particular religion, Islam?

WashPost Can’t Bring Itself to Name Islam in Editorial on Rotherham Child Abuse
By Matt Philbin | September 16, 2014 | 12:44 PM EDT

Sure, nobody expects The Washington Post Editorial Board to earn a “Profile in Courage” entry anytime soon. But with its Sept. 16 editorial on the systematic decades-long sexual abuse of children in Rotherham, England, the Board showed the same cowardice that enabled the Rotherham abusers.

According to the Post, “Sorting out why officials closed their eyes or looked the other way as an estimated 1,400 young girls were raped and brutally exploited from 1997 to 2013 will require Rotherham and the rest of Britain to come to grips with uncomfortable questions about race, class and gender.” But what about the uncomfortable questions about Islam? The editorial never mentioned that.

Michael Graham: Brandeis Embraced Bill Ayers, Has Bred Terrorists
By Tom Blumer | April 14, 2014 | 9:49 AM EDT

In one of a pair of Sunday posts at his web site, New England talk show host Michael Graham added an emphatic exclamation point to Brent Bozell's and Tim Graham's Saturday column condemning the cowardice and hypocrisy of Brandeis University's decision to revoke its commencement invitation to Ayaan Hirsi Ali. In the other, Graham roasted the Boston Globe for backing Brandeis.

Bozell and Tim Graham rightly pointed to the university's embrace of particularly nasty anti-Catholic and anti-Israel speakers. Michael Graham found yet another example adding toxic icing to an already rancid cake, and noted that three of its female graduates have achieved a unique level of infamy (links are in each original; bolds are mine throughout):

Rush Limbaugh: Liberals Reacting to Obama Rodeo Clown Like Muslims to Mohammed Cartoons
By Noel Sheppard | August 14, 2013 | 5:07 PM EDT

Leave it to conservative talk radio host Rush Limbaugh to make the best observation yet about the phony scandal surrounding a rodeo clown wearing a Barack Obama mask this weekend.

On his radio show Wednesday, Limbaugh marvelously said, "This is no different than those countries reacting freakishly when there were cartoons of the prophet Mohammed" (video follows courtesy Daily Rushbo with transcript and absolutely no need for additional commentary):

Occupy Violence Erupts in Los Angeles: 'Kill the Cops!'; NBC Ignores
By Scott Whitlock | July 13, 2012 | 12:11 PM EDT

Occupy violence erupted in Los Angeles on Thursday with protesters using slogans such as "Kill the cops." NBC skipped the story on Friday's Today. CBS This Morning and ABC's Good Morning America offered a combined 31 seconds.

GMA news reader Amy Robach explained that police had to break up a crowd of "200 angry protesters." She briefly added, "It started when Occupy L.A. activists joined a street art event and then taunted police by drawing chalk pigs and slogans like 'Kill the cops.'" One police officer was injured and a dozen people were arrested. CBS This Morning offered even less information, allowing a mere seven seconds out of two hours.

Soros-Funded Group Behind Course for Journalists That Downplays ‘Jihad’
By Iris Somberg | September 29, 2011 | 10:04 AM EDT

A new course on Islam designed for journalists tries to minimize the impact and importance of “jihad” by comparing it to the number of murders in America each year. That same course claims “right-wing activists” tried to tie American Muslims to terrorism and doesn’t mention examples of Islamic attacks on press freedom.

That’s the way a prominent news organization is teaching journalists in a three-hour online course. The Poynter News University, part of the Poynter Institute, launched the free course “Covering Islam in America” to guide the media on their coverage of Muslim communities.

Media Ignored How Failed Gay Relationship, Violent Outbursts Impacted Wikileaks 'Hero'
By Erin R. Brown | June 21, 2011 | 12:27 PM EDT

In the wake of the largest security breach in U.S. military history, the mainstream media have struggled to report all the facts about Bradley Manning, the Iraq war soldier in the middle of the Wikileaks scandal. In an effort to pursue political correctness over truthful journalism, ABC, CBS and NBC ignored uncomfortable facts about Manning's sexual orientation and history of "emotional fragility," choosing instead to describe him as an "outcast who tried desperately to fit in."

(Video below fold.)