On Tuesday (6/1/10), FAIR said this about the New York Times coverage of Gaza:
Other news accounts presented misleading context about the circumstances leading to Israel’s blockade. [Isabel] Kershner (New York Times, 6/1/10) stressed that “Israel had vowed not to let the flotilla reach the shores of Gaza, where Hamas, an organization sworn to Israel’s destruction, took over by force in 2007.” The Associated Press (6/1/10) reported that “Israel and Egypt sealed Gaza’s borders after Hamas overran the territory in 2007, wresting control from Abbas-loyal forces”—the latter a reference to Fatah forces affiliated with Mahmoud Abbas.
Both accounts ignore the fact that Hamas won Palestinian elections in 2006, which led the United States and Israel to step up existing economic restrictions on Gaza. An attempt to stoke a civil war in Gaza by arming Fatah militants—reported extensively by David Rose in Vanity Fair (4/08)—backfired, and Hamas prevailed (Extra!, 9—10/07).
Today (6/4/10), the New York Times printed this correction:
An article on Tuesday about the deadly Israeli naval commando raid on an aid flotilla that had attempted to defy Israel’s blockade of Gaza referred incompletely to the governance of Gaza by Hamas, the militant group that opposes Israel’s existence. While Hamas took over Gaza by force in 2007, as the article said, the group’s representatives had won elections there in January 2006, defeating the more moderate rival Palestinian group Fatah. Subsequent tensions between Hamas and Fatah forces in Gaza led to open fighting, and Hamas routed Fatah from Gaza in June 2007.
The Times correction is welcomed. But it does not mitigate the constant misleading implications of the Times and other news media in implying Hamas is a bandit group, instead of being lawfully elected. – George Beres
The Times so-called correction about Hamas being the rightful elected government of Palestineonly compounded the confusion. It said Hamas was elected in ’06, “then took over by force” from Fatah in ’07. “Took over” fits the Times consistent use of euphemisms to make Hamas appear unlawful. – Silvia Beres
Be ever vigilante and write letters to the editors – even if they do not print them.
According to FAIR, David Rose said, in Vanity Fair (4/08) that an attempt to stoke civil war in Gaza by arming Fatah militants backfired and Hamas prevailsd (Extra, 9/10/07). Thus the misleading statements about Hamas taking over by force.
Woops! FAIR reported this above. My mistake. Lee, Grandmother for Peace
Some correction. This indicates the futility of trying to correct elite media – no matter what the facts are, the story doesn’t change.
Look to the ownership and editorial overseers at the NYT. Is it reasonable to conclude that the uncritical pro-Israel coverage, also so evident in other corporate media, is systemic? Failing to report who armed Fatah is another example of the continuing faulty coverage of the on-going tragedy in the Middle East.
Another misleading statement in the correction: “While Hamas took over Gaza by force in 2007, as the article said, the group’s representatives had won elections there in January 2006”. The “there” is presumably “Gaza”, but HAMAS won a majority in all of the Palestinian Occupied Territories (including the West Bank), not just in Gaza.
This is one more instance of Zionist controlled media as well oas US Government
God you Hamas posterior pamperers …. do you know what the Palestinians were doing when Gaza was being policed. They were shooting each other to make sure no other group gained political advantages. Yes, and making it worse by setting off more rockets at Israel.
Palestinian society is so dysfunctional, desperate and intimidated there cannot be fair elections there at all and anyone who had the guts to call for peace would be murdered on the spot.
What’s the use, some people just don’t care about facts.
Ideologues like Mr Hart are famous for seeing only a tree, not the forest.
Is his agenda to root for HAMAS or to root against the “New York Times”? Neither makes sense. The very professional correction effects readers in only one way:
The original version paints HAMAS as ruthless, undemocratic thugs. The corrected version enlightens readers by explaining that HAMAS are ruthless, undemocractic thugs, who have followe in the footsteps of Hitler and the Ayatollahs by eingaging in one acceptable election
For the reader to conclude good things about HAMAS or bad things about the Times from this amendment would be perverse.
A S Prisant/Prism Ltd
http://www.wordsmithwars.blogspot.com
And for this item to be this issue’s lead calls into question the journalistic credibility and objectivity of FAIR. You are sliding off the mainstream slope, my friends and will soon be talking only to yourselves.
Perhaps the Times will atone for its pro-violent-attacks-on-ships-by-“friends” stance by calling for an investigation of Israel’s brutal attack on the USS Liberty, an US Navy ship on June 8, 1967, causing the death of 34 American sailors and 174 wounded. This coming anniversary of that event would be a fitting time to reveal the truth and its relevance to what’s happened since.
That’s A CORRECTION. Must be the Now YIDDISH Times!
Is the right of self-protection restricted to only certain circumstances? The boarding of a ship by “uninvited” persons seems to be a provocation that would/should lead to a defensive response. The Somalis board ships on the high seas/international waters and they are called pirates-uninvited persons. If the people on the ships, that are boarded, fight the pirates they are applauded. Are there any similarities in this situation?
I am pleased that a correction was made but, we “know” that incorrect information is never truly eased- (There are still people who believe the “weapons” of mass destruction story re Iraq).
I imagine that running the blockade would be less of a problem if the aid organizations could count on the constant overland delivery of all of their aid. I have heard of aid trucks not being sent because rockets were fired at an Israeli town-Stop the rockets and we’ll give you the food and medicine? A new paradigm needs to be put in place that recognizes the humanity of all of the people in this troubled region.
One need hardly go farther than the “four maps” showing the “Incredible Shrinking Palestine” since before partition by the UN, after partition, after 6-day war, after Oslo accords.
It’s pretty easy to see that the “final solution” for Israel is the extirpation of Palestine & Palestinians. I’m baffled by why the Israeli War Forces don’t just go in and wipe out all the Palestinians once and for all.
Who would challenge their nuclear armaments? What Arab/Muslim country has the weapons wherewithall to attack? The IDF darned near sunk and killed all the Navy men aboard the USS Liberty in 1967. And got away with it. Are they afraid to be labeled as Neo-Nazis? Kosher Nazis, perhaps, but Nazis nonetheless.
http://www.aaronniequist.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/Palestine-landmap_edit.jpg
The Israelies are the new Nazies. “The only good Palestinian is a dead Palestinian.” The only thing missing is the ovens!
Sybil Jones — Thank you for making this point about pirates/uninvited persons so clearly.
The US itself is promulgating and acting on “interpretations” of international and its own laws to the effect that “might makes right.” This is statism — what the state does, similar to what Richard Nixon said to David Frost, cannot be wrong since it, the state, is doing it.
The government of the US, my government, now openly espouses and enacts targeted killings. The state, the US government, has declared that it has the right to do so out of “self-defense” to do whatever it wishes to “protect” itself.
At one point in our history, this nation could criticize Israel for its targeted killings; now, we do the same thing. We arrogate powers unto our government and military in almost every nation and space in the world. Israel does the same in the spaces it can control. Might makes right and creates facts on the ground and the high seas.
Of course, if Israel were not an ally, a “friend,” the US would demand the UN employ every power possible to punish Israel.
Double standards abound.
We are a morally lost nation.
The technique of The Big Lie lives. Thrives even.
Bush/Cheney practiced it; the Israeli government officials and spokespeople practice it. The MCM (Mainstream Corporate Media) repeats and repeats whatever power says — unless those in power lose favor with the powers behind the powerful….
I have great admiration for FAIR’s energy and effectiveness and I am happy they got the NYT to make a correction, albeit weak. I hold the NYT responsible for the dismal ignorance of most (but not all) of its readers since it has been misinforming (if informing at all) about the issue of Israel and Palestine for years now. I have tried to correct them before, but they keep on making the same “mistakes”. Keep up the good work.
The Isreali/Palestinian situation is an impossible one, but to seemingly ignore the thousands of ongoing rocket attacks on the Israeli civilian population as though they are not reprehensible human rights violations while focusing almost exclusively on Isreali human rights violations toward the Palestinians (which are certainly equally reprehensible), is to throw balance and FAIRness to the winds.
If a country on our borders, say Canada or Mexico, started lobbing rockets into our civilian population, I hardly
think we’d hesitate one moment before taking every conceivable action to protect ourselves.
Both of these human rights miscreants need to be taken to task.
The ship from Turkey was the 8th or 9th time they sailed humanitarian supplies to Gaza without incident. The ship is inspected when loaded and inspected by Israel when it is unloaded … no contraband was discovered either time.
The unarmed ship was attacked by armed Israelis in International waters continuing Israel’s repudiation of International Law which includes Israel’s occupation of land taken in combat
Now that Iran has been sanctioned lets start working on sanctioning Israel for repeated violations of International Law