Melissa Gira Grant on Abortion Rights & Politics
Too many outlets seem to have trouble shaking the framing of abortion as a “controversy,” or as posing problems for this or that politician.
‘You Cannot Preach on Human Rights When You Are Not Doing Enough at Home’
Janine Jackson interviewed the ACLU’s Jamil Dakwar about human rights and the United States for the November 10, 2023, episode of CounterSpin. This is a lightly edited transcript.
NYT Runs Interference for IDF as It Bombs Jabalia Refugee Camp
The New York Times, and other news outlets, have employed a lexicon that diminishes, denies, obscures and justifies Israeli war crimes.
Jamil Dakwar on US & Human Rights, Matt Gertz on Mike Johnson
Shouldn’t the press corps be actively involved in informing us about the person third in line for the presidency?
Unconfirmed ‘Beheaded Babies’ Report Helped Justify Israeli Slaughter
The IDF needed to differentiate its mass slaughter from Hamas’s violence—which it could only do by painting Hamas as subhuman.
The Need for a Less Hypocritical Center at the New York Times
Centrists love to decry “both sides”—yet somehow it’s almost always the left that earns the bulk of their contempt.
In Gaza, ‘We Have to Do the Hard Work of Looking at Context’
“We have to understand…why these things happen. Otherwise, we have no basis to figure out a strategy to stop the violence on all sides.”
Papers That Ignore Causes of Violence Can’t Help Prevent It
At no point do the editorials in leading papers provide readers with the information necessary to comprehend what is happening and why.
Phyllis Bennis on Gaza
This week on CounterSpin: In the wake of the October 7 attacks by Hamas and the ensuing bombing campaign from Israel on the Gaza Strip, many people were surprised that CNN‘s Fareed Zakaria aired an interview with a Palestinian activist who frankly described the daily human rights violations in Gaza, the right of […]
‘Most Americans Really Do Feel Pretty Strongly About Human Rights’
“Menendez…has been one of the most vocal supporters of US support for authoritarian right-wing governments.”
Six Tropes to Look Out for That Distort Israel/Palestine Coverage
It is vital that news readers become acquainted with the tropes that dominate coverage of the Israeli occupation.
Fans of Cluster Bombs Dominate WaPo’s Opinion Section
As the US escalates the already bloody Ukraine conflict, the Washington Post’s opinion pages cheerlead for the military/industrial complex.
Melissa Crow on Asylum Restrictions, Dave Zirin on NYT’s Vanishing Sports Section
Advocates have long declared that Biden’s asylum restrictions are not just harmful but unlawful. And a federal judge has just agreed.
Covering ‘Racist State’ Backlash—but Not the Reality That Israel Is a Racist State
Major US news outlets covered the blowup over Jayapal’s statement. But few took the obvious journalistic step of factchecking it.
NYT Reluctant to Fault Israel for West Bank Aggression
The New York Times seems reluctant to hold Israel accountable for the unprecedented settler brazenness of the Netanyahu administration.
Nicaragua’s ‘Political Prisoners’ Would Be Criminals by US Standards
The story of the 222 deportees was a further opportunity to present Nicaragua as a country suffering from extreme repression.
‘These Organizations Are Doing Critical Work to Advocate for Palestinian Rights’
“This ongoing trauma persists as long as this blockade exists, as long as the occupation exists, as long as this settler colonialism exists.”
Ahmad Abuznaid on Palestine Human Rights Crackdown, Andrew Perez on Dark Money Donation
The corporate media narrative on Israel/Palestine makes it hard to make sense of the recent assault by Israeli forces on the Gaza Strip.
The News Is Not That Israel Has Apartheid, but That Amnesty Dares Say So
Criticism of Israel’s denial of Palestinians’ rights is deemed a threat to the country’s ability to be an explicitly Jewish state.
‘It’s 20 Years of Detention and It Needs to End’
“There’s wide acknowledgement and understanding that now is the time to finally finish the work of closing the prison.”
