America's one-eyed view of war: Stars, stripes, and the Star of David

[Stockholm]

There are two sides to every conflict - unless you rely on the US media for information about the battle in Lebanon. Viewers have been fed a diet of partisan coverage which treats Israel as the good guys and their Hizbollah enemy as the incarnation of evil. Andrew Gumbel reports from Los Angeles

snip

The media, more generally, has left little doubt in the minds of a majority of American news consumers that the Israelis are the good guys, the aggrieved victims, while Hizbollah is an incarnation of the same evil responsible for bringing down the World Trade Centre, a heartless and faceless organisation whose destruction is so important it can justify all the damage Israel is inflicting on Lebanon and its civilians.

The point is not that this viewpoint is necessarily wrong. The point - and this is what distinguishes the US from every other Western country in its attitude to the conflict - is that it is presented as a foregone conclusion. Not only is there next to no debate, but debate itself is considered unnecessary and suspect.

more http://news.independent.co.uk/world/americas/article1219241.ece

[Kolesar]

1. I don't see Malkin, Coulter, and Oliver North in the news coverage

I am not one of the people who rush home and watch 24 hour news every night. Have gardening and painting to do. It is true that those three psychos are out there, but I think they are seen only by those who seek them out.

Having said that, I think that news coverage has always biased against the Lebanese and the Arabs. At least for the thirty years I have been watching.

[Ian David]

2. Yes, how dare we forget that terrorists might not be all bad.

:sarcasm:

Hitler was nice to his dog.

[Lerkfish]

5. I think you missed the point.

The point is that there is no debate, its a foregone conclusion that the US media is boostering Israel exclusively, regardless of what happens.
Even when Israel's tactics become as or more destructive to civilians than Hezbollah.

The concern, and a valid one, is that the US media, and this administration, is catapulting the propaganda in a certain direction.
Is Hezbollah bad? Is Israel bad? why is asking BOTH questions not allowed?

[Ian David]

9. Okay, I get your point. Israel hasn't been innocent in all this either.n/t

[FlavaKreemSnak]

3. This is a very good article. But you know what makes me sad?

That it could never be in an American paper.

"There is no major figure in American political life who has been willing to raise the issue of the legitimate needs of the Palestinian people, or even talk about them as human beings," Lerner said. "The organised Jewish community has transformed the image of Judaism into a cheering squad for the Israeli government, whatever its policies are...."

This makes me sad and mad at the same time because what he says is true. It has gotten to be like you are never supposed to criticize anything Israel does too much because bombing civilians and torturing kids and invasion of other countries is just what Jewish people do, so you have to have unconditional support for Israel or you are an anti-Semite.

[Tin Man]

4. Killing brown people in the name of Jeebus

I'm afraid that at some subconscious level, many ChristianFundies feel that somehow they defend Jesus by supporting Israel - to these folks, I suggest they review the scriptures - in particular the Sermon on the Mount, at which Jesus said:

You have heard that it was said, 'An eye for an eye, and a tooth for a tooth.' But I tell you, do not resist an evil person. If someone strikes you on the right cheek, turn to him the other also. And if someone wants to sue you and take your tunic, let him have your cloak as well. If someone forces you to go one mile, go with him two miles. Give to the one who asks you, and do not turn away from the one who wants to borrow from you.

Funny, no matter how many times I read the above passage, I can't seem to interpret Jesus' words as meaning "defend my heritage, my home, by killing the brown people"

[pelsar]

6. whats a brown person?

i know that in israel there are white, brown, black people....some originating from arab states (like the defense minister) others from europe (pm) and others from africa....are the brown skinned ones "more inferior" than the black or white?

[Tin Man]

7. From the perspective of ChristianFundies

...many who idealize Jesus as an anglo-saxon (as portrayed in much of Western religious art of Jesus and Mary), I suspect there is often a subcurrent of racism that influences their unflagging support of Israel. It's much easier for Joe Fundy to internalize the Israeli-Palestinian issue as a racial conflict, in which "them swarthy muslim-types and their hatred of Jesus and us white-skinned believers" are the root of the problem, then it is for them to understand the complexities and grievances of all parties.

[furman]

8. Bias is a point of view

Many people I know think the US media has not given enough attention to the Israeli side of the conflict, focusing mostly on the damage in Lebanon.

My rabbi said that CNN and MSNBC are amongst the worst offenders, and that Fox "sort of gets it".