CAMERA ALERT: Token Coverage of EU Study

The European Union’s Monitoring Center on Racism and Xenophobia commissioned a study of European anti-Semitism. When the report concluded that much of the anti-Jewish violence in Europe is perpetrated by Muslim immigrants, the EU shelved the report. Jewish groups protested by publishing the report online, and the EU relented and released the report, but they continue to insist that it is flawed.

Rather than examining the report and the troubling issues it raises, most in the media simply reported the controversy over the release of the report and did not follow up with any in-depth stories on the anti-Jewish violence and sentiment being spread most often by Muslim immigrants. [For details on the report, see below “Locus of Euro-Hate” by Daniel Pipes]. The EU’s attempt to suppress the findings are definitely newsworthy, and coverage of the attempt are important, but the lack of substantive reporting on the findings of the EU study is deplorable considering the severity of the problem.

The New York Times was one of the few news organizations to provide an in-depth article on the topic (“Attacks by Arabs On Jews in France Revive Old Fears,” by Elaine Sciolino, Dec 3.). While the reporter gives a useful overview of the recent wave of attacks against Jews and people’s reactions to it, she doesn’t explore the anti-Jewish incitement that Muslims are influenced by or where they are exposed to it, including via the satellite news network Al Jazeera, and through fiery mosque sermons excoriating Jews, denying Israel’s legitimacy and glorifying “martyrdom operations” against Jews worldwide. Neither does Sciolino report in-depth about ideas for countering the violent intolerance against Jews so prevalent among immigrant Muslims.

In a positive development, on Friday, Dec. 12, the European Union officially condemned anti-Semitism, expressing “deep concern at the increase in instances of anti-Semitic intolerance and strongly condemn[ing] all manifestations of anti-Semitism, including attacks against religious sites and individuals.” For details, the Dec. 13 Ha’aretz article entitled “EU calls on Israel to dismantle outposts, slams anti-Semitism.” 

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