Media Survey: Reporting All Sides?
If the circumstances surrounding a man's death are uncertain, media coverage should reflect this uncertainty. But CAMERA's evaluation shows the record is mixed.
Boston Globe
Hague Ruling Front Page News; Palestinian Attack Takes Second Place
Most major print media outlets covered the Hague's court ruling in front page articles, but did not accord the same attention to the subsequent Palestinian terrorist attacks--the reason for Israel's security barrier. The major newspapers varied in the amount of context given and in the emphasis of articles about the Palestinian attack. Some portrayed the bombing as an excuse for Israeli Prime Minister Sharon's to defy international law.
Updated: AP Finally Corrects
July 2 update follows. The foreign desk at the Associated Press wire service apparently has no mechanism in place to correct factual errors. Over the last year, evidence regarding more than half a dozen straight-forward substantive errors was passed from editor to editor until it fell by the wayside. This was the case in a June 10 error by correspondent Ali Daraghmeh, who falsely reported that in the West Bank, "Israel does not allow Palestinian officers to patrol in uniform."
Journalists Fall Prey to Palestinian Booby-Traps
In the labyrinth of concrete homes and competing claims that mark Israel's operation in Gaza, the Los Angeles Times' Ken Ellingwood loses his way, straying from the Society of Professional Journalists' Code of Ethics in reporting a Palestinian claim as fact. He is joined in this by the Guardian's Chris McGreal on NPR.
CAMERA Letter in Boston Globe Clarifies Status of West Bank Land
CAMERA's Andrea Levin refutes columnist H.D.S. Greenway's erroneous reference to Israel's "pre-1967 borders" with the West Bank and Gaza.
Partisan Reporting at AP
The New York Times Web site and the Boston Globe newspaper were just two among other media that ran a distorted Associated Press article from March 31, 2004 about Jewish purchase of property in the Silwan neighborhood of Jerusalem. Written by Ravi Nessman, the AP article took an overtly partisan stance regarding the day’s events in Silwan.
From Tragedy to Propaganda: Rachel Corrie and ISM
Columns marking the one-year anniversary of the death of Rachel Corrie ignored or minimized the role of International Solidarity Movement, which recruited Corrie to be a "human shield" in Gaza.
Coverage of Unwitting Palestinian Boy-Bomber
The exploitation of Palestinian children in attacks against Israel is a troubling trend which deserves media coverage. Yet, some news outlets did not even cover the story of 11-year-old Abdullah Quran. Others, most notably the Boston Globe and MSNBC's "The Abrams Report," gave the incident the prominence it deserved.
James Carroll Errs on Israel’s Security Fence
A correction by James Carroll in the Boston Globe fails to clarify his mischaracterization of Israel's security barrier as "a high cement barrier that will run hundreds of miles..." His incomplete correction does not indicate that concrete sections will constitute only a tiny proportion of the projected 480-mile route. More than 97 percent will consist of a chain-link fence, with walled parts confined to areas that present an immediate risk of sniper gunfire.
CAMERA Letter-to-the-Editor Published in the Boston Globe
The following CAMERA letter-to-the-editor correcting a letter about Israel's security barrier appeared today in the Boston Globe:
IN HER Dec. 5 letter lambasting Israel's security barrier ("Motives behind Israel's wall"), Ellen Cantarow admonishes: "The Globe owes its readers commentaries that don't make up the facts." Yet Cantarow does just that.