Discussion: Reporting on Israel



February 17, 2001


BROOKE GLADSTONE: Gary Rosenblatt is editor and publisher of Jewish Week. Welcome, Mr. Rosenblatt.

MAN: Hi. Thank you.

BROOKE GLADSTONE: Thank you. And also Rashid Halady [sp?] who is director of the Center of International Studies and a professor of Middle East Studies at the University of Chicago. Thank you very much for being here.

MAN: It's a pleasure.

BROOKE GLADSTONE: What we're particularly interested in, in this interview, is to hear how this piece that you just heard sounded to your different ears. Do you think this piece conveyed if not a complete picture at least a realistic picture of the issues that journalists face on the ground. Mr. Rosenblatt.

MAN: Yeah. I think there are a couple of levels here. Certainly on one level there was a give and take and there's a certain symmetry here. the problem which is a, a deeper level is a kind of media focus and sometimes obsession with symmetry. Palestinians lynch 2 Israelis and later that day Israel retaliates by firing on a building after alerting the neighborhood and so there, there are no casualties. So the next day it's reported Palestinians did X and Israel retaliates with Y. But I think what's missing is a kind of moral relativism. These are not equal incidents of, of violence and sometimes they're reported that way; [....?....] goes back and forth-- [BOTH SPEAK AT ONCE]

MAN: Strangely enough I find myself - I find myself in agreement. I think that what is missing especially from American media coverage -- I thought it was a good piece - but what's missing from American media coverage is a historical and analytical framework. I mean Israelis are being killed in occupied territory. That has to be driven home or you're not telling the truth! The day to day brutality, violence of the Occupation is never set against whatever "violence" quote/unquote - stone-throwing kids or snipers - are using against occupation soldiers and settlers who are there in violation of the Fourth Geneva Convention. Just to use terms like the Fourth Geneva Convention means we're talking about a level of analysis which this piece and most -frankly, most journalism doesn't address -the, the -- I'm not just talking about moral relativism; I'm talking about context and background; the kind of thing that you get in much of the coverage in say the Israeli press or the European press or the Arab press unfortunately tends to be missing.

MAN: Well I'll agree with the professor in terms of the need for analytical and contextual, you know, focus on these issues. When people start talking about Geneva Conventions and Resolution 242 and 338 and the Balfour Declaration, you can sense-- people's eyes glazing over, and that's part of the general problem I think we have with people wanting very short news bites and just wanting headlines rather than, than context.

BROOKE GLADSTONE: I'd like to bring in the reporter now, Rick Davis who has been listening to this discussion. Welcome again.

MAN: Thank you.

BROOKE GLADSTONE:Now you've heard from both Mr. Rosenblatt and from Mr. Halady that there were critical things missing from your report. How would you address that?

MAN: I would say they're both right when it comes from the lack of historical and analytical coverage in the story and in the Middle East itself, particularly in the American news media, and I have covered the Middle East for a long time, and I think we have always been in error in doing that.

BROOKE GLADSTONE:Why don't you address the, the practical considerations of covering the Middle East then. Obviously most news holes don't allow for a story even a third as big as the one you just produced for us! So how can one cover it if one has to go over the historical ground every single time?

MAN: That's always been the problem in the Middle East just as it was the problem in Bosnia. Every time you had to go through it you seemed to have to start at phase one. But the problem is that everybody has a different view of phase one. What is the history of the Middle East. What are the causes of what's going on there? You're never going to find a way of answering that question.

BROOKE GLADSTONE:And so then the question is: is it possible for any reporter to cover the Middle East to the satisfaction of Mr. Rosenblatt and Mr. Halady and Mr. Davis? Mr. Halady?

MAN: I, I mean I wouldn't give advice to a veteran like Rick. What I would say is, you know, pay attention to two big problems that are structural - one is the nature of the medium -how hard it is to get a long, detailed piece across, and the second thing is to deal with the prejudices back home of the editors, producers and, and people who don't know anything about anything - they have strong feelings but they've never been there, and they don't know anything. They, they have sympathies though -- most of them for Israel - and there's no countervailing force. I mean we don't have the Arab-American community and the Muslim-American community haven't developed to the point where they've thrown up the dozens and dozens of people who've done journalism and have reached that stage. In 30 or 40 years you wouldn't be able to make this complaint. Fifty years ago you wouldn't have had anybody who was Jewish in those positions!

MAN: Well curiously our readers would say-- that you know everything the professor said was true except that the bias that's coming from the editors-- is not a pro-Israel bias but rather a pro-Palestinian bias.

BROOKE GLADSTONE: Rick do you have one more comment?

MAN:No except my agreement that-- they're both right; it's one of the few times I must have been criticized for covering two sides of the story. [LAUGHTER] I, I [LAUGHS]--

MAN: You chose a hard row to hoe. What can I say?

BROOKE GLADSTONE: I want to thank you both for being here --Gary Rosenblatt, editor and publisher of the Jewish Week; thank you very much.

MAN: Thank you.

BROOKE GLADSTONE: And Rashid Halady who is the director of the Center of International Studies and a professor of Middle East Studies at the University of Chicago, thank you too.

MAN: You're welcome.