Wednesday, December 5, 2012

Palestinian media watch

Have you ever wondered if in the Arab world, more specifically the Palestinian world, they are saying the same thing in "public"as they are in "private?"

We heard from Itamar Marcus of Palestinian  Media Watch, an organization founded in 1996 around Oslo accords.  It was founded to answer the question of whether Palestinian speak was the same in the English world as in the Arabic world.  The answer, no.

It is not simply that there are articles with different language, rather it is the portrayal or  lack of portrayal of Israel on official Palestinian television  and radio.

Sports matches/tournaments are named for martyrs, suicide bombers who have murdered lots of people.  One such tournament was named for the mastermind of the massacre of the Israeli athletes at the Munich games.

Their  children's programming has kids singing about the downfall of the Jewish state and the Jews.

Maps do not show Israel, instead the entire piece of land we know of as Israel is called Palestine and there is no acknowledgment of the Jewish state.

There are popular songs that refer to Haifa, Jaffa, Ashdod, and other Israeli cities as Palestinian cities.

Sadly, what the Palestinians are reporting at home is so different from what the rest of us see.  To see the kids shows, the puppet shows, the songs, etc...  it is no wonder that hate continues to be spread and sadly in the name of Islam.

I wonder how different the American media reporting would be if they understood this phenomenon?
Palestinian Media Watch has a new book coming out, discussing these issues - our government knows of their work, perhaps we should enlighten the networks.

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