12 Responses to PERNICIOUS BBC

  1. Span Ows says:
    November 25, 2012 at 9:12 pm

    In the great scheme of BBC bias and misreporting this is a minor one; however, going on recent record we can assume that one/some/many/most/all of the images are ‘not telling us the truth’.

       7 likes

  2. Guest Who says:
    November 25, 2012 at 9:54 pm

    Since the advent of effective propaganda in mobilising aggression, I have felt the kid’s rhyme may need updating…

    “Sticks and stones may break folks’ bones,
    But words, in wrong hands, can also harm thee?”
    Frankly, as Span Owls suggests, if the BBC says it or shows it, my first reaction would be to check it.
    Not ideal for a ‘most trusted’ national media organ with the same name as that on my passport.

       8 likes

  3. David Lamb says:
    November 25, 2012 at 10:25 pm

    I am assuming that the BBC are covering the ceasefire.
    No one trying to supply arms to Hamas?
    http://www.jpost.com/Defense/Article.aspx?id=293324

       6 likes

    • deegee says:
      November 26, 2012 at 7:32 am

      BBC coverage in Gaza was in many ways a reprise of media coverage in the Second Lebanon War. Hundreds (thousands) of rockets fired, often from near or even in civilian facilities and buildings, yet the professional journalists failed to witness them. Hundreds (thousands) of Hizbullah fighters were killed yet the professional journalists reported the death of innocents, as if they were the only casualties or even the target. Miss-fires, work accidents, settling of scores? NADA.

      I suspect the reason for the reporting in Gaza is the same as for the reporting in Lebanon. Journalists are accompanied by minders who ensure they see and report on exactly what their Hamas bosses want them to. They are intimidated that Hamas monitors what they report and knows where they live. Add to the mix news people who came, already with sympathy for the Palestinian cause, and the result is what we have.

      Some of this will come out when, after the fact, a few will admit to what was going on. But not from the BBC. Donnison wants to go back.

         13 likes

  4. Ian Hills says:
    November 25, 2012 at 10:43 pm

    From Jeremy Bowen’s wikipedia entry –

    “In what he was later to describe as the pivotal moment of his life, a colleague and friend was killed on 23 May 2000 in Lebanon.[3] This took place while Bowen was covering the Israel Defense Forces’ (IDF) pullout from Lebanon: Bowen’s car came under tank fire and his “fixer” and driver were killed.[6] Bowen and his cameraman escaped, but Bowen suffered post traumatic stress disorder ”

    Bit odd getting fired at during a “pullout” – was Bowen’s “fixer” – whatever that means – trying to stop the IDF pulling out? The above text implies that the “fixer” was also his “friend” – yes, I think I’ve got that.

       9 likes

    • deegee says:
      November 26, 2012 at 7:54 am

      It’s not clear what happened. We only have Bowen’s version but it clearly traumatised him and coloured all his reporting on Israel related subjects since.

      Sh*t happens in war. When it happens to your own troops, it is friendly fire and no one assumes it was intentional. When it happens to a war correspondent, who by definition has voluntarily and intentionally placed himself in a situation where men are killing other men without warning or trial, journalists claim they were targeted as journalists. Censorship by the bullet.

      The concept of a fixer is essential to understanding Bowen. You have to remember he speaks none of the languages of the region and is even now a stranger to customs and behaviour on both sides. He has not built up the network of contacts and friends necessary to do his job (less true in the far more open Israel than among the Arabs). He requires someone local, who is known and trusted to set up interviews and take him to places; to negotiate past road blocks, literal and symbolic and generally keep him out of trouble.

      Hamas and Hizbullah know this well and make certain that the ‘fixer’ is sympathetic to their cause and often one of them. This ensures that the journalist sees what they want him to see.

      If a journalist becomes too independent the ‘fixer’ stops fixing, either on orders or intimidation. This hamstrings the journalist. If he continues in his stubborness, there are other threats.

      By comparison the worse thing likely to happen to a journalist reporting on Israel is taking away his press pass. Bowen has his Jewish fixers, described as local associates, as well. Taken exclusively from the small but influential group of Israelis working to assist the Palestinians destroy Israel, the results are little different than the Palestinian/ Hizbullah/ Muslim Brotherhood variety.

         14 likes

      • John Anderson says:
        November 26, 2012 at 9:12 am

        Bowen’s Jewish fixers – how do you know who they are ? By the content of his reports ?

           1 likes

        • deegee says:
          November 26, 2012 at 10:22 am

          Jeremy Bowen thanks two people for, in his words, introducing him to the land between the Jordan River and the Mediterranean: Jimmy Michel and Boaz Paldi. Other than Michel describing himself as Palestinian Territories Video Producer which gives an indication but is not conclusive, considering the BBC offices are located in the area of Jerusalem that was Israeli before 1948 here is what Bowens says about Paldi.

          War Stories p232
          Boaz Paldi, the BBC’s soundman was with me. … Boaz had strong views about peace. He was an Israeli conscientious objector who used to tell me not to halt or show any documents when the army in which he refused to serve tried to stop us at one of its checkpoints in the West Bank.
          In case you are unaware military service is compulsary for Jewish Israelis (and some others). While it is possible to avoid it, for example by faking a medical or psychological condition with the help of a compliant doctor or leaving the country for a sufficiently long time, refusing and taking the risk of gaol is very rare. This is the man constantly with Bowen.

          I would review this opinion about Bowen if he had ever referred to a loyal Israeli as part of his team. He never has.

             5 likes

          • John Anderson says:
            November 26, 2012 at 1:16 pm

            deegee

            Thanks for that info. Birds of a feather flock together – all pro-Palestinians, them, including Bowen.

               2 likes

  5. David Preiser (USA) says:
    November 26, 2012 at 4:39 pm

    I’ve been thinking about this one, and I’m not sure about the pernicious charge. It doesn’t look to me like this is deliberate propaganda from the BBC, but more like the usual publishing of sexy violence photos which are not fully understood by the emotional people taking them or selecting and putting them up on the website.

    I doubt the Beeboids gave even a moment’s thought to whether or not they were publishing evidence of a Hamas war crime. It probably didn’t even occur to any of them, and most Beeboids most likely don’t blame Hamas for using human shields or putting mortars and rockets in among the civilians. What choice do these most oppressed people on the planet have, with no land, no military bases, etc., you know? Any war crime by Hamas will be Israel’s fault anyway, so in the minds of Beeboids, no Hamas war crime is in evidence here.

    Emotion-based editorial decisions informed by anti-Israel bias, yes. Pernicious, no.

       1 likes