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Coverage of the Palestinian-Israeli Conflict CNN – NEWSNIGHT WITH AARON BROWN November 1, 2002 – January 31, 2003 Report location: http://www.pmwatch.org/pmw/reports/newsnight/021903.html A
Palestine Media Watch report February
19, 2003 I. Introduction This report reviews the
coverage of the Palestinian-Israeli conflict provided by CNN’s NewsNight
with Aaron Brown between November 1, 2002 and January 31, 2003. NewsNight’s daily coverage is analyzed quantitatively by
comparing the daily death accounts provided by B’Tselem, the Israeli human
rights organization, with NewsNight’s story choices. [1] Our
aim in preparing this report is specifically to raise the awareness of CNN
and NewsNight of its choices of stories when covering the
Palestinian-Israeli conflict. Our aim
is not to characterize or label NewsNight or CNN as biased or
otherwise, but to examine its product and the quality and variety of what it
is offering its viewers. Questions
or comments about this report may be directed to David Nassar at 703-981-9922 or Ahmed Bouzid at (610) 993
– 0608. You may also email us at: pmwatch@zworg.com II. Findings Palestine Media
Watch’s analysis offers
several findings. They include the following:
III. Methodology PMWATCH collected
transcripts from CNN’s website from November 1 until January 31. In the case of November 15, November 21,
November 26, December 12 and December 31 no transcript was available. PMWATCH purchased the transcripts for
November 21, November 26 and December 12.
Several attempts were made to purchase a transcript for November 15
but neither the company that generates them for CNN or CNN public relations
staff could provide it. Therefore,
PMWATCH relied on accounts by several members who viewed that evening’s
program and reported that NewsNight covered the fighting in
Hebron that day in great detail.
December 31 was not a current affairs show. The transcripts were
reviewed for coverage of the conflict and relevant passages from the
transcript were excerpted. Following
this review, PMWATCH searched the web records of B’Tselem, an Israeli human
rights organization, for their account of Palestinian deaths and Israeli
deaths during the same period. Those deaths were then cross-referenced with NewsNight
coverage. Only deaths that occurred
Monday thru Friday were recorded since NewsNight does not air
on Saturdays and Sundays. Also, on
January 28 NewsNight did not air, so the deaths on that day are
not counted in the overall tally although they are reported in the attached
table. A quantitative
comparison was then conducted of NewsNight’s coverage. PMWATCH tallied the number of deaths on the
Palestinian side and the number of deaths on the Israeli side, while counting
how many of each was covered by NewsNight. In addition to overall totals, PMWATCH
tallied the subset of civilian deaths and the deaths of those involved in
fighting on both sides using B’Tselem’s account as the definitive
determination. IV. Conclusions The evidence provided shows that CNN’s NewsNight with Aaron Brown has
failed to provide credible coverage of the Palestinian-Israeli conflict. In their choice of stories, NewsNight has covered a
significantly higher percentage of Israeli deaths then Palestinian even
though Palestinian deaths have accounted for a much higher percentage of the
overall death toll. Of the small
percentage of Palestinian deaths that NewsNight has reported, more
coverage has been given to Palestinian fighters then to civilians. And even among the death of children, NewsNight has covered a greater
percentage of Israeli then Palestinian deaths. NewsNight’s failure to cover certain stories
reflects on the quality of NewsNight’s coverage and leaves viewers with an
inaccurate representation of events. PMWATCH
believes this reflects poor journalism and further endangers the
opportunities for peace in the Middle East by failing to educate its viewers about
the true nature of the conflict leaving them to make uninformed decisions
about its source and solutions. Contact Information Palestine
Media Watch looks forward to
working with CNN and NewsNight with Aaron Brown to address the
concerns presented in this report.
PMWATCH can be reached through one of the following: David Nassar, the NewsNight
coordinator can be reached at dfnssr@yahoo.com
and 703-981-9922. Ahmed Bouzid, the
Founder of Palestine Media Watch, can be reached at ahmed_bouzid@yahoo.com About
Palestine Media Watch Palestine Media Watch
(http://www.pmwatch.org/) is a
grassroots media watch group that monitors the American media's coverage of
the Middle East. To fulfill its
mission of closely monitoring news and editorial coverage by major US media
outlets and pushing for a more balanced and informed portrayal of the Middle
East conflict, Palestine Media Watch has officers across the
United States, in Israel, the West Bank, and Gaza, and boasts an active
network of more than 10,000 people. Palestine Media Watch’s
Advisory Board consists of: ·
Dr. Hanan Ashrawi,
Member of the Palestinian Legislative Council and Secretary General of Miftah
(Palestinian Initiative for the Promotion of Global Dialogue and Democracy)
in Jerusalem. Former Spokeswoman for
the Palestinian Delegation to the Madrid Peace Conference. ·
Prof. Noam Chomsky,
Professor of linguistics, Massachusetts Institute of Technology ·
Prof. Norman G.
Finkelstein, Political Science Professor, Hunter College, City University of
New York ·
Prof. Edward S.
Herman, Professor Emeritus, University of Pennsylvania ·
Prof. Tanya
Reinhart, Professor, Tel Aviv University ·
Dr. Salman Abu Sitta,
Palestinian refugee expert and author.
Former member of the Palestine National Council. ·
Dr. Mustapha
Barghouti, President of the Union of Palestinian Medical Relief Committees. |
