Coverage of the Middle East Crisis

In The Op-ed Pages of

The Philadelphia Inquirer

10/6/2000 – 04/09/2001

A Palestine Media Watch Report

Palestine Media Watch

http://www.pmwatch.org/pmw

© Copyright April 9, 2001

Palestine Media Watch is a grass-roots media watch group that monitors the American media's coverage of the Middle East. Our web site is at: http://www.pmwatch.org.

Palestine Media Watch’s mission is to closely monitor news and editorial coverage by major US media outlets.

Palestine Media Watch has officers across the United States, in Israel, the West Bank, and Gaza, and boasts an active and growing media gadfly membership of more than four hundred people.

Our Advisory Board consists of:

· Dr. Hanan Ashrawi, Member of the Palestinian Legislative Council, former Spokeswoman for the Palestinian Delegation to the Madrid Peace Conference. Currently, Secretary General of Miftah, the Palestinian Initiative for the Promotion of Global Dialogue and Democracy, Jerusalem
 
· Prof. Noam Chomsky, Professor of linguistics, MIT
 
· Prof. Norman G. Finkelstein, teaches Political Science at Hunter College, City University of New York.
 
· Prof. Edward S. Herman, Professor Emeritus, University of Pennsylvania
 
· Prof. Tanya Reinhart, professor at Tel Aviv University. 
 
 

You may contact Palestine Media Watch by sending an email to: pmwatch@zworg.com

Table of contents

Introduction.............................................................................................................................................. 5

1.0 Definitions..................................................................................................................................... 5

Pro-Israeli............................................................................................................................................... 6

Balanced...................................................................................................................................................... 7

Pro-Palestinian...................................................................................................................................... 8

2.0 Letters to the editor........................................................................................................ 9

2.2 Analysis.......................................................................................................................................... 9

2.3 Staff accessibility and responsiveness..................................................................... 10

2.4 Conclusions................................................................................................................................. 10

3.0 Editorials..................................................................................................................................... 11

3.1 Editors and the editorial board.................................................................................... 11

3.2 Analysis........................................................................................................................................ 11

3.2.1 Portraying the victims................................................................................................. 11

3.2.2 Adopting the official Israeli line...................................................................... 12

3.2.3 Mentions................................................................................................................................ 14

3.3 Updates............................................................................................................................................. 15

3.4 Conclusions.................................................................................................................................... 15

4.0 Columns............................................................................................................................................. 16

4.1 The Editors and the editorial board........................................................................... 16

4.2 The columns................................................................................................................................. 16

4.4 Column breakdown...................................................................................................................... 17

4.5 Analysis........................................................................................................................................ 18

4.6 Staff accessibility and responsiveness..................................................................... 18

4.7 Other Issues............................................................................................................................... 19

Pro-Palestinian piece.................................................................................................................................. 19

Pro-Israeli piece......................................................................................................................................... 20

4.8 Conclusions and recommendations.................................................................................... 20

5.0 Tony Auth Cartoons............................................................................................................. 21

5.1 Tony Auth...................................................................................................................................... 21

5.2 The Cartoons............................................................................................................................... 22

October 12, 2000.............................................................................................................................. 22

October 15, 2000.............................................................................................................................. 22

October 26, 2000.............................................................................................................................. 23

December 29, 2000............................................................................................................................ 23