PALEY CENTER FOR MEDIA, THE: NEWS & VIEWS: THE ISRAELI-PALESTINIAN CONFLICT THROUGH MULTIPLE LENSES {LONG VERSION}
Summary
One in a series of evenings and special screenings presented at the Paley Center for Media. Held at the Paley Center in New York, this evening examines the Middle Eastern media's depiction and influence on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. Host Pat Mitchell (president and CEO, The Paley Center for Media) about the recent name change from "The Museum of Television & Radio," and then offers opening remarks about the significance of the 50th anniversary of the 1967 Arab-Israeli war, also called the Six-Day War. Mitchell then brings moderator and journalist Ralph J. Begleiter to the stage, and he introduces the panelists: Yizhar Be'er (executive director, Keshev); Jamal Dajani (director of Middle East programming, Link TV); Sanaa Hammoud (founder and director, Cinemedia); and David Michaelis (director of current affairs, Link TV).
The conversation touches on such topics as: the great number of television news stations in the Middle East and the "prism" of their many points of view; Americans' preference for one news sources compared to Middle Easterners' habit of "shopping for more"; the founding of MBC (Middle East Broadcasting Center) in 1991; statistics of citizens' news-watching habits and preferences; the competitive nature of opposing news outlets and the highly emotional debates; the Hebrew/Arabic language barriers in television programs, and Al-Jazeera's decision to broadcast partially in English; Israelis' heavy media consumption verses Palestine's "weak" local coverage and low newspaper sales; Michaelis and Dajani's 2006 documentary "Occupied Minds" in which they traveled Jerusalem and talked with opposing citizens about the conflict; the "scrambled eggs situation" of Israelis and Arabs living in close proximity; Dajani's provocative use of a "master/slave" analogy in the documentary; their interview with a wanted Palestinian gunman, who notably spoke Hebrew during the conversation; the Middle Eastern media's comfort with controversy, compared to the American news' aversion to conversing with known enemies; the "schizophrenia" of the Israeli public in its divergent opinions on Palestine; the influence of anchor Haim Yavin, known as "Mr. Television," and his controversial 2005 five-part documentary series "The Land of the Settlers" about Israeli settlements in the West Bank; and the Israeli news' lack of coverage of the minority population opposed to the war in Lebanon.
Be'er then presents "Words Can Kill, Too," his media-monitoring project under Keshev, and analyzes various media outlets and their habit of emphasizing violence and conflict through inflammatory headlines and stories, citing specific examples of incomplete reporting and biased phrasing, also noting that Yasser Arafat was portrayed as a "negative hero."
Clips featuring discussions of the conflict are interspersed throughout the program, including: scenes from "Occupied Minds"; scenes from "The Land of the Settlers"; and other news coverage focusing on the Israeli settlements and the Hezbollah conflict.
Details
- NETWORK: N/A
- DATE: June 7, 2007 6:00 PM
- RUNNING TIME: 1:30:41
- COLOR/B&W: Color
- CATALOG ID: B:91019
- GENRE: Seminars
- SUBJECT HEADING: N/A
- SERIES RUN: N/A
- COMMERCIALS: N/A
CREDITS
- Pat Mitchell … Host
- Ralph J. Begleiter … Moderator
- Yizhar Be'er … Panelist
- Jamal Dajani … Panelist
- Sanaa Hammoud … Panelist
- David Michaelis … Panelist
- Yasser Arafat
- Haim Yavin