AJ is OK, says anchor

"Had I space and time, I would rebut all of Mr. [Judea] Pearl’s charges against Al Jazeera English, but let me engage a few of them here.
We do not mix 'news coverage and extremist propagandizing.' . . . Suicide attacks have never been called 'martyrdom' operations, 'commando attacks' or, most absurd of all, 'paradise operations.'
. . . Nor do Al Jazeera English’s editors portray a struggle between an 'evil-meaning Western oppressor and its helpless, righteous Arab victims.' "

Letter to the Editor by David Marash, an anchor at Al Jazeera English.

source
The New York Times. Al Jazeera English: What It Is, and Isn’t (3 Letters). January 22, 2007.

related posting
Al Jazeera reflecting radical Islam and conspiracies, Pearl says. January 20, 2007.

posted: tuesday, january 23, 2007, 2:12 PM ET
update: tuesday, january 23, 2007, 7:14 PM ET

tags: al jazeera judea pearl

Al Jazeera reflecting radical Islam and conspiracies, Pearl says

"In its 'straight' news coverage on its Arabic TV broadcasts and Web sites, Al Jazeera’s reports consistently amplify radical Islamist sentiments (although without endorsing violence explicitly).
For example, the phrase 'war on terror' is invariably preceded by the contemptuous prefix 'so-called.' The words 'terror' and 'insurgency' are rarely uttered with a straight face, usually replaced with 'resistance' or 'struggle.' The phrase 'war in Iraq' is often replaced by 'war on Iraq' or 'war against Iraq.' A suicide bombing is called a 'commando attack' or, occasionally, a 'paradise operation.'
. . . In short, Al Jazeera’s editors choreograph a worldview in which an irreconcilable struggle rages between an evil-meaning Western oppressor and its helpless, righteous Arab victims. Most worrisome, perhaps, it often reports on supposed Western conspiracies behind most Arab hardships or failings, thus fueling the sense of helplessness, humiliation and anger among Muslim youths and helping turn them into potential recruits for terrorist organizations.
The question is, to what extent will this pathological worldview infiltrate Al Jazeera’s English channel, which is still trying to find its voice?" [1]

By Judea Pearl, computer scientist and father of Daniel Pearl, a journalist decapitated by a militant group while investigating links between Pakistan and 9/11. [2]

sources
[1]The New York Times. Another Perspective, or Jihad TV? January 17, 2007.
[2] Wikipedia. Daniel Pearl. Accessed January 20, 2007.

posted: saturday, january 20, 2007, 5:03 PM ET
update: saturday, january 20, 2007, 5:38 PM ET

tags: al jazeera judea pearl daniel pearl