Posted on 07/24/2006 12:54:29 PM PDT by governsleastgovernsbest
by Mark Finkelstein
July 24, 2006
Bill O'Reilly got his show off to a surprising start this afternoon, with a novel theory as to why the big-city newspapers have tread lightly in criticizing Israel for its role in the current conflict. O'Reilly theorized, during his opening monologue, that the papers are fearful of turning off Jewish liberal readers.
As per Bill's theory, papers such as the NY and LA Times, Boston Globe and Washington Post have been taking big hits in readership and profitability. With Fox News Channel's ED Hill in the studio, O'Reilly continued: "liberal Jewish readers are all [those newspapers] have left" as a significant market segment. If the papers were to be too critical of Israel, it could alienate their last remaining readership niche.
It's hard to evaluate O'Reilly's statement since we can't look inside the minds of the papers' editors, and they would certainly never fess up to such a strategy. As someone who is a former liberal and still a Jew, I'd observe that I used to read the NY Times but don't anymore - except for purposes of perusing the online op-ed page to glean potential nuggets of interest for NB readers. That's a statistical sample of exactly . . . one!
But those same papers have not been hesitant to criticize Israel over the years. Is there really a sudden change of course? Or could it be, mirabile dictu, that there is surprising consensus in much of the world, even extending to portions of the MSM, that the Hezbollah thugs are a threat to most everyone this side of Tehran and Damascus?
Exactly why are they critical of Israel? Seriously, I'd really like to know. Don't they see that appeasing terrorists has gotten them exactly nowhere?
I have been to some of the Pro-Hamas demostrations and some liberal Jews have been in the crowds with the Arab/Muslim types. They held the same anti-Israeli and pro-Terrorist signs.
We live in the day and age amongst an abundance of idiots and traitors, don't we?
Younger voters have no memory of these issues. Probably for the best.
For the same reason liberal Americans don't realize appeaement will get us no where. Admittadly Israel has suffered far more from terror than the US, but American Jews live here, not there.
It may be the case that all these guys have awakened (albeit very slowly) to the fact that a Middle East under the control of a crazy bunch of Iranians is probably not an improvement on anything.
A metaphor beyond herself. A lot of liberal Jews really liked Clinton. I don't know why.
BOR just repeated the theme on the TV show. Interviewing MRC's Brent Bozell, Bill mentioned a couple times that he believes the NY Times is laying off the issue because it can't afford to alienate its liberal Jewish base.
Eventually Jews will become loyal Republicans. We won't see it immediately because they literally "live forever". But in 50 to 75 years, they will be as conservative as Southern Baptists are.
Thanks... I'll ping my FoxFan list here.
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Thanks for the ping!
These papers are vicious in their attacks on Israel as are many liberal “Jews” - they are JINOS - Jews in Name Only - and I don’t take them seriously. Mr. O. is confused on this subject - thoroughly confused. He needs to hang out with Jews who are more practicing.
That was Richard Cohen and he is truly a disgrace - a JINO if there every was one.
That man never shuts up, does he.
I think my ultra-liberal parents are the last Jews on the planet who still read the LA Times from cover to cover and regard it as their primary news source.
all I have to say is wow., isn’t that anti semetic? I thought that was taboo.
thinks he can use lies to paint Freepers as hate-filled, bigoted racists.
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