CNN: No more air time to suicide bombers' families

Jerusalem Post ^ | June 24, 2002 | Miriam Shaviv and Gwen Ackerman

[Clive]

CNN will no longer give air time to the families of Palestinian suicide bombers "unless there is a compelling reason to do so," Eason Jordan, CNN's chief news executive and news gathering president, told The Jerusalem Post.

Jordan said he issued the directive last week.

"We want to make sure there is no suggestion of moral equivalence between victims and perpetrators [of terrorism]," he explained yesterday.

The change in policy was prompted by an incident three weeks ago, when CNN broadcast less than a minute of an extensive interview with the wounded Israeli woman who lost her mother and daughter in an attack in Petah Tikva, and then spent several minutes talking about the plight of the suicide bomber's mother.

To make sure this did not happen again, said Jordan, "we put safeguards in." Jordan was in Israel to meet with Communications Minister Reuven Rivlin, who last week called CNN's news coverage "evil, biased, and unbalanced."

The satellite broadcaster YES recently added Fox News to their daily broadcast schedule to give their subscribers an alternative to CNN, and the cable companies are considering following suit.

Some media commentators say that CNN is showing signs of change under pressure. This week, for example, correspondent Wolf Blitzer will present live from Israel a five-part series called "Victims of Terror," which will examine the way Israeli civilians deal with the daily prospect of suicide bombings. In the past, one of Israel's main complaints against the network was that it highlighted the suffering of Palestinian civilians while downplaying the suffering of their Israeli counterparts.

Jordan denied that CNN's Israel coverage was undergoing, or required, a major overhaul.

"There have been isolated incidents which with the benefit of hindsight we would have done differently," he said, citing the Petah Tikva report, "but they were never intentional. We are committed to fairness."

On the whole, he said, "CNN's reporting from the region is very good," noting that CNN has produced more than 4,000 stories out of Israel in the past 21 months and that "very few have been selected for criticism." But he acknowledged the coverage "is not perfect. There is room for improvement."

Jordan suggested that "there are times when greater clarity is called for" and said the network "wants to make as few mistakes as possible," though he emphasized that many mistakes originate in CNN's Atlanta headquarters, not from reporters at the scene.

According to Jordan, the Blitzer series is not an attempt to mollify pro-Israel viewers, but the latest in a series of CNN stories on terror victims.

"In the wake of the attacks last week, we decided this was the right time to look at the victims of terrorism," he said. "This is not to suggest we ignored them after other attacks." If anything, he said, CNN has been particularly sympathetic to Israel and its terror victims in light of September 11.

"Even today, al-Qaida made threats about attacks it wants to perpetrate in the US and against Jewish institutions in the US, and it is simply outrageous," Jordan said. "We stand together."

He denied accusations by Israeli media watchdogs that CNN has treated Israel's war on terror differently from America's war on terror not giving equal air time to Afghans hurt by America's attack on their country, for example, or to al-Qaida representatives explaining their grudges against the US.

"We have aired every al-Qaida statement they have issued," Jordan said. "It is incorrect to suggest al- Qaida has not been heard on CNN as a matter of routine.

"We make sure we have editorial control over the programming," he added, "and don't give them the opportunity to say anything justifying terror."

Jordan suggested CNN does the same thing with Hamas, largely by ensuring that Israeli spokesmen are always given the right of response to Palestinian representatives.

During their meeting last night, Rivlin told Jordan that Israel has spent the last year in a fight for its very existence and that the fight was made just that much harder by CNN's unfair coverage.

Rivlin asked that, in the future, CNN concentrate on the facts, not on interpretation, and noted that Israel's battle against terror is one being fought by the entire free world.

During the meeting, which included Prime Minister Ariel Sharon's media adviser, Arnon Perlman, and the head of the Government Press Office, Dan Seamans, specific incidents of unfair coverage were raised including the unbalanced broadcast after the Petah Tikva bombing several weeks ago in which CNN gave 30 seconds to the Israeli woman who lost her mother and daughter in the attack, and several minutes to the Palestinian mother of the bomber.

Other incidents discussed included CNN coverage of the fire that broke out in the Church of the Nativity that the all-news channel initially and erroneously reported was caused by IDF soldiers.

Jordan apologized for the Petah Tikva coverage, saying the unbalanced broadcast was due to human error and was unintentional.

The satellite broadcaster YES, which last week launched the broadcast of Fox News as an alternative to CNN, yesterday denied that it intends to take CNN off the air for 24 hours to protest against its anti-Israel coverage.

"We are not censors," said YES CEO Shlomo Liran, who confirmed, however, that a company director had proposed the idea.

The same director has compared CNN to the BBC whose coverage has also been criticized as blatantly anti-Israel, a comparison Jordan was loathe to accept yesterday when he asked the minister not to put the two in the same boat, a source said.

Rivlin, who said yesterday that he believes in freedom of the press, also stressed to Jordan that he would not recommend that the satellite and cable companies remove CNN from their schedules.

The cable companies are currently in negotiations with Rupert Murdoch for rights to broadcast Fox News as well, and are considering the possibility of removing CNN from their schedules entirely.

Before they could do so, however, they would need the approval of the Council for Cable and Satellite TV, which supervises the multi-channel broadcast packages to insure that the public is receiving its money's worth.

[aimhigh]

Liberals - it's amazing how fast they scurry when the light shines on them.

[twntaipan]

I hope CNN goes bankrupt--they are already there in the morality department.

[demkicker]

THIS ANNOUNCEMENT IS TOO LITTLE, TOO LATE. EARTH TO CNN: HENCEFORTH, YOU (CNN) ARE OFFICIALLY DEEMED IRRELEVANT.

[tinacart]

Wheeeedogggggieeeesssss, this is getting good :)

[Ruth A.]

"unless there is a compelling reason to do so,"

Weasel words if I ever read them.

[DoughtyOne]

You know, I have CNN on my cable lineup. I never watch it. I think I'll give my cable provider a call. A while back someone stated that CNN get's hit in the pocket book every time someone blocks it on their box. If this is true, I'll block it. I can't imagine a situation where CNN would need to cover the plight of a criminal's family. Here these bomber's kill thirty and wound countless others. Then CNN puts mom on to moan about poor Abdul. What a thoughtless, heartless thing to air out over the waves where the families of victims can see it. CNN is a vile operation in a number of ways. Who needs em?

[Humidston]

Excellent news! We've known CNN stunk for years and I'm delighted to see our opinion is finally vindicated!

[Jorge]

Think Ted Turner running his big mouth last week has anything to do with this?

[Paul Atreides]

Oh, I bet it hurt so bad for them to do that! Hehehehehe...

[Ann Archy]

Weasel words is right!! If they kil enough Israelis CNN will be morethna GLAD to give them a soft and fuzzy interview.

Maybe TED is on CRACK like Susan Rook was!! He is a CRACK-POT.

[Dakota gal in Seattle]

"Unles there is a compling reason to do so"

And, CNN will find that reason.

[ciscokid24]

Ted Turner is a spoiled little brat who could not finish college, but took advantage of his parents hard earned money in the billboard advertising business to further his left wing socialist agenda. I am going to call my cable provider and have CNN (Clinton News Network) blocked from my television. Teddie is a loser, and so is Jane fonda, whos supposedly found religion.

[Diogenesis]

CNN will no longer give air time to the families of Palestinian suicide bombers "unless there is a compelling reason to do so,..."

LOL. Can any rational human believe Turner OR CNN? Absolutely NOT.
They are compelled to destroy justice, liberty, and the American way.

---

---

NEW CNN TELEVISION SERIES

The New Destruction of Western Civilization by, and on, CNN

==========================

Monday:

A program on 'Our Planned Future Complete Destruction of Israel'
narrated by Sheila MacVicar, Andrea Koppel and Terrorist Arafat.

---

Tuesday:

A startling program on "Our Previous Destruction of Czecho.. 'Old-Switzerland'.

---

Wednesday:

Ms. Fonda Turner returns for 'Our Past and Future Treason against America'

---

THURSDAY:
Ted Turner will tell of his being "a student at Brown University
...kicked out for painting swastikas on the doors of Jewish student's rooms."
Turner will give an intro into turning Hate Crime,
like his, into paying off with billions and billions of $$$$$$$$.

Ted Turner, June 18, 2002: "So who are the terrorists?
I would make a case that both sides are involved in terrorism."

---

FRIDAY:
Ted Turner lists the 50 compelling reasons that
CNN sponsors, highlights, and supports Palestinian murderers.
CNN will continue to focus on the murderers calling the despicable terrorists "suicide bombers".

---

CNN harbors terrorists. Now we know why.

[Diogenesis]

CNN will no longer give air time to the families of Palestinian suicide bombers "unless there is a compelling reason to do so,..."

LOL. Can any rational human believe Turner OR CNN? Absolutely NOT.
They are compelled to destroy justice, liberty, and the American way.

---

---

NEW CNN TELEVISION SERIES

The New Destruction of Western Civilization by, and on, CNN

==========================

Monday:

A program on 'Our Planned Future Complete Destruction of Israel'
narrated by Sheila MacVicar, Andrea Koppel and Terrorist Arafat.

---

Tuesday:

A startling program on "Our Previous Destruction of Czecho.. 'Old-Switzerland'.

---

Wednesday:

Ms. Fonda Turner returns for 'Our Past and Future Treason against America'

---

THURSDAY:
Ted Turner will tell of his being "a student at Brown University
...kicked out for painting swastikas on the doors of Jewish student's rooms."
Turner will give an intro into turning Hate Crime,
like his, into paying off with billions and billions of $$$$$$$$.

Ted Turner, June 18, 2002: "So who are the terrorists?
I would make a case that both sides are involved in terrorism."

---

FRIDAY:
Ted Turner lists the 50 compelling reasons that
CNN sponsors, highlights, and supports Palestinian murderers.
CNN will continue to focus on the murderers calling the despicable terrorists "suicide bombers".

---

CNN harbors terrorists. Now we know why.

[ThirstyMan]

That's funny, I just saw the same four photos appear again, sorta like deja-vu. Trinity, do you suppose that was a glitch in the Matrix?

[jocko12]

ISRAEL POST #12 IS RIGTH,JUST THROW CNN OUT NOW!!!!

[pariah]

In the past, one of Israel's main complaints against the network was that it highlighted the suffering of Palestinian civilians while downplaying the suffering of their Israeli counterparts.

And the reason is -- journalists 'learned' in college that the Palestinians were the real victims, while Isreal was an 'imperialist aggressor'.

[JZoback]

The satellite broadcaster YES recently added Fox News to their daily broadcast schedule to give their subscribers an alternative to CNN, and the cable companies are considering following suit.

Nothing like a little competition to get their act together.

It's a little too late for that, Ted.

[dawn53]

"In the wake of the attacks last week, we decided this was the right time to look at the victims of terrorism," he said. "This is not to suggest we ignored them after other attacks."

LOL, of course they ignored them. If they didn't they wouldn't be playing damage control now.