Francesca Albanese Publishes New Report on Palestine, the Media and Genocide, shared by Robert Cohen
Francesca Albanese Publishes New Report on Media & Genocide
The Special Rapporteur examines three processes: Israel's systematic elimination of Palestinian journalists; incitement to genocide by Israeli authorities and media; and the role of Western media in legitimizing atrocity crimes.
Click here for the report
The Special Rapporteur examines three processes: Israel's systematic elimination of Palestinian journalists; incitement to genocide by Israeli authorities and media; and the role of Western media in legitimizing atrocity crimes.
Click here for the report
ReplyDeleteThis is a serious report, but some conclusions are more convincing than others.
The concern about Palestinian journalists rests on evidence beyond Albanese’s own work. The Committee to Protect Journalists has documented killings it assesses as deliberate reprisals for reporting. Attacking Albanese’s reputation cannot dismiss this.
The report also makes a distinction between hateful speech and direct, public incitement to genocide. It cites broadcasts calling for Gaza’s population to be eliminated. That is more serious than ordinary partisan commentary.
Its indictment of Western media is less convincing. Paragraph 2 explains that she received 89 submissions, selected because they were frequently criticised for their coverage. That does not establish how representative those are.
There is also a big difference between publishing an unverified military claim, applying inconsistent editorial standards, amplifying incitement, and assisting in an international crime. The report sometimes moves readily between these levels of responsibility.
Finally, this report takes genocide as its established analytical premise. Readers should understand that the report only presents a Special Rapporteur’s assessment.
The practical demands, such as protecting journalists; allowing independent access; preserving evidence; scrutinising military claims; and giving corrections equal prominence, are compelling.
For far too long, Francesca Albanese has abused her UN mandate to spread antisemitism and Hamas propaganda. She has been condemned by France, Germany, the US, and various organizations for spreading blatant antisemitism. Now she’s under investigation for allegations that pro-Hamas groups funded her $20,000 lobbying trip to Australia. Please let’s consider her « findings » in that context.
ReplyDeleteAlbanese, appointed by the UN Human Rights Council in 2022, has drawn widespread condemnation from the United States, France, Germany, Canada, Italy, and others for antisemitic rhetoric, comparisons of Israel and its leaders to Nazis, denial of Israel’s right of self-defense, and other statements that violate the UN Code of Conduct for special rapporteurs.
ReplyDeleteI admire Francesca immensely, have heard her speak, and even read her books. She is in NO WAY antisemitic. The anonymous comments above in response to Robert Cohen’s piece are truly stomach-turning. The writers are intentionally conflating anti-Zionism and criticism of Israeli policy with “anti-semitism”, which has been the obvious strategy of Netanyahu, AIPAC, and self-styled Jewish spokespersons for years. Ironically, that strategy only serves to diminish any horror at real antisemitic speech and action (which does exist out there), like the proverbial boy crying wolf.
ReplyDeleteFinally, even mentioning antisemitism these days seems (to me) to be in highly questionable taste, given the actual genocide in progress against the Palestinian people, broadcast in real-time on our phones, computers and TV screens daily. How utterly self-absorbed by the “official” Jewish community to be mainly concerned about their own hurt feelings and hypothetical harm, while hundreds of thousands of Palestinians are killed ostensibly in the name of Zionism…
Yes, this comment may get me banned from xUNICEF and targeted by Mossad, but honestly, get a grip, folks. Francesca Albanese deserves our respect and gratitude for calling out racist aggression.
Greetings all, This is not the first time that I have wondered why XUnicef does not require that commenters put their names to what they say. This should especially be the case when comments are contentious. I ask the Editors to please consider eliminating the "Anonymous" option and require that all commenters name themselves ... not some made-up social media avatar name either, but their name. We are a community of former Unicef staff.... surely we can stand by our comments within this group. Sincerely,
ReplyDelete