Israel and the Mainstream Media
By Erika Schwartz

As I write this, the Israel/Hamas war is at a boiling point. Rockets, some of which are Iranian-made Fajr-5 rockets, are fired endlessly, relentlessly, mercilessly at Israeli citizens from Gaza. Israel has finally had enough. The offensive is on, Israel is fighting back.

With pinpoint precision, Israel targets Hamas leadership, artillery emplacements and known terrorists.  Leaflets are dropped on neighborhoods in advance to warn the civilians to evacuate.  Despite the fact that Hamas places the artillery near playgrounds, schools and mosques, civilian casualties are amazingly low.

However, if you get your news from the Los Angeles Times or much of the rest of the mainstream media, this is not the view you get of this conflict.

The Los Angeles Times writes of "homemade bombs" being lobbed into Israel.  The photos are primarily of dead and wounded Palestinians.  There is absolutely no mention of the years and years of rocket attacks from Gaza onto Israeli towns.

CNN reports on the death of a Palestinian child killed by "shrapnel" from an Israeli bombing attack.  The dead child was displayed in public and mourned over by visiting Egyptian Prime Minister Hisham Kandil and Hamas Prime Minister Ismail Haniyeh in front of a large crowd. The problem with that report was that Israeli bombs carry no shrapnel.  And it was later learned that the child was killed by a Hamas rocket that had been fired at Israel but had fallen short.  Did CNN follow up with a correction to their initial report?  No.

In one report, the Associated Press referred to Jerusalem as the capital of Israel.  They quickly published a "correction" and referred to Jerusalem as the "self-declared" capital of Israel.

These are only three examples of the amazingly biased reporting from America's mainstream media as it pertains to Israel.  I could write a book about the volumes and volumes of distorted stories.

But it gets even better . . . . and weirder . . . .

We've all heard the saying "The lady doth protest too much . . ." in reference to feigned outrage.  Even that situation has now entered the fray.

Just prior to my writing this, Rupert Murdoch made a really boneheaded comment in a tweet.  He publicly asked why the "Jewish owned press" was always so anti-Israel whenever there was a conflict.  Not only was this comment bone-headed simply because it wasn't such a cool public statement to make; it was also pretty much erroneous.  Other than the New York Times (which, incidentally, is most definitely anti-Israel in spite of the fact that it is owned by a Jewish family), most other media outlets are owned by large corporations.

Now, I'm very familiar with Rupert Murdoch's views on Israel.  He is a staunch and uncompromising supporter of Israel.  The media owned by his News Corporation (which include The Wall Street Journal, New York Post, Fox network and Fox cable channels),  is consistently pro-Israel in their reports of any conflict that Israel finds herself in.  My take on that comment was that it should have been made at the dinner table . . . just as we Jews can say things about our fellow Jews but heaven help the "outsider" who says the same thing.  Murdoch's comment, besides being erroneous, should not have been publicly tweeted even if it was correct.

But, oh my, you should hear the public outcry by the mainstream media!  The very same media that reports about "Israeli aggression and over-reaction", the very same media that reports about dead Palestinian children who were, in reality, killed by Hamas rockets . . . this very same media is absolutely outraged that Rupert Murdoch would so slander the Jews.  Our dear friends at CNN called his tweet "beyond outrageous to offensive, truly offensive."  And the outrage went on and on and on.

While doing research for this column, I decided to check out what Wikipedia had to say about the mainstream media and its reporting of the Arab-Israeli conflict.  What I saw was truly revealing . . . and confirmed all of my conclusions.

The Wikipedia section on "Coverage of the Arab-Israeli Conflict" has two sections, one titled "Pro-Israel media" and the other titled "Anti-Israel media."

The "Pro-Israel media" section talked about how Jewish organizations, considerable lobbying, financial contributions from the Jewish community create an atmosphere where ". . . journalists, editors and politicians are going to think twice about criticizing Israel . . ."

The "Anti-Israel media" section states that ". . . Jewish organizations are quick to detect bias in the coverage of the Middle East, and quick to complain about it."

Frankly, I don't see a difference in the slant here.  It appears to me as if the agenda of both of these sections is to demean and marginalize those who support Israel.

So . . . why is the mainstream media so anti-Israel?  I'll begin with a statistic and then explain in one sentence why this statistic is significant.  In several reputable polls and surveys (2005 University of Connecticut study, 2005 Annenberg Public Policy Center poll and 2007 Pew Research Center study) it was determined that, at the very least, the liberal-to-conservative ratio among journalists was 3.4-1.  Now, before my liberal friends come at me with baseball bats, please consider the ugly floor fight at this year's Democratic Convention during which the Party literally forced the delegates to add back to the Party Platform wording that accepted Jerusalem as the capital of Israel.  No, there are few friends of Israel among the liberal press.  Why is this?  Here comes that one sentence.

Liberals love the underdog and, because the Palestinians are masters at PR and Israel is a miserable failure at PR, Israel is perceived as the Goliath in this David vs Goliath fight.

That's it . . . plain and simple.  I researched and researched and researched this issue and that theme came up over and over again.

Compare today's "journalism" to the newspaper reporting of the good old days.  I remember newspaper articles filled with fact-based reports, citing actual events and resources.  Much of what passes for journalism today is actually Op-Ed.  Opinions abound and pertinent facts are either blaring headlines or omitted entirely, depending on the point of view of the writer.  And most of today's journalists are rooting for those poor beleaguered victims of Israeli oppression.

So, now that the election is behind us and no one has to worry about being brainwashed by the right-wing media, I sincerely suggest that, if you really want to know what's happening in Israel . . . about Israel . . . . or the true dangers facing Israel . . . tune in to Fox News Channel or pick up the Wall Street Journal.  As Jews, we owe it to Israel to be extremely informed.

The History of Israel-USA Relationship
By Erika Schwartz

Since my premise is (and always will be) that Israel's safety and continued existence should be a top priority of every Jew in the world, let me first address the obvious challenge question . . . . "Are you loyal to the United States or are you loyal to Israel?"

Sounds simple, doesn't it? Every loyal American's answer should be "My loyalty is to the USA first!"

But wait a minute.  Take a step back and consider the very unique history of the Jews.

Throughout our history, regardless of how well we were treated or how welcome we felt in any country, we were eventually expelled/marginalized/murdered by our host country.  Tough times inevitably led to "blame the Jews" and . . . as they say . . . the rest is history.

THAT is our history.  Can you think of any other group of people who have had the same experience over and over again for thousands of years?  I can't.

I don't expect the USA to herd us into ghettos or kick us out any time soon.  But . . . .

So, for the sake of generations of Jews to come, I have to put Israel's continued existence at the top of my priority list.  Radical, but that's my personal opinion.

So now let's explore the USA's relationship with Israel over the past 65 years.

In the early stages, the USA was very ambivalent about Israel.  Although President Truman supported partition of Palestine and recognition of Israel, he was opposed by the Departments of State and Defense.  Even after announcing recognition minutes after Israel declared her existence in May of 1948, the administration didn't immediately lift an arms embargo nor was an Israeli loan request granted until January 1949.  Foreign aid to Israel was relatively minor until 1971 when it increased sharply to $600 million.  Just a couple of years prior, the aid amounted to just $76 million.

Throughout most of the administrations, American Presidents have had to walk a thin line between supporting Israel and having access to oil fields controlled by Israel's often-hostile neighbors.  In fact, in 1956 President Dwight Eisenhower came to the rescue of Egypt when Britain, France and Israel staged a "faux war" to wrest control of the Suez Canal away from Egypt.  This was, in fact, the moment when the USA became a major player in the Middle East.

The Johnson administration was the first to give whole-hearted support to Israel after the Six-Day War.  However, things got tense in 1970 during the Nixon administration when Israel refused to accept a plan put forth by Secretary of State William P. Rogers. Trying to calm the War of Attrition between Israel and Egypt, the Rogers Plan called for a 90 day cease-fire and a military standstill zone on each side of the Suez Canal.

In 1975 all U.S. arms shipments to Israel were halted when President Ford sent a letter to Prime Minister Rabin stating that "Israeli intransigence has complicated US worldwide interests."

The Carter administration was marked by Israel's agreement to full withdrawal from the Sinai, thus leading to the Egypt-Israel Peace Treaty.

Many consider the Reagan years as the "most pro-Israel ever."  Although there were many contentious issues (particularly over Israel's airstrike on the Iraqi nuclear reactor and Israel's siege of Beirut during the Lebanon War), the two countries shared similar perspectives on terrorism, security and the Soviet threat during the Reagan years.  This led to extremely close ties and cooperation.

President George H.W. Bush began his presidency by signaling that Israel should "abandon its expansionist policies."  The Persian Gulf War, however, brought the two countries closer together.  For the most part, the Bush administration was not considered to have a particularly amicable relationship with the Likud government of Yitzhak Shamir.

President Clinton was witness to the Jordan-Israel peace treaty signing as well as producing the 1995 Interim Agreement between Israel and the Palestinians.  Although Clinton was critical of Prime Minister Netanyahu's policy of expanding Jewish settlements in the occupied territories, he was said to have a close relationship with Prime Minister Ehud Barak and mediated meetings between Barak and Arafat at the White House.

President George W. Bush established good relations with Israel's Prime Minister Sharon early in his presidency. However, Sharon accused the Bush administration of appeasing the Palestinians at Israel's expense in order to garner support for the USA's anti-terror campaign shortly after the September 11 attacks.

The most serious issue between Israel and the Obama administration (and arguably the most serious issue to face Israel in her entire short history) is the issue of Iran.  In the view of Prime Minister Netanyahu, the Obama administration has not been willing to "draw a line in the sand" to make it absolutely clear when the United States would take military action to prevent the Iranians from developing a nuclear weapon.  Since Iran's President Ahmedinajad has clearly stated that his country's intent is to "wipe Israel off the face of the earth", Prime Minister Netanyahu has become extremely frustrated with the Administration's position of " . . . watching very carefully what they do . . . ."  There is tremendous pressure on President Obama, particularly from his political base, to not allow Israel to draw the USA into yet another Middle East war.  Israel is clearly aware that this is not a war they can fight on their own.

So . . . here's my summary.  No President has demonstrated a strong consistent commitment to the security of Israel.  Some (such as Reagan) have come close.  From what I've learned as I've studied this subject, it appears that the closer ties to Israel have come from Presidents who have had a stronger commitment to America's defensive strength.  Again, just my opinion.  But, as an American Jew who feels absolute terror at the very thought of the possibility of Israel's annihilation, it does give me pause . . . .

By Erika Schwartz

Over the next several months I'll be writing regularly about various issues relating to Israel, her history and her importance to Jews throughout the world.  I'll also try to provide enough information so you can help your own friends and families wade through the misinformation that seems too often permeate the media.  Selecting the topic of my first column was easy . . . the history of Palestine.  There has been so much misinformation thrown around that even most Jews today can no longer figure out who lived where, how they got there and who got there first.  You need to know!

A Personal Note:  Why am I doing this?  Some of you, who regularly attend the Rabbi's Torah class, have witnessed my emotional, sometimes LOUD outbursts when I think I'm hearing misinformation about Israel or the Holocaust.  The short answer is that I believe Jews around the world are safe only as long as Israel continues to exist.

I'm a Holocaust Survivor and believe with all my heart that millions of Jews would not have been slaughtered had Israel existed.

I don't have miles of column inches to list all of the examples of the worldwide apathy to what was widely known about the extermination of Europe's Jews.  I urge you to do the research and learn about (1) the German liner St. Louis and its doomed cargo of Jewish refugees who were denied entrance to Cuba, the USA and Canada before the ship finally returned to Europe where most of the passengers perished in the Holocaust, (2) FDR's refusal to lift a finger to save Jews, including his refusal to order the bombing of the railroad tracks leading to Auschwitz or the gas chambers in Auschwitz in spite of the fact that American bombers were obliterating military targets just a few miles from the extermination camp.  The list is long . . . look it up . . . and know that the world knew what was going on as early as January 1942.

So read on for the important information you need to know about the birth and continued struggle of the only country on the planet that would have done everything humanly possible to save the Jews of Europe.

For about 400 years prior to World War I Turkey's Ottoman Empire controlled a vast Arab empire.  A portion of that empire is today's Lebanon, Syria and what was called Palestine.

During WWI Turkey supported Germany. When Germany was defeated, so was Turkey.  The portion of the Ottoman Empire called Palestine (today's Jordan, Israel and West Bank) was mandated to Great Britain.

Because no part of Palestine had been a national homeland to any peoples since the Jews had claimed it as Israel 2,000 years before, the British considered allowing the creation of a Jewish National Homeland throughout all of the Palestinian territory. Jews had already begun mass immigration to the area in the 1880's.

In 1923, the British divided this territory into two districts. Jews were permitted only west of the Jordan river, the area deemed to become the Jewish Palestinian homeland. This area consisted of 25% of the original Palestinian territory. The remaining 75% was called Trans-Jordan and was to become the Arab Palestinian homeland.

The Arab population in the area west of the Jordan River was not happy. They wanted all of Palestine and began to launch murderous attacks on the Jewish Palestinians.

Although the British had themselves declared the area west of the Jordan River as a future Jewish homeland, they did nothing to help the Palestinian Jews. In fact, they were pretty much pro-Arab and turned their backs on the situation. The Jews had no choice but to form an organized defense. Thus was born the Hagana, the beginnings of the Israeli Defense Forces. There was also a Jewish underground called the Irgun led by Menachem Begin who later became Prime Minister of Israel.

The British finally gave up trying to "administer" the territory and turned it over to the United Nations.

The 1947 U.N. Resolution 181 partition plan was to whittle down the remaining 25% of Palestine even further (which was supposed to have been the Jewish homeland) by dividing it yet again into a Jewish Palestinian State and a SECOND Arab Palestinian State because Trans-Jordan refused to accept the Arabs who had stayed in the area west of the Jordan. They were, in essence, "homeless" not because the Jews wanted them out, but because no Arab country would allow them in.

The Jewish Palestinians accepted this. The Arab Palestinians did not. They still wanted ALL of Palestine.

On May 14, 1948 the "Palestinian Jews" declared their own State of Israel. The very next day, seven neighboring Arab armies (Egypt, Jordan, Syria, Lebanon, Saudi Arabia, Iraq and Yemen) invaded Israel.

Most of the Arabs remaining within the boundaries of Israel were encouraged by the invading Arab armies to leave in order to facilitate the slaughter of the Jews by the invading Arabs. They were promised to be given all the Jewish property after the victorious Arab armies won the war. These Arabs, who left when the one-day-old tiny Nation of Israel was attacked, became the seeds of the first wave of "Palestinian Arab refugees."

By the end of the 1948-49 Israeli War of Independence, the Jewish State was slightly larger than had been originally proposed by the UN resolution. What remained of the almost-created second Arab Palestinian State had been gobbled up by (1) Egypt, occupying the Gaza Strip and by (2) Trans-Jordan, occupying Judea-Samaria (the West Bank) and Jerusalem. In 1950 Trans-Jordan merged the West Bank territory into itself and renamed itself simply Jordan.

The Arabs of Palestine ended up with nearly 85% of the original territory of Palestine.

From 1949-67 when all of Judea-Samaria and Gaza were 100% under Arab control; no effort was ever made to create a second Palestinian State for the Arabs living there.

In May 1967, the Egyptian, Jordanian and Syrian armies mobilized along Israel's narrow and seemingly indefensible borders in preparation for a massive invasion to eliminate the State of Israel. Before they could strike, the Israelis executed a pre-emptive strike against Egypt. Within two hours the Egyptian Air Force ceased to exist.

Unaware that the Egyptians had no more air force, King Hussein of Jordan launched his attack from the West Bank into Israel's belly while Syrian troops prepared to descend down the Golan Heights into northern Israel.

After six days of air, sea and hand-to-hand ground warfare, Israel defeated all three Arab armies along three separate fronts, capturing the entire Sinai Desert from Egypt, the Syrian Golan Heights and the so-called West Bank (including East Jerusalem and its Old City) from Jordan. For the first time in 19 years, Jews had complete access to their 3,000 year old capital city of Jerusalem and the Western Wall. For the first time in 19 years, all religions had access to all of their holy sites.


Now, here's the stunner.

At the end of the 1967 war, the Arabs in the West Bank and Gaza were packed and ready to leave.  The momentum was on Israel's side and she could have rid herself entirely of the "Palestinian problem" including the opportunity to demolish the Al-Aqsa Mosque on the Temple Mount.  Amazingly, IDF General Moshe Dayan persuaded them to stay. His plan was to educate them, offer them modern medical treatment, and provide them with employment both in the West Bank, Gaza and inside Israel itself. He envisioned these Arabs living in peace with their Jewish neighbors and building bridges to the Arab world.

Kinda makes you wanna weep, doesn't it?

Now please read this over and over and over until you've memorized the factual history of that precious land we call Israel.

Why?  Because there are those among us (fellow Jews who truly do love Israel) who get their information only from news sources with an anti-Israel agenda.  I was recently asked by a (Jewish) client why Arabs had no rights in Israel . . . and wouldn't the world look more kindly on Israel if her Arab citizens had human rights.   Well, guess what! Israeli Arabs have the exact same rights as do Israeli Jews, including the right to vote.  There have been a total of 64 Israeli Arabs in the Knesset since the first elections in 1949.  Currently, 16 Israeli Arabs serve in the Knesset.

Surprised?  I hope so because perhaps now you'll fire up Google the next time you read or hear the anti-Israel rhetoric.  Stay tuned . . . more to come.