BNM Writers
Israel At Forefront Of the Media But Still Not Covered Correctly
The most significant point the media misses is that Israel is not seeking revenge.
Published
2 weeks agoon
By
Andy Bloom
Excuse me for getting a little political this week. However, as I see media coverage of student protests against Israel and reports about Israel’s war against Hamas, I must respond and arm influencers with facts I’m not hearing elsewhere.
For the talk show hosts who read this column, the media is missing out on critical facts as Israel fights for its existence. I aim to provide discussion points to put the current war and student protests in the U.S. in proper perspective because it’s clear that most media sources are interested in a story of false equivalency and sympathy for Palestinians.
A combination of allowing too many foreign exchange students and an American education system that has focused too much on DEI and not enough on academics — including history — for too many years now has led to the anti-Semitism we see on college campuses today. To borrow a phrase, “America’s chickens have come home to roost.”
The students calling Israel a genocide state or accusing President Biden of backing genocide either didn’t learn about the Holocaust or deny it happened. As unquestionably as America’s original sin is slavery, Israel was born in the aftermath of the Holocaust. We must teach young students about the Holocaust as part of their academic curriculum.
Over six million Jews were murdered during the Holocaust, the most horrific genocide in modern history. In the aftermath of the Holocaust, the Jewish state of Israel was created in 1948 to create a “safe space” for Jewish people everywhere.
Five neighboring Arab countries attacked Israel the day after announcing its independence. Israel has fought for its existence since day one. The war against Hamas continues Israel’s fight to survive, not any of the other motives protesters or the media assign to its actions.
The most significant point the media misses is that Israel is not seeking revenge. Israel must destroy Hamas for its survival and the safety of Israeli citizens.
Hamas’ charter calls for “the obliteration or dissolution of Israel.” Further, understand that Hamas only cares to accomplish this and a Palestinian state through violence. Also, from Hamas’ charter: “There is no solution for the Palestinian question except through Jihad. Initiatives, proposals, and international conferences are all a waste of time and vain endeavors.”
Hamas is the governing authority for the Gaza Strip and the Palestinian Authority (formed out of the PLO) since 2006. There have been no elections since then because both would be voted out.
In 2000, at Camp David, Israel offered significant concessions to Yasser Arafat (the then leader of the PLO), which would have created the two-state solution. Arafat turned down the offer. The truth is that neither Hamas nor the PA wants a two-state solution, nor do the protesters who shout, “From the rivers to the seas.” The only acceptable outcome for all of them is one that destroys Israel and, for those who will speak honestly, the death of all Jews. I’ve written about my personal experience with this elsewhere.
Hamas will commit further atrocities, which is why Israel must destroy Hamas permanently. Hezbollah has the same objectives. Left unchecked, we will all face more Hamas-style terror. The media and student protesters are missing the chants of “death to America” that go along with the “death to Israel and Jews” from the protesters, Hamas, and other bad actors.
The media reports and students making Israel the aggressor or a genocide state and calling for ceasefires or presenting a sympathetic view of the Palestinians are false and ridiculous. Hamas has done nothing to show they deserve a reprieve. The equivalency arguments are insulting.
Israel spent days dropping leaflets warning civilians that they needed to move. Hamas, of course, does not and targets civilians – including beheadings and putting babies in ovens. Israel waited weeks to begin the offensive. Even now, they are pausing daily to allow civilians to move. We’ve seen videos of civilians with white flags passing by Israeli tanks unimpeded. In contrast, Hamas has shot at Palestinians to stop them from leaving because they use them as human shields.
Look what happened in the aftermath of the despicable, barbaric October 7th Hamas attacks. There was dancing and rejoicing in the streets of Gaza, celebrating the death of Jews in Israel.
The pro-Palestine protesters don’t just call for a ceasefire. They call for the destruction of Israel and the death of Jews. Jewish people worldwide are being harassed, threatened, and injured. There is a difference.
There are no celebrations in Israel, or by Jews across the globe, over the deaths of Palestinians in the Gaza Strip because Israelis wish to live in peace, not killing anybody.
D-E-I stops at J-E-W. Think about what we’ve seen in the United States. Protesters who think they are supporting suffering Palestinians have made Jewish students everywhere feel unsafe, and with good reason:
- At Cornell, a student threatened to kill all members of the university’s Jewish community.
- At UMass, a student punched a Jewish student who was protesting for the release of Hamas hostages.
- At Cooper Union College, a pro-Palestine rally chased a group of about 50 Jewish students into the school’s library, where they barricaded themselves inside and waited for help.
- Jewish students on campuses across the country are reporting incidents of harassment, anti-Semitism, expulsion from campus clubs, eggs being at Jewish fraternities, and more.
- In Detroit, a synagogue president was stabbed and murdered. When police arrested a suspect, they were released without charges.
- In Los Angeles, a pro-Palestine protester hit a Jewish man over the head with a megaphone, fracturing his skull and causing his death. NBC News reported the man died when he “hit his head.” Authorities aren’t sure whether it’s a hate crime. Seriously.
- Pro-Palestinian protesters have ripped down posters of missing persons in Israel, presumed held hostage by Hamas. They have torn down posters announcing pro-Israel rallies, defaced monuments – including the Lafayette monument across from the White House and left “bloody” handprints on the White House fence.
Pro-Israeli rallies have engaged in none of these types of activities. The pro-Palestine protesters reflect the Hamas terrorists they support. The Israeli supporters reflect the values of Israel. Talk show hosts should draw these connections. The country must stop tolerating the behavior of the pro-Palestinian supporters.
What would happen if African Americans or LGBTQ+ students were being harassed instead of Jewish students? DEI cannot extend to every group except Jews. Either everybody is protected and treated with equal respect, or it’s time to stop the charade.
There’s no equivalency. In fact, it’s a false equivalency.
Universities and colleges need to expel the students engaged in violent pro-Palestine rallies, which include chanting “From the river to the sea,” a direct call for the destruction of Israel. Those who are here on student visas need to have them revoked.
Protesters claim the First Amendment allows them to say these things. I am usually an unabashed advocate of First Amendment rights. However, many of the same people applauded taking down social media posts about COVID-19 vaccines or those questioning the 2020 election results.
These are the same people who have no problem with gagging Donald Trump and denying his First Amendment protections. Sorry, protesters can’t deny some people their First Amendment rights and invoke those protections when it’s convenient.
If the pro-Palestine protesters want to help “innocent” residents of the Gaza Strip, they would implore Hamas to release the 240 hostages they are holding, including American citizens. That includes recently censured Rep. Rashida Tlaib (D-MI). She could have used her voice as arguably the most powerful Palestinian-American to tell Hamas they must release all hostages or speak to Gaza residents and urge them to tell the IDF where Hamas leaders are hiding amongst them and where they are keeping hostages. Until Palestinians do this, they are complicit in Hamas’ activities.
The hostages and their families are the innocent civilians suffering during this war. These are the people that everybody who wants a ceasefire should demonstrate concern for. But they are forgotten by the protesters and the media.
Talk show hosts can help people understand the truth in Israel and the Gaza Strip.
The protesters and the media have forgotten what led to the creation of the state of Israel: the Holocaust, the worst genocide in modern history. They ignore the wars Israel has fought to remain an independent state, including the current fight to destroy Hamas. Israel isn’t taking revenge on the Palestinian people. It is fighting to destroy Hamas so it can never commit another October 7th attack. Neither the press nor the protesters demonstrate concern for the hostages Hamas is holding or their families.
The false equivalency arguments against Israel are ridiculous. There is no joy in Israel over the deaths in Gaza like the Palestinians showed after the October 7th attacks.
In the United States, attacks on any other group would not be permitted the way anti-Semitic outbreaks are across the country and the world.
These are the points that talk show hosts must discuss. It won’t impact the low-IQ protesters frozen in a false narrative of anti-Semitism, but it may help others understand what is going on as Israel fights for its existence.
Andy Bloom is president of Andy Bloom Communications. He specializes in media training and political communications. He has programmed legendary stations including WIP, WPHT and WYSP/Philadelphia, KLSX, Los Angeles and WCCO Minneapolis. He was Vice President Programming for Emmis International, Greater Media Inc. and Coleman Research. Andy also served as communications director for Rep. Michael R. Turner, R-Ohio. He can be reached by email at an[email protected] or you can follow him on Twitter @AndyBloomCom.
BNM Writers
Why I’m Jumping Back Into Local TV
I want to join the fight for light that disinfects from the front lines. And there is no more advanced position than local news.
Published
14 hours agoon
November 28, 2023By
Jim Avila
Yesterday, I started what I believe will be the final phase of my nearly 50-year career in broadcasting, spanning both radio and TV.
I have roamed the streets of San Francisco looking for breaking news as the late news reporter at KPIX-TV. I picked garlic in the fields of Gilroy to expose the terrible working conditions of California farmworkers for KCBS Radio.
In Chicago, I helped topple the democratic machine by exposing the dead voters registered in the Mayor’s race that tried to prevent Harold Washington — the city’s first black mayor — from winning an election.
Next stop? Los Angeles, where I covered the O.J. Simpson trial for KNBC, coverage that earned the station an Emmy and Golden Mic awards. It also earned me a ticket to NBC network news where I became a national correspondent for Tom Brokaw’s Nightly News. Our team picked up an Emmy for the flood and fire that destroyed Grand Forks, North Dakota, and led to assignments in New York for 9/11 and then off to the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq.
Next up were 18 intense years at ABC, where I served as 20/20 correspondent, Primetime correspondent, Senior Law and Justice correspondent, Senior National correspondent, and finally White House correspondent.
In 2020, after health issues, I retired and was offered the opportunity by Barrett News Media to write about the only true profession I have ever known. No longer bound by the rules of just the facts, I was invited to give my opinion on the junction of news and politics. I have enjoyed it and thank Jason Barrett — and you, the readers — for taking the time to follow my thoughts on the great institution of the news media.
But now it is time to return to actual journalism. I have been offered the privilege of reporting again. I have started a new adventure at KGTV ABC10 in San Diego. The location is ideal and the job as Senior Investigative Reporter will be a welcome challenge and a break from the retired life.
It also comes at a time when journalism is under attack by those who feel their opinions trump facts. (Pun intended).
So I want to join the fight for light that disinfects from the front lines. And there is no more advanced position than local news. I will be holding authorities and politicians to account. Keeping big business honest by protecting the little guy. I take pride in my career in journalism and I want young reporters to be proud as well. A free press unintimidated by would-be dictators is what is needed now more than ever.
So thanks, and once again, I will see you on TV.
Jim Avila serves as a weekly columnist for Barrett News Media. An Award-winning journalist with four decades of reporting and anchoring experience, Jim has served as Senior National Correspondent, 20/20 Correspondent, and White House Correspondent for ABC News. Prior to his time with ABC, he spent a decade with NBC News, and worked locally in Los Angeles and Chicago for KNBC, and WBBM. He can be found on Twitter @JimAvilaABC.
BNM Writers
Is Oliver Stone the Michael Moore of 2024?
“They went too far in hating and in dumping on Trump. And people don’t like that in America. People don’t like dumping on. They did it too much.”
Published
14 hours agoon
November 28, 2023By
Rick Schultz
In mid-2016, Americans felt the tide turning — with the country rallying around a Donald Trump electoral victory — when liberal filmmaker Michael Moore predicted Trump would win Michigan and the election. Could Oliver Stone be on a similar path in 2024?
Moore was prescient. He heard the people and could sense their overwhelming sentiment. More than anything, he was sounding the alarm bells for his fellow Democrats for what he felt was about to happen.
Last week a media member may have unknowingly let free the 2024 canary in the coal mine, and interestingly, this canary may have been another controversial filmmaker.
Oliver Stone appeared on Bill Maher’s podcast, Club Random, last week and seemed to echo many of the same sentiments from Moore’s premonition eight years earlier.
“Well, I mean, he doesn’t concede elections,” Maher said, bringing up President Trump in the far-ranging, free-flowing conversation. “You know, ‘The elections only count if we win’ theory of government. Okay. Well, come on. You know, Trump, he still has not conceded the election. He has not conceded. He does not honor them.”
“I mean, do you know for a fact that he lost? I’m just curious,” Stone responded. “I just don’t know all of the facts.”
Maher seemed astounded.
“Well, I do. Is there a conspiracy theory that you don’t believe?” Maher asked Stone.
Perhaps Stone was referring to the piles of historical incongruencies and facts, all of which indicated a Trump 2020 win.
No sitting president in the modern era has received more votes for re-election than in his initial election and lost.
Of the 18 most dependable “swing counties” that normally indicate an electoral winner, Trump won 18 of 19. Yet, he lost the election.
No Republican had ever won Florida, Ohio, and Iowa – considered to be a broad cross-section of the American electorate – and lost. Until Trump.
It is difficult to put Oliver Stone in a political box. He has mostly seemed to favor the libertarian philosophy of less government intrusion. On occasion, he has been critical of Trump, while also acknowledging the former President’s ability to tap into populist sentiment that the two seem to share. Less war. Fewer government shackles. More individual and economic freedom.
“I’m just asking you. I’m not an expert on the election,” Stone told Maher. “I’m not a political junkie. You are. And you follow it very closely.”
“Alright then, I’ll give you the thumbnail sketch,” an agitated Maher said. “They tried it in like 60 courts. It was laughed out of every court, including by Republican judges. The people who saved this democracy were Republicans. Good Republicans. In states where Trump pressured them. Like the guy, the one he’s on trial for in Georgia. ‘Find me 11,000 votes.’ It’s on tape. A guy like that saying to him, ‘Sir, we just don’t do that here. I voted for you. I’m a Republican, but we just don’t do that.’ That’s what saved us. And they were Republicans.”
One of the most accurate political pollsters of the modern age, Richard Baris of Big Data Poll, posted on X that “Not even Oliver Stone buys it. Notice when (Bill Maher) tried to dismiss and refute his election concerns, he used a demonstrably false claim to ‘disprove’ it. Oliver, Bill is full of shit. It was not ‘tried’ in 70 courts. Judges used standing to dodge.”
Baris continued in another post, saying, “Also, (Bill Maher) grossly mischaracterized the phone call, using the common fake news talking points that Trump asked the (Georgia Secretary of State) to ‘find 11k votes’. Don’t be lazy, Bill. Read the transcript yourself. He was talking about signature verification and votes not properly scrutinized.”
In the podcast with Maher, Stone went on to say that he had major problems with the outcome of the 2000 election, which resulted in the victory of President George W. Bush. He similarly indicated that he didn’t think 2020 passed the smell test.
“I don’t know. I mean, you went through the 2000 election. That was horrifying to me, what happened when the Supreme Court closed that down.” Stone said.
“What should we do?” Maher asked. “Do we just keep counting votes forever? Or should we still be counting them now?”
“No. Count them correctly,” Stone responded. “Let’s just get rid of the electoral college. Let’s do a popular vote.”
Oliver Stone continued, calling out the media for their biased reporting in the era of Trump.
“I don’t know the facts,” Stone said. “And I think I would trust the accountants more than the politicians. And I’d like to know what the accountants, the guys who vote, who know the most about votes, who do the Electoral Commissions. I can’t take Biden’s word for it on anything.”
“Well, I mean, if there’s nothing that can be said or argued that would convince you,” Maher offered.
“I think what shocked people is that Trump got so many votes. You know, that was what was shocking. That he did so well compared to what he was expected to do,” Stone said. “Because we believed all the East Coast media.”
“Then why do you believe he could have lost?” Maher asked his guest about Biden.
“We believed all the East Coast media elite that he was going to fail and boom, they were wrong. We would love to see them being wrong, don’t we? The media elite,” Stone said. “They went too far in hating and in dumping on Trump. And people don’t like that in America. People don’t like dumping on. They did it too much.”
Bill Maher even agreed with Stone, admitting that the media no longer attempts to give a balanced, truthful reporting of the day’s events. In addition, neither mentioned the years-long, Democrat-led coup attempt that was designed to trick the public into thinking Trump was a Russian agent. Most of the mainstream media parroted the hoax.
“I was actually having this discussion about the CNN network recently. And, you know, I want there to be a CNN in the world. You know, something that I used to be able to count on. And I still do, some of it. Give it to me straight, Doc. Just give me the news,” Maher said.
“And, you know, they had this town hall with Trump about six months ago. And it was, they took a lot of flack for it. But he was adored by the audience who were Republicans, I guess, and independents. I think they said both. But whoever it was, they fucking loved him. And then the panel comes on after and they do nothing but shit on Trump and what a liar he is.”
Like Michael Moore eight years prior, Oliver Stone seemed to be sounding the alarm bell about what’s over the horizon, a mere 11 months from now. He concluded by drawing the analogy of Trump to a legendary baseball player who was famously banished from the game over gambling allegations a few decades ago.
“I think a lot of people liked him because he got dumped on so, so much. It’s like Pete Rose. You know, when he quit. Yeah. A lot of people started to resent the media for the dumping on Pete Rose.”
Oliver Stone is sounding the alarm. And the chirping canary very well may crescendo in 2024.
Rick Schultz is a former Sports Director for WFUV Radio at Fordham University. He has coached and mentored hundreds of Sports Broadcasting students at the Connecticut School of Broadcasting, Marist College and privately. His media career experiences include working for the Hudson Valley Renegades, Army Sports at West Point, The Norwich Navigators, 1340/1390 ESPN Radio in Poughkeepsie, NY, Time Warner Cable TV, Scorephone NY, Metro Networks, NBC Sports, ABC Sports, Cumulus Media, Pamal Broadcasting and WATR. He has also authored a number of books including “A Renegade Championship Summer” and “Untold Tales From The Bush Leagues”. To get in touch, find him on Twitter @RickSchultzNY.
BNM Writers
How Did Trust in Media Reach All-Time Lows?
Somewhere along the line, Americans must agree on the facts, or we will continue to be a divided nation.
Published
2 days agoon
November 27, 2023By
Andy Bloom
In my previous column, I wrote about Americans losing trust in the media.
Both conservatives and liberals can find ample examples to demonstrate why specific media sources are no longer trustworthy.
We have become a nation of two tribes. Each side has sources of news that it believes and considers the other side fake news or even propaganda.
The Economist and YouGov published a poll earlier this spring measuring how much trust Americans place in 56 media outlets, including social media.
Respondents were asked whether they “trust, distrust, or neither trust nor distrust” each media organization. The percentage of trust minus mistrust scores was calculated to create a “net trust score” for each.
Overall, The Weather Channel, arguably the only non-political entity measured, is the most trusted news source. It is ironic, considering how often we all complain about the “weather people” getting it wrong. Democrats (+64) and Republicans (+47) trust The Weather Channel.
The top four most trusted organizations were the same as the 2022 YouGov survey.
Here are the overall rankings of the 45 organizations published in the Economist-YouGov Poll.
- The Weather Channel +53
- Public Broadcasting Service (PBS) +30
- The BBC +29
- The Wall Street Journal +24
- Forbes +23
- The Associated Press +22
- ABC +21
- USA Today +21
- CBS +20
- Reuters +20
- NBC +19
- TIME Magazine +18
- The Washington Post +18
- National Public Radio (NPR) +16
- The Economist +16
- Business Insider +16
- The Guardian +15
- C-SPAN +14
- The New York Times +12
- Newsweek +12
- The New Yorker +10
- Bloomberg +10
- The Atlantic +10
- The National Review +8
- CNN +7
- New York Post +7
- The Hill +7
- Yahoo News +7
- Newsmax +6
- Axios +6
- Politico +6
- MSNBC +5
- One America News (OAN) +4
- The Washington Examiner +4
- Fox News +3
- The Federalist +3
- Slate +3
- Al Jazeera +1
- The Daily Beast +1
- HuffPost +1
- BuzzFeed News ±0
- Daily Kos −1
- Breitbart News −3
- The Daily Caller −4
- Infowars −16
Note: People who say the media organization is neither trustworthy nor untrustworthy, or that they don’t know, are not included in the calculation.
The differences between Democrats and Republicans are remarkable. In general, Republicans have less trust in the media overall.
Republicans have the most trust in Fox News and positive trust only in Fox News, the New York Post, and The Wall Street Journal.
Independents have a slight degree of trust in most news organizations, while Democrats have a significant degree of confidence in most of the media groups measured, except for Fox News.
| Organization | Democrat Net Trust | Independent Net Trust | Republican Net Trust |
| CBS | +58 | +15 | -17 |
| CNN | +54 | -1 | -36 |
| Fox News | -16 | -11 | +40 |
| NPR | +56 | +10 | -20 |
| NBC | +60 | +9 | -16 |
| New York Post | +18 | -1 | +3 |
| New York Times | +53 | +8 | -30 |
| Wall Street Journal | +42 | +19 | +9 |
| Washington Post | +51 | +14 | -14 |
Republicans and Democrats see information through completely different filters. The results for the entire survey, including crosstabs, can be found here.
Somewhere along the line, Americans must agree on the facts, or we will continue to be a divided nation. The media needs to do its part to bridge the divide.
Andy Bloom is president of Andy Bloom Communications. He specializes in media training and political communications. He has programmed legendary stations including WIP, WPHT and WYSP/Philadelphia, KLSX, Los Angeles and WCCO Minneapolis. He was Vice President Programming for Emmis International, Greater Media Inc. and Coleman Research. Andy also served as communications director for Rep. Michael R. Turner, R-Ohio. He can be reached by email at an[email protected] or you can follow him on Twitter @AndyBloomCom.
