by Dr. Gilbert N. Kahn

May 28, 2009

The print media are in trouble. Magazines and newspapers, Anglo-Jewish papers included, are cutting back and closing. The economics of print journalism, the era of instant 24/7 news cycles, and the availability of virtually totally free news on the Internet spell the death knell of the news business as we know it — unless someone develops a financially viable model similar to what cable TV became versus network TV.

While the print media may be dying, it is really the public that is in trouble. Coverage of local city halls, community boards, state governments, and the arts is suffering as newspaper staffs are reduced and magazines downsize. While at some level there is an increase in analysis, the breadth and scope of news coverage has been diminished.

We all thirst for news. The old media are being replaced by cable TV, the Internet, the blogosphere, and mass market e-mailing. For these forms of “news” there are few standards, little credibility, no oversight, and no control. Social scientists have consistently shown that we readers desire, first and foremost, material that reinforces our biases. Even worse, there are no longer any assurances that what you are reading has been double-sourced or held accountable to objective measures of “truth.”

As a result, Jewish activists are inundated by a barrage of pseudo stories about Israel and the Jewish community that are dubious at best, utter fabrications at worst. While the senders, or more frequently the “forwarders,” may be well intentioned and genuinely alarmed by a particular story and/or its implications, few bother checking the original for accuracy or even believability. So invariably these blasts reinforce biases that are ingrained in the Jewish or strongly pro-Israel community and are most often accepted at face value.

During the recent presidential campaign, those who opposed Barack Obama flooded cyberspace with a barrage of assaults on the candidate. They impugned his record of support for Israel, suggested that he was a Muslim, and claimed he surrounded himself with anti-Israel advisers. Although these charges were exposed repeatedly as fallacious, they persisted throughout the campaign.

Similarly, for almost two years there has been a consistent attack against Great Britain, suggesting that the government had ceased requiring Holocaust education in the British school systems. The charge has been consistently shown to be false. Even the Holocaust Educational Trust in Britain, which is funded largely by Jewish contributors, does not understand why the public does not recognize how extensive the Holocaust school program is in Britain, including a teacher-training program and sending students to visit the site of Auschwitz.

This past week saw the latest “you must read this” outrage. A letter, purportedly written on official United Nations stationery, was said to contain a speech given by UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon. The alleged speech suggested that based on a considered legal analysis of UN documents, Israel had violated the terms of its creation by the UN and its subsequent admission to the world body. As a result, Ban Ki-moon was calling the General Assembly into special session to withdraw the UN terms for the establishment of Israel and to expel Israel from the UN. While much of the criticism of the UN by pro-Israel and Jewish activists is valid, the “letter” is a total fabrication — in fact, it is a signed piece of wishful thinking by an anti-Israel Canadian writer.

The Jewish community needs to cease fanning flames of hatred and hostility where there is no fire. There are many people who do not like Israel and/or Jews. They have learned well how to use the Internet to stir the pot of anti-Semitism and hostility toward Israel. In light of the decline in reputable, traditional media, there are fewer reliable outside sources to assess and evaluate hostile diatribes against Jews. As a result, anti-Semites and those opposed to Israel will gain a larger and more credulous audience.

If American Jews are to be part of combating this trend, it is essential that the information that comes out of the Jewish community and from friends of Israel be reliable and unimpeachable. In an age that is seeing the proliferation of unaccountable media, we must read and consider the sources and the accuracy of all information we receive and share. Of all people, we need to set a standard.

Dr. Gilbert N. Kahn is a professor of political science at Kean University in Union (gkahn@kean.edu).

Comment: comments@njjewishnews.com

--TOP--