[Peace-discuss] Examiner Ad Demonizes Palestinian Children.

[C. G. Estabrook]

[There's an update to this.  Apparently the ad has been pulled with an
apology. Also, I had trouble downloading the attachment, so I'll append
the text of the update and the original notification from EI.  --CGE]


Examiner pulls offensive ad, apologizes
Ali Abunimah, The Electronic Intifada, 28 January 2005

The company that publishes The San Francisco Examiner and Washington
Examiner newspapers has pulled an advertisement that demonized Palestinian
children and has apologized for causing offense.

The advertisement appeared in Media Week, a trade publication, as part of
a campaign by The Examiner to sell advertising space in its newspapers.

On 25 January, EI asked its readers to contact Mark Wurzer, Vice-President
of Advertising, and Jim Pimentel, Managing Editor at The Examiner, to
politely request they:

# immediately withdraw the adverstisement;
# apologize for stereotyping and demonizing Palestinian children

On 27 January 2004, The Examiner responded positively. Scott McKibben,
publisher, replied to concerned enquirers in a letter that stated:

"It has been brought to our attention that a recent advertisement
published in Media Week promoting The Examiner has caused concern and
offence to readers. On behalf of Clarity Media Group and The Examiner in
Washington and San Francisco, we sincerely apologise. Clarity Media will
immediately remove this advertisement from their campaign and new artwork
will be used for the remaining duration of the marketing program."

Thanks to all who wrote letters of concern to The Examiner. EI's original
action item has been updated with The Examiner's positive response. Please
consider sending a note of thanks to the company for their prompt and
responsible action.

<http://electronicintifada.net/v2/article3572.shtml>


Examiner ad demonizes Palestinian children
Ali Abunimah, The Electronic Intifada, 25 January 2005

IMPORTANT: See update before taking action.

The Electronic Intifada calls on its readers to protest an advertisement
for the San Francisco Examiner and Washington Examiner newspapers
demonizing Palestinian children. The advertisment appeared in the 24
January 2005 of Media Week, a trade publication.

Above: The offending Examiner advertisement in Media Week.


THE PROBLEM

The advertisement aims to attract advertisers to the Examiner newspapers.
It includes a picture of a girl playing a violin on the left-hand side of
the page, and another picture of a girl carrying an assault rifle on the
right-hand side of the page. Superimposed over the two pictures is the
legend "PTA to PLO," with PTA over the girl with the violin and PLO over
the girl with the rifle.

The pictures are undated and unsourced, however the implication is clear:
the girl with the rifle is supposed to represent a Palestinian girl and
embody what the PLO stands for.

Such anti-Palestinian stereotypes obscure the reality that over the past
four years Palestinian children have been the principal victims of
violence and other human rights abuses in the Israel-Palestine conflict.

625 Palestinian children were killed by the Israeli army and settlers in
the occupied West Bank and Gaza Strip between 29 September 2000 and 31
December 2004 according to the Palestine Red Crescent Society. Over 100
Israeli children have been killed by Palestinians during the same period.

Amnesty International has frequently condemned violence against
Palestinian and Israeli children. In a 20 November 2004 statement, the
organization said:

    "Many killings of Palestinian children by Israeli armed forces have
been unlawful, as wilful, killings resulting from acts including reckless
shooting, tank and aircraft shelling and bombardments and house
destruction. As such these killings are grave breaches of the Fourth
Geneva Convention and therefore war crimes. Such killings have been part
of widespread, as well as systematic, acts against Palestinian civilians.
They have been carried out by Israeli armed forces pursuant to government
policy, evidenced by the knowledge and approval of government authorities
who are fully aware that for over four years such practices have
consistently resulted in the killing or injury of civilians and who have
declined to take effective steps to prevent such killings of civilians.
They, therefore, meet the definition of crimes against humanity under
international law."


Amnesty also highlighted that:

    "In their daily lives, Palestinian children throughout the Occupied
Territories have also been exposed to an increasingly high level of
violence and violations of many of their rights including the right to
education, to an adequate standard of living, to the highest attainable
standard of health, to safe and secure housing, and to freedom of
movement. For four years many have been confronted with Israeli army
aircraft circling the sky or launching missiles, and with Israeli army
tanks outside their homes and schools. Their villages and neighbourhoods
have been kept under siege and they have often been confined to their
homes for days and weeks at a time by curfews and closures. They have been
forced to go through military checkpoints to get to school or to take long
detours and to climb over blockades or in and out of ditches in order to
visit relatives or to go to the doctor."

    Source: web.amnesty.org/library/index/ENGMDE020022004


The vast majority of killings are never investigated and rarely are the
killers punished by Israeli authorities.

While these human rights abuses continue unabated, some pro-Israel groups
have aggressively used unrepresentative images similar to the one in The
Examiner advertisement in campaigns designed to demonize Palestinian
children and portray them as violent and Israel-hating and thereby justify
or explain away violence against them.

Original Reuters caption: "An Israeli boy plays with a machine gun during
a rally in the Gush Katif settlement bloc in the Gaza Strip, April 27,
2004 to protest Prime Minister Ariel Sharon's plan to abandon Jewish
enclaves in the Gaza Strip. The surprisingly high turnout of upwards of
50,000 flag- waving Israelis for an Independence Day march stirred hopes
among settlers of defeating a crucial May 2 referendum of Sharon's
right-wing Likud party on his 'disengagement' plan." (Photo: REUTERS/Ronen
Zvulun)

At the same time, equally disturbing images of Israeli children are
readily available but have not been used by advocates for Palestinian
rights to try to depict Israeli children in a similar manner. While many
news organizations have taken seriously debunked claims that Palestinian
children are routinely taught anti-Israel "hatred" and "incitement" in
their schools, they have largely ignored evidence that Israeli children,
particularly in West Bank settlements are indoctrinated with anti-Arab
hatred. A lengthy report by Ada Upshiz in Israel's Ha'aretz newspaper on
21 January, for example, revealed how some Israeli children routinely
terrorize Palestinians and call for the killing of all Palestinians if
they do not leave their homeland.

These phenomena are deeply disturbing and can be documented on both sides
of the conflict. They are the product of a long and bitter conflict and
should never be used to demonize children.

News organizations have a responsibility to investigate the reality behind
hate-motivated campaigns against Palestinian children and should certainly
not draw on the same stereotypes to sell advertising.


THE SOLUTION

EI asked its readers to contact Mark Wurzer, Vice-President of
Advertising, and Jim Pimentel, Managing Editor at The Examiner, to
politely request that The Examiner:
# immediately withdraw the adverstisement;
# apologize for stereotyping and demonizing Palestinian children

On 27 January 2004, The Examiner responded positively. Scott McKibben,
publisher, replied to concerned enquirers in a letter that stated:

    "It has been brought to out attention that a recent advertisement
published in Media Week promoting The Examiner has caused concern and
offence to readers. On behalf of Clarity Media Group and The Examiner in
Washington and San Francisco, we sincerely apologise. Clarity Media will
immediately remove this advertisement from their campaign and new artwork
will be used for the remaining duration of the marketing program."

Please consider sending a note of thanks for The Examiner's quick and
encouraging response to this issue to: letters at examiner.com


<http://electronicintifada.net/v2/article3559.shtml>