[Peace-discuss] Democracy Now! & the Israel Lobby

[C. G. Estabrook]

[As usual what is not said is most important.  Rothschild defended the 
description of NF as at least a "holocaust-minimizer." Finkelstein's comments 
follow.  --CGE]

Several listeners to Wisconsin Public Radio informed me last week that The 
Progressive Political Editor, Ruth Conniff, referred to me as an "anti-Semite" 
and a "Holocaust denier" on air. I have now had an opportunity to listen to an 
audiotape of the program on which she appeared. These are Conniff's exact words:

"I was talking to a friend of mine who is going up for tenure at DePaul 
University at the same time as Norm Finkelstein, a colleague of hers who is a 
Holocaust denier, who is a Holocaust minimizer, sort of a, y'know, he's a 
celebrity in a certain, a pretty ugly anti-semitic group in the country and he 
is going up for tenure and I think is on his way to becoming a tenured professor."

I requested from Progressive editor-in-chief Mathew Rothschild the evidence to 
support these allegations or a retraction and an apology ... In the replies of 
his that have been cc'd to me, he's repeatedly stated that:

     * he carefully checked the facts before writing the letter
     * Conniff did not intend any harm with her remarks on my tenure case, and
     * he has no regrets about what she said or what he wrote...


Morton K. Brussel wrote:
> FYI
> 
> Dear Morton Brussel,
> Thanks for sending me your note.
> 
> You should know that I have never said one word in public against Norman 
> Finkelstein.
> 
> All that I did was respond to a direct threat of a lawsuit from him with 
> a private letter, which he then posted on his website.
> 
> This was not an attack on Norman Finkelstein. It was a private defense 
> against the prospect of a lawsuit.
> 
> No one here at /The Progressive/ has ever intended any harm to him.
> 
> I bear him no ill will, and we see eye to eye on a lot of issues, 
> including the cause of justice and peace for Palestinians, which he has 
> courageously championed.
> 
> Best,
> 
> Matthew Rothschild
> Editor, The Progressive
> 
> On Feb 15, 2008, at 10:29 AM, Morton K. Brussel wrote:
> Dear Mr. Rothschild,
> 
> I've been a subscriber to /The Progressive/, on and off, for some time. 
> Very recently, and belatedly, I was shocked to read of your attack on 
> Norman Finkelstein while defending Ruth  Coniff. 
> 
> Unless I see a published apology to Mr. Finkelstein and those who, with 
> him, wish to see justice and peace established for a Palestinian people 
> strangled by the Israeli state, I shall cancel my subscription to your 
> magazine. You have, unexplicably, gravely wronged Norman Finkelstein. 
> 
> Others have well expressed the reasons why they have been outraged by 
> your remarks, so I won't repeat them here; I'm sure you know of them by 
> now  [_http://www.normanfinkelstein.com/article.php?pg=3&ar=67]_ 
> <http://www.normanfinkelstein.com/article.php?pg=3&ar=67%5D>.
> 
> Sincerely,
> 
> Morton K. Brussel
> Urbana, Illinois
> 
> On Feb 14, 2008, at 9:22 PM, C. G. Estabrook wrote:
> 
>> It would be good if he got a lot of complaints from DN! listeners.  
>> His email seems to be <mattr at progressive.org 
>> <mailto:mattr at progressive.org>>. --CGE
>> …
> 
> 
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