I am what Grammy Hall would call a "real Jew."
At a family bat mitzvah, my recitation of the aliya shone so brightly above the rest that my girlfriend's parents declared with pride, "That's our Jew!"
I graduated first in my Hebrew School class, and was recognized with the Steven R. Bruckner Memorial Award, named for an unfortunate lad who died on the way home from his bar mitzvah. (The top girl and boy split a $50 prize. I bought two Incredible String Band albums with my share.).
All this is to establish my Semitic street cred. I could go on--how I always know where to get the best Chinese food, the time a waiter at the Carnegie Deli whispered to me "lose that girl" when my companion ordered a pastrami with mayo sandwich, my eagerness to sue newspapers that mock the way I run my football team and run what I consider to be anti-Semitic pictures of me--no wait, that's Dan Snyder.
So you should listen from what I'm saying, even if your rabbi would give you such a look.
Watch Al Jazeera. Watch it all the time.
That's what I'm doing. Ever since the uprising began in Egypt, and I discovered that my cable system was one of three in the U.S. that carried Al Jazeera English (the other two in Burlington, Vermont, which makes sense, and Toledo, Ohio, which is just weird), I've been glued to the channel on my TV and computer.
It didn't take me long to pick some favorite correspondents, all of whom were reporting from Egypt under tremendous pressure. First there was Ayman Mohyeldin, whose name my brain first spelled in the Irish manner, Eamon, and considering he spoke with an American accent I thought he might possibly be from the old sod. He seemed to be reporting all day and all night from Tahrir Square, except when we were told that the Al Jazeera bureau had been raided and he had been detained.
Then there were the anchors from Doha, Qatar (I admit it, I just like saying Doha, Qatar) who, unlike their American counterparts, seem to be more than the sum of their carefully coiffed parts. When they interrupt their guests, it isn't to spring a "gotcha" question or show off their own agenda, but rather, to get an answer to a question about breaking news that just can't wait.
Contrast this to what passes for international news on our own cable news networks. I'm talking, of course, about Wolf Blitzer, who is reliably believed to have had a computer chip implanted in his beard that prompts him to chirp, "You're in the situation room," every 12.5 seconds. (No, I'm not, I'm in my house--and please stay away).
I like Al Jazeera's graphics. I like their theme music (OK, it does sound like the BBC's). I like the cheerful fellow who does the weather reports and tells me about cyclones in Madagascar. I've just downloaded Al Jazeera's app, so I can watch it on my iphone.
Don't get me wrong. I'm still proud of my ethnic heritage and I won't be swapping Passover for Ramadan anytime soon. But I also value the Jewish tradition of questioning, independent thinking and commitment to social justice.
I'm glad that the events in the middle east are bringing new audiences to Al Jazeera English, and that the channel's cable coverage is likely to increase beyond the pioneering markets of DC, Toledo and Burlington. I expect to be watching Al Jazeera a lot more in the future, grateful for something I never thought I'd find on cable news--information and perspective I can't get anywhere else, thoughtful, intelligent reporting and clarity about some of the most difficult issues of the day.
So nu? Don't tell Netanyahu! Watch Al Jazeera too!
Follow William Klein on Twitter: www.twitter.com/William_Klein
It's great so many posts are enthusiastic about your article.
As a highly educated group, most of your readers and posters know that the owner of Al-Jazeera English is the petro dollar billionaire, the Emir of Qatar, who also owns Al-Jazeera Arabic. Your fans more than likely also know that while Al-Jazeera English does water down their anti-Semitic, pro-Jihad programming available on Al-Jazeera Arabic, the Qatar government has developed a reputation over the years as a supporter of terrorist organizations such as al-Qaeda, Hamas, and Hezbollah.
You probably knew that, and in the interest of fairness understand how important it is to be even handed in reporting both sides of the news.
What some don't understand is why a lot of the work Al-Jazeera has been doing in countries like Egypt, consists of provoking and covering riots and demonstrations.
It may interest some of your readers and posters to note that during the riots in Egypt, Al-Jazeera played down the role of the demonstrators who assaulted your colleague, CBS News reporter Lara Logan, who suffered serious injuries. In the Jewish tradition of questioning, independent thinking, and commitment to social justice, some people would like to know why?
I'm not only an American Jew but an Iraq Qar vet too, and the sense of "real, useful news" is indispensable. I have to watch it on grainy computer feed that stutters because --big surprise-- very few American networks have the cojones to carry it (Canada, with one-tenth our population, has it on
5 networks, IIRC).
Oh, and I'd tell Netanyahu to his face about watching al-Jazeera; he is no friend to the Jews-- he drags us through the mud and the sooner "we" get rid of him and Lieberman, the better off we'll be.
http://www.toledoblade.com/frontpage/2011/01/30/Review-Arab-Americans-in-Toledo-is-flawed-but-essential-work.html
as-Salâm Alaikum!
I'm going to tell you, there's a bigger miracle this morning. This is a classic Pentecostal sitting by a Baptist, fundamentalist Baptist. I'm sitting here with an incredible historian who comes also from (INAUDIBLE) you'd say an independent background.
But we are all here as a family and we're sitting here with a more Mormon on television, where we know theologically we could have some very heated discussions. I'm going to tell you something about our discussion. The love of God that's in my heart for you is beyond my ability to aptly describe."
http://www.foxnews.com/on-air/glenn-beck/transcript/beck-practice-what-you-preach?page=3
I want my news un-pre-digested (if I may coin a word) by corporate-interest-think (if I may coin another). When the news arrives tainted, in some conceptual straightjacket that deprives the viewer of the whole, the viewer is gradually and permanently stupefied. While most of our corporate media are slightly less egregious than NewsCorp, it is far from adequate to keep the USA competitive with the world.
a fact that far too many "Patriotic Americans" refuse to believe
I just saw Wolfowitz on CNN call AJ "anti American", which in my opinion is unfair. AJ has come across as fair, and comparable to other networks like the BBC. I am afraid that certain factions in the US do not want the American people to get the real picture of what is happening in the Middle East, and AJ will be able to make many Americans open their eyes to what is really going on there.
I hope that soon I will be able to watch AJ at home, in New Jersey.
If contacting your local cable provider doesn't work, try contacting the public television affiliate at your local university and ask if they can get the same deal Grand Valley State did for at least some air time each day. I also get France 24 (French CNN) for 30 minutes, which is nice because I went to France through GVSU's study abroad program.
www.haaretz.com