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Tag: Media

BBC Report Explains How US & UK Weapons Flow To Al-Qaida & Other Extremists In Syria

Posted in Journalism, and MintPress News

Western weapons and equipment flow freely between the so-called “moderate” rebels in Syria and their close allies from extremist groups like al-Qaida, according to an investigation from a BBC reporter.

In a Dec. 17 episode of the BBC Radio series “The Report,” investigative journalist Peter Oborne documented disturbing evidence that the United Kingdom and United States continue to support the the Syrian opposition, particularly the Free Syrian Army, despite ample evidence that they work closely with extremist groups NATO has traditionally thought of as enemies.

Oborne reported that at least two Westerners who were accused of aiding extremist groups in the region, found their charges rapidly dropped when they argued that by seeking to destabilize Syria and depose its president, Bashar Assad, they’d fought on the same side as the U.K.

He also explained how the U.S. has aided al-Qaida’s efforts to “rebrand” its Syrian branch, the Nusra Front, as a moderate group able to be safely financed and “managed” by the U.S.

As Oborne noted, government officials as high-ranking as the vice president have admitted that ”[t]he United States and al-Qaida are on the same side, at least when it comes to fighting Assad.”

Alex Jones Is ‘No Better Than ISIS’: How The Infowars Host Spreads Fear For Profit

Posted in Austin, Journalism, and MintPress News

Allying himself with figures like Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump, infamous talk show host and conspiracy theorist Alex Jones is spreading misinformation about Muslims online and in his weekly radio program.

This tactic is Jones’ latest effort to use fear to generate clicks for his popular website and weekly radio program, “Infowars,” and to boost profits for his advertisers.

In a Dec. 8 broadcast, Jones defended Trump’s plan to close U.S. borders to Muslims. According to the talk show host, “upwards of 25 percent (of Muslims) who’ve been polled say they sympathize with ISIS and want to conduct violent attacks in Europe and the United States.”

MSNBC Opts To Apologize After Airing Map Of Disappearing Palestine

Posted in Journalism, and MintPress News

Earlier this month, MSNBC aired a well-known, but controversial graphic that illustrates how Israel has taken over Palestine as the occupation of the region has grown over time.

The graphic, which appeared during an Oct. 15 discussion between MSNBC anchor Kate Snow and Martin Fletcher, a Middle East correspondent, shows a series of four maps dating from 1946 to the present that depict the loss of Palestinian territory to Israel.

During the segment, Fletcher discussed the ways that Israel’s provocative behavior at Al-Aqsa Mosque is a major trigger for the latest violence in Gaza and the West Bank, then Snow introduced the graphic as it appeared on screen, saying: “What does that show you, Martin, that the area Palestinians are living, has it grown increasingly smaller?”

Mainstream Media Focuses On Israeli Deaths While Ignoring Israeli Violence

Posted in Journalism, and MintPress News

Despite widespread criticism over the ways Israel has provoked the latest wave of violence engulfing the West Bank and Gaza, the media in the West mostly focuses on attacks by Palestinians on Israeli settlers and soldiers, ignoring the context that led to the current tensions.

Electronic Intifada, a site that advocates for Palestinian freedom, noted that a prominent BBC radio programon Monday attempted to imply that all of the dead in recent violence were Israelis:

‘The Politics Of Spite’: Media Compares UK’s Jeremy Corbyn To Terrorists, Donald Trump

Posted in Journalism, and MintPress News

On Saturday, the UK’s Labour Party elected Jeremy Corbyn to be its newest leader, and many in the media described the event in nightmarish terms, even comparing Corbyn to ISIS and Donald Trump. In reality, Corbyn has far more in common with the Labour Party’s socialist roots, and modern anti-austerity movements, then either an outspoken, racist billionaire or any religious extremist.

Adam Johnson, a journalist who contributes to Fairness and Accuracy In Reporting, tweeted out five outrageous headlines he’d seen in the wake of Corbyn’s election, all from independent media outlet The Daily Beast.

Ranging from calling Corbyn “The Labor Party’s Two Word Suicide Note” and “Lefty Christmas” to “Hezbollah’s Man In London: The Improbable Rise Of Wild-Eyed Jeremy Corbyn,” Johnson wryly commented that readers could “play ‘spot the agenda.’” The Daily Beast did later change its most extreme headline, which originally read, “What Corbyn, Trump, and Radical Islamists Have In Common,” to “The Daily Hate: Corbyn, Trump, And The New Politics Of Spite.”