Akiva Eldar: Proud Not to Be Objective
Elder of Ziyon has flagged a Nation article by Ha’aretz‘s Akiva Eldar, winner of a Search for Common Ground journalism prize, in which he proudly flaunts his lack of objectivity:
The prominent Israeli columnist Nahum Barnea wrote in November 2000 (in a publication of the Israel Democracy Institute) that “there are Israeli reporters who do not pass the ‘lynch test.'” These, he wrote, are journalists who could not bring themselves to criticize the Arabs even when two Israelis were savagely murdered by a mob in Ramallah. Barnea, who last year was awarded the Israel Prize for journalism, went on to argue that our support for the Palestinian position is absolute. He concluded, “They have a mission.” I was honored to be mentioned as one of those journalists, alongside my fine colleagues Gideon Levy and Amira Hass.
I admit to being guilty as charged. I am a journalist with a mission, and also no small amount of passion. Every Israeli with a conscience, in particular one who watches reality from up close on a daily basis, cannot write about the occupation from an objective observer’s neutral point of view.
Too bad for Israeli journalism that Eldar’s mission is inconsistent with the Israel Press Council’s code of ethics regarding objectivity.
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