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28 Jan 2011 12:54

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World: Al-Jazeera: How the network became the Arab world’s conscience

  • The notion that there is a common struggle across the Arab world is something Al Jazeera helped create. They did not cause these events, but it’s almost impossible to imagine all this happening without al-Jazeera.
  • George Washington University Middle East Studies professor Marc Lynch • Describing the role in popular uprisings that al-Jazeera has had over the years. It’s a role that’s clearly becoming more apparent this week as protests and popular uprisings become more widespread. While many praise the Qatar-based network for this role (we certainly do), others note that its coverage often seems biased or plays favorites – particularly favoring Hezbollah and Hamas. That said, al-Jazeera hasn’t played such a central role as the conscience of the Arab world since the heady days of the Iraq War in 2003. Especially considering scenes like this one. source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

28 Jan 2011 11:13

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World: Egypt’s situation completely screwed up beyond disrepair today

  • To be clear, a lot is happening in Egypt right now. It’s a giant mess, really. Nobel Peace laureate Mohamed ElBaradei is reportedly under house arrest, media outlets are getting attacked, security forces are attacking protesters, the internet’s OFF … pretty much every bad thing that could happen in a revolution is happening today. It’s very much a “where-do-we-start”-type of situation. There is no central point. It’s a lot of bad, everywhere. We’ll try our best to keep an eye on all this today. (tweet via @alaa, a South African who has been covering Egypt heavily) source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

24 Jan 2011 10:13

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World: Palestine: Al-Jazeera’s “Palestine Papers” full of lies

  • We don’t have anything to hide. [The papers have been] taken out of context and contain lies … Al-Jazeera’s information is full of distortions and fraud.
  • PLO chief negotiator Saeb Erekat • Denying the claims of al-Jazeera and The Guardian, which published the Palestine Papers, which reportedly show that Palestinians were ready to give Israel a huge concession without getting much of anything from Israel. Hamas officials, on the other hand, is quite angry about the report, saying it shows “this leadership is not honest.” FYI: More stuff is coming this week. Keep an eye out. source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

12 Dec 2010 21:57

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World: Wikileaks: Al-Jazeera targets of U.S. scorn, and they’re not happy

  • Who might that be? Well … back in 2005, when Al-Jazeera was a tad bit more controversial, it leaked that George W. Bush and Tony Blair talked about attacking up the Qatar headquarters of the Middle East’s most-well-known news outlet. More recently, in the latest spat of WIkileaks data, cables suggested U.S. was concerned that the news outlet was a mouthpiece for Qatar. Al-Jazeera denies those allegations, saying that their goal has long been “to give a voice to the voiceless; to hold centres of power to account; and to uphold our editorial independence no matter what the cost.” In recent years, this has perhaps become a bit more obvious, but after 9/11 … source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

13 Apr 2010 21:42

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World: Kyrgyzstan’s president willing to resign … conditionally

  • The situation is very tense. Taking the president by force is the last option for this government but they do not want Bakiyev or his closest sons and brothers to walk away from this.
  • Al Jazeera reporter Robin Forestier-Walker • Discussing the fate of ousted Kyrgyzstan president Kurmanbek Bakiyev, who has offered to conditionally resign. His conditions? Well: “First of all, they should guarantee that in Kyrgyzstan there are no more people walking around with weapons, and no seizures or redistribution of property … Also, I need to know that my own security and the security of members of my family and those close to me will be assured.” So, if you can offer all of this stuff to the president, he’ll quit. source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

29 Jan 2010 12:06

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World: Osama bin Laden believes in climate change more than the GOP

  • Talk about climate change is not an ideological luxury but a reality. All of the industrialized countries, especially the big ones, bear responsibility for the global warming crisis.
  • “Osama bin Laden” • As quoted in a new audiotape released by Al Jazeera. Now, before you conclude that Osama’s just offering up crazy talk, bin Laden also suggests that all global economies stop relying on the dollar as a benchmark. He also offered up this nugget of knowledge bound to get people talking: “Noam Chomsky was correct when he compared the U.S. policies to those of the Mafia.” See? Totally sane. source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink

15 Jun 2009 10:52

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World: Well, that’s good to know: Iran’s booting out foreign media

  • They’re looking to stop the flow of information. Al Jazeera English reports that foreign news crews are getting limited access from the Iranian government. Says their Tehran-based reporter Teymoor Nabili, “Day-by-day our ability to access any information has been slowly whittled away.” They’re not alone, either. A Spanish news crew was booted from the country, and opposition leader Mir Hossein Mousavi’s newspaper Kalameh Sabz was blocked from publication over the printing of a caricature which apparently was an insult to Mahmoud Ahmadinejad. Freedom of the press is important. These guys are on the front lines fighting for it. source
Posted by Ernie Smith • 0 Comments • Permalink
 

03 Jun 2009 10:00

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U.S., World: Osama bin Laden does what he does best: Fearmongers

  • Obama and his administration have planted seeds for hatred and revenge against America.
  • Osama bin Laden • In an audiotape aired Wednesday by Al Jazeera that was designed to undercut the speech Obama plans to make to the Muslim world in Egypt. Bin Laden (or whoever is playing him on the tape) has good reason to come out and criticize Obama now – his open-arms diplomacy represents a threat to terrorist organizations in the Middle East. • source
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