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September 18, 2005

Not much news here: pay no attention

By

Mediacrity is spot on with its criticism of the New York Times for downplaying the orgy of violence and the systematic violations of agreements in the handover of Gaza to Palestinian control.

One of the most prolific yet easy to overlook forms of bias is just that —— overlooking. Not reporting. Or reporting and underplaying.

The New York Times, in both its news and editorial pages, habitually ignores or underplays stories that do not fit its preconceived notions and biases, especially the Sulzberger Indifference Template for coverage of the Middle East. The disastrous Gaza withdrawal is an excellent example of that.

Since Sept. 12, when Israel forces withdrew, Gaza has been the site of an orgy of looting and violence that has included wholesale violations of Israel's agreements with Egypt and the Palestinians to police the border. In keeping with the Template, the Times has reacted by keeping its coverage to a bare minimum —— making it resemble, in its Gaza coverage, a small—town newspaper out in the sagebrush more than a major "newspaper of record."

Thomas Lifson   9 18 05