1. What did Steyn’s article insinuate about Robert Fisk and his view on 911?

It insinuated that Fisk in some way approved of the crimes committed on 911 and that Fisk would absolve or dismiss the hijackers of 911. 

 What was Fisk’s crime according to Steyn and why?

His crime was that he reported why, what, and where questions. Because he did not go with the flow and reported that there were Afghan civilian deaths, which fueled the Afghani fury against the West. 

Why did Fisk say that “there would be an attempt in the coming days to avoid asking the “why” question?

He said this because there was a history of deceit/lies in the middle, Arab anger grew because thousands of their children had been killed under UN sanctions and because Israel continued to occupy Palestine.

What did Fisk suggest in his first article to The Independent?

He said that 1000’s of Afahanistans may soon die as a result of the outrages in New York and Washington. 

Why was Fisk criticized for his first article?

It was wicked suggest that someone might have had reasons to commit the 911 slaughter. Also to critize the US was to be anti-american or a nazi. 

 Why did Fisk say that “our reporting” has reached such poverty of expression as to render any real understanding of the conflict impossible?

Fisk said this because reporting in the middle east is flawed, biased towards Israel, language of Middle East Journalism has become slippery and locked in by the State Dept/Pres/US diplomats/Israeli Officials. 

What are the 2 reasons that Fisk gives that journalists are lieing about what is happening in the middle east?

-That ware afraid of criticism from Israel and its supporters

-Or because “journalists prefer an easy life, unencumbered by hate mail and letters to the editor. 

Why does Fisk say that the use of the word “terrorist” or “terrorism” is misrepresented and may need redefining?.

Fisk states that ther word terrorist is overused perhaps to the point of being racist.  He says it is difficult to explain to Arabs why the NY and Washington Massacre was an “act of terrorism” while the 1700 Palestinians killed in the Sabra and Shatila refugee camp has not called an act of terrorism. 

By how much more was the death toll at Shatila than that of the twin towers?

It was more than half. 

What did CNN and others refer Baruch Goldstein as when he massacrede twenty-nine Palestinians in a Hebron Mosque on February 25, 1994 and when Hamas took revenge what with a bus bomb in the Israeli town Afula what was the act labeled?

-He was not called a terrorist but rather referred to as “deranged” by CNN, “deranged by fanaticism  by the Israeli Ambassador in London, and as an “extremist” by others. 

- CNN Reporter Bill Daley said that it was an act of terrorism 

What event intrigued Fisk to say, “I understood the implications immediately: that Palestinians throw stones at Israelis without reason…that Palestinians are somehow “generically” violent?

-CNN used video of children throwing rocks in revolt against the Israeli troops in Gaza out of context.  The children did not revolt because they wanted peace, but because their homes were just torn down because a Hamas gunman had been found in the area. 

Why was the cover on Newsweek magazine on February 19, 2003 significant?

It was significant because it donned a picture of a Palestinian in a Kiffa headdress holding a rifle of a man going to a funeral.  The photo was used out of context in the magazine because it was supposed to insinuate that “Fear Goes Global” but in reality it was just a man going to a funeral.  Newsweek lied by using this cover picture.  The man in the uniform had nothing to do with bin laden or the lead story of the magazine. 

What was the affect that took place when the State Department told its top diplomats to stop using the word “occupied” in relation to the West Bank and Gaza and instead call the lands “disputed”?

Journalist erase the colonies illegally built (for Jews only) on Arab land, they erase Israeli checkpoints, from the West Bank and Gaza.

What does the word “disputed,” suggest? 

It suggests an argument about land deeds (who owns the land Gaza/West Bank) “conflicting heritage claims)

What does the word “war-won” suggest?

The expression places an almost victorious facade upon the illegality of occupation (who owns the land)

Why did the BBC advise its reporters in the Middle East  to use the phrase  “targeted killings for the murder of Palestinians instead of “assasinations”? Whats the irony of using the words targeted killings?

Because the word assassination is for people more important.

- The irony is that “targeted killings” is Israel’s own term for killing select Palestinians, but also includes civilians including women and children.

What word do journalists use as a copout for innocent dead Arabs?

“Crossfire” and “Clashes”

What is the easiest way out of hate-male for journalists?

It is to distort the coverage so that events that are unfavorable to Israel are buried deep in the story. 

Who is Ariel Sharon, what country did he lead, and why is he called a killer? 

He was the 11^th Prime Minister of Israel.  He was viewed as a killer by the Arab world because of his long association with deadly attacks on Palestine. 

Who said that “the duty of a journalist is to monitor the centers of power” and what question does it pose?

Israeli Journalist Amira Haas. It poses the question that How can Amira Haas say things that her American Journalists shy away from?

What year did the Sabra and Shatilla massacre happen? 

1982

Why did Fisk feel ashamed to be a foreing Correspondent?

Fisk felt ashamed because his documentary for the Discovery on called Beiruit to Bosnia only ran once due to the reaction of the people who watched it and there would not be another airing. 

 What was CNN Boss Walter Isaacson’s reasoning for telling his staff “it seems perverse to focus to much on the casualties  or hardship in Afghanistan”? And how did Fisk feel about this?

His reasoning was that by airing to much about the casualties/hardships will run the risk of helping the Taliban.  Fisk said it was the most shameful journalistic remark ever to come from a media head.

Robert Fisk Middle East correspondent of the The Independent