Editorials are posted and archived on JN Online:
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An Especially Challenging Year
I t was a year that tested our faith, values, opti-
mism and hopes fora peaceful future.
The carnage on buses in Jerusalem, at a
Passover seder in Netanya and within the
World Trade Center towers in New York City was
executed in the name of Allah against Jews, other
infidels and Western civilization. Our collective
shock and outrage, as Americans and Jews, are mag-
nified when "participants" in the worldwide war
against terror seek to separate the slaughter of
Israelis from the slaughter of others.
We see young Palestinian women lionized by many
in their society, including their families, for blowing
themselves tip in the midst of Jews. If male homicide
bombers earn a harem of virgins in the next world,
what do these young women receive? How sick.
We fume as we watch distorted media images
dance across our television screens and seethe when
one local daily newspaper provides a history of the
Arab-Israeli conflict that positions Palestinian leader
Yasser Arafat as a cross between Presidents Thomas
Jefferson and Abraham Lincoln.
We cheer when President George W. Bush acts
decisively in Afghanistan and speaks plain truths
about the Palestinian Authority and Arafat. We
embrace the "Religious Right" for their unflinching
support of Israel and decide, maybe this one time,
to vote Republican.
Rather than send our kids to Israel this summer,
we bring Israeli kids to Fresh Air Society-Tamarack
Camps' Camp Maas in Ortonville. Rather than buy
Israeli products on Ben Yehuda Street in Israel, we
bring Ben Yehuda Street to Oak Park. We shed tears
reading biographies of the World Trade Center vic-
tims in the New York Times and homicide bombing.
victims at CNN.com .
Time Constraints
Jonathan Friendly, the newsroom team of
Alan Hitsky, Keri Guten Cohen, Gail
As a weekly publication covering a war on
Zimmerman, David Sachs, Bobbi Charnas,
terror that moves quickly and furiously, the
Esther Allweiss Tschirhart, Sy Manello, Shelli
Jewish News faces a particularly difficult chal-
Liebman Dorfman, Harry Kirsbaum, Diana
lenge. With CNN, Fox and others pumping
Lieberman and Sharon Luckerman has cap-
live images into our living rooms, the pletho-
tured the news in ways that matter to you.
ra of resources online, and an endless cast of
Our creative team of Associate Publisher
talking heads providing instant political and
ARTH UR M.
Dave Neill, Alex Lumelsky, Michelle
military analyses, we are challenged to bring
HO R WITZ
Sheridan, Linda Stinson, Kelli Johnson,
you useful, unique information and insights
Pttbli fishe
r
Krista Husa, Cathy Ciccone, Zina Bahrou,
that stand the test of time.
Steve Bloch, Debbie Schultz, Anne Lada and
We learned the strengths and limitations of
Natalya Lemberskaya has presented this information
a weekly publication cycle during the 1991 Gulf War. It
attractively and sensitively. The American Jewish
was the first war that could be witnessed live on CNN.
Press Association again honored the Jewish News this
Shortly after finishing that week's edition of the Jewish
past year with its top design award.
News, the cruise missiles started flying. It was
What makes the efforts of our Editorial and
Wednesday night. We decided to do a special update
Creative
departments ... and our entire staff ... all the
and worked through the night to produce it. We tossed
more remarkable is that they have produced a publi-
20,000 copies of the already printed front section of the
cation of quality and integrity every week, despite
Jewish News, replacing it with the latest news possible.
enduring an internal disaster. When a fire destroyed
The front-page headline read: "All Quiet In Israel."
the offices of the Jewish News in January, our staff
But Thursday night, Scud missiles from Iraq began
rallied
around a desire to serve you, our valued com-
falling throughout Israel. CNN captured it live. When
munity
of readers and advertisers, without interrup-
the Jewish News arrived in mailboxes on Friday, the
tion.
A
60-year
tradition of publishing this newspa-
headline "All Quiet In Israel" was outdated, embar-
per every week was preserved. More than seven
rassing and hardly reflected the cost and effort that
months after the fire, our staff continues to work
went into our attempt at capturing breaking news.
from interim office space with many inconveniences.
We learned our strengths and limitations then and
As we emerge from the Days of Awe and enter
remember them now. That, in part, is why the
into the year 5763, may we find the ability to
Jewish News was selected this past year as the top
cleanse our hearts and minds of the despair, anger
weekly publication in its class by the. Michigan Press
and
hopelessness that were so prevalent in 5762 and
Association. It is why we received special recogni-
rekindle the optimism that enables us to play a role
tion for our coverage of Sept. 11 by the American
in shaping a more peaceful future for all.
Jewish Press Association.
Under the steady hand of Editor Bob Sklar and
Eshanah tovah.
with valuable insights from National Editor
Take IV y Opener, Please
I
t is reported that Jackie
Mason, the comedian and a
devoted supporter of Israel,
influenced the cancellation of
Ray Hanania, a little-known
Palestinian American comic and
writer who had been booked to open
for Mason at a Chicago-area comedy
club. Mason acknowledged
being "furious" that
Hanania had been promot-
ing the appearance by play-
ing up the different background of
the two comics.
Hanania called his removal a
"knee-jerk" reaction to the Israeli-
Palestinian conflict, adding that he
wished people in the Middle East,
"rather than throwing rocks and bul-
lets at each other, threw jokes." .
In this context, it is worth consid-
ering what Hanania thinks about the
Middle East. The following are
excerpts from an article he wrote for
the Lebanon Daily Star in early June:
"Nazi-like Israeli Prime Minister
Ariel Sharon believes he is taking the
Palestinian people to the brink of
destruction, but he doesn't realize
that the brink of disaster is
not for the Palestinians, but
Israel itself. Sharon is single-
handedly doing what the
Arabs have failed to do
themselves, forcing them to unite and
to abandon their past policies of cod-
dling Israel's intractable refusal to
compromise ...
"During negotiations, Israel always
cleverly backs out, stopping short of
giving the Palestinians anything other
than a future as a subjugated people.
EDITO RIAL
"[The term] the 'destruction' of the
State of Israel has been exploited,
abused and exaggerated as certainly
as Israel's cadre of apologists and
have exploited the term anti-
Semitism to muddy-up anyone who
has dared to speak out against Israel's
cowardly brutalization of civilian tar-
gets
"The truth of what is happening is
getting out to the American public
despite one of the most unprofession-
al blackouts imposed by the anti-
Arab American media ... No matter
how hard Israel and its manipulators
in the American media try to prevent
the world from seeing the truth of
Israel's viciousness, it comes out
either on TV, the Internet or in news-
papers. The Israeli army is guilty of
Nazi-like war crimes, including exe-
curing in cold blood Palestinian pris-
oners it has captured ...
"Now is not the time to surrender
to Israel and accept compromise.
Nov is the time to forge ahead and
demand even more. Now is the time
for all Arab governments to sever all
ties with Israel, to isolate Israel again
as was done years ago ...
"Israers.Naii-like government must
be shown that its policies of murder
and executions and killings will carry
a heavy price in future talks, and that
all of:Jerusalem is now on the table
and that all of Palestine is on the
table, too."
Is that the kind of laugh-a-minute
shtick that Mason should be proud to
have as his opener? If that is what
Hanania has to say, it's little better
than rocks and bullets.
❑
9/ 6
2002
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