EDITOR'S NOTEBOOK The Role Of Respect D ialogue has improved Detroit Jewry's relationship with the Detroit Free Press since the dark days of 2002 when a full-page ad in the Detroit Jewish News lambasted the daily newspaper for its unbalanced view of Palestinian terror against Israel. That's what an executive of the 173-year-old paper told 200 people in her keynote address at the Jewish Community Council of Metropolitan Detroit's 2004 annual meeting last week at the Jewish Community Center in West Bloomfield. And her take got my attention given the makeup of metro Detroit. It's home to 96,000 Jews and at least twice as many residents of Arab descent. Dialogue almost always results in better understanding and better coverage, said Carole Leigh Hutton, Free Press publisher and editor since January, but with the paper since 1990 and a journalist for 25 years. "I so appreciate that we have reached a place where we have real, thoughtful dia- logue in this community," Hutton said. ROBERT A. "You won't always agree with what we do. SKLAR You won't always agree with our assessment. Editor But we both generally can take away some- thing from that conversation and that makes us a better community." . I liked her plain talk — and for carving out the time to venture from Fort Street into the heartland of Jewish Detroit. Two years ago, the Free Press was embroiled in defending the incomplete and misleading information permeating a March 13, 2002, summary of Mideast history. For example, this so-called primer didn't tie Yasser Arafat or his Palestine Liberation Organization - Hutton (PLO) to terrorism. In a story that ran on April 12, 2002, "Rage Against 'The Page,"' we reported the Jewish commu- nity's anger over that one-page overview. The page had been held since 9-11 so the Freep had ample time to review and correct it. The same day that the piece was published, the Jewish community responded point by point via the JCCouncil's Israel Advocacy Network. A week later, a Jewish delegation met with Publisher Heath Meriwether and several Free Press editors to object. Within a week, the paper published a "clari- fication" of four points that Meriwether.admitted were "addi- tional information that should have been included in the primer." Throughout the 44-month-long Palestinian intifada, which has taken more than 975 lives on the Israeli side, the Free Press has met with Israeli Jews as well as Jewish leaders. "Over the years," Hutton said, "I feel those conversations have become less formal — and perhaps more helpful because of that. You've helped us step out of what we call our news stance, where we were reacting to simply what was the latest development and not offering the context of what brought that development up." Making Her Case Hutton was Free Press managing editor for six years before becoming executive editor in mid-2002. My ears perked up as she affirmed her paper's commitment to Mideast coverage that not only reports Israeli reprisals, but also the Palestinian undercurrents causing them. It has been just five months since Meriwether retired as publisher. But his successor said all the right things last week. Hutton applauds Detroit Jewry's tradition of civic and community activism and charity. She vows not to let stories on Gaza be placed with those on Iraq if they even hint of a cause and effect between U.S. support of Israel and the U.S. removal of Saddam (though I spotted Iraq and Gaza stories on facing pages last weekend). She says if the State Department calls a group "terrorist," her paper will, too. I echo her hope for a U.S.-brokered peace agreement between the Palestinians and Israelis despite "worry about our government's ability to maintain that role at a time when it has undermined its credibility in the Arab world." Hutton credited metro Detroit's Jews and Arabs with sensi- tizing her paper to the implications of photos and headlines. Mistakes, she said, may be born of haste or ignorance, but never malice. Then And Now • The energy cell behind local Jewish indignation toward the Free Press'2002 primer was Berl Falbaum, a former newspa- per reporter who switched to PR and also teaches journalism. His 2002 petition drive got 960 signatures and support.from four Jewish organizations. Falbaum raised the money to buy space in the JN to print the petition, which challenged the Freep to "indicate it is pre- pared to be fair and accurate" in its Mideast coverage. Though the primer wasn't meant to be all encompassing, Meriwether told the JN, "we try as best we can to give people the information in a fair and accurate way." We demand no less today, what with pro- Palestinian sentiment sweeping so many European governments and anti-Jewish fer- vor building around the world. Falbaum told me on Monday that he felt Free Press news coverage is now more bal- anced. He thinks the paper still "is having trouble deciding on a comprehensive editori- al policy on the Middle East," but "at least, at Falbaum times, the editorial page supports Israel, and criticizes the PLO and Arab nations, when it's due." I'll buy that. Hutton ended with a cogent argument for why objectivity — the ability to process facts without interpretation, and to cast aside all feelings and prejudices while evaluating informa- tion — is unrealistic. Fairness, she said, is a more practical standard. "When we fail to meet it," she added, "I'll trust you'll let us know. And we'll learn from that example." But fairness is subjective. So basic journalistic principles should always be the litmus test. Summing up, Hutton said Israelis and Palestinians have passionate supporters locally. "But I believe when we respect each other's role, we create the capacity for better understand- ing," she said. Indeed. Keeping credibility with its readers is the hallmark of a good newspaper. Time will tell what impact Carole Leigh Hutton will have at the helm of the Detroit Free Press. I was impressed that she put herself in the glare of the Jewish com- munal spotlight. Now she needs her front-line editors and reporters to embrace her desire for continued dialogue with Jews and Arabs, two of metro Detroit's largest and most influential ethnic groups. Get hooked ok comet-kite good, liolaffreep wtjAke. •Join JARC's Young Adult Committee • Fulfill Teen Community Service •Answer JARC Telephones • Share Shabbat Dinner at a JARC Home • Catalog JARC Archives and Library • Develop a Personal Friendship with Someone Served by JARC ...and much more! 111 1 k jarc For 35 years helping people with disabilities be fully inducted in community life. (248) 538-6610 Ext. 339 wwwjarcorg 30301 Northwestern • Suite 100 FarniingtonsHills, MI 48334 c.0 5/28 2004 5