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TABBOUN: MAINSTREAM MEDIA CENSORSHIP: The mainstream media continues to boycott stories about discrimination against American Arabs.
Last week, the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, fired newly hired professor Steven Salaita. Salaita is an accomplished author and former teacher at Virgina Tech. Despite a story on WBBM TV, which many said was biased, the Chicago Sun-Times, one of the most anti-Arab newspapers in the midwest, did not cover the story. The story received coverage from the Chicago Tribune on this evening (Wednesday August 13, 2014).
One of the primary means of suppressing dissent in America occurs when the mainstream media is complicit in refusing to detail stories about anti-Arab discrimination. Salaita’s story has received strong support on Social Media, and also a story in the Chicago Reader, which is owned by the Chicago Sun-Times. Click to read Chicago Reader story. Several publications have published attacks against Salaita including in the local News-Gazette and in the Denver Post.The Denver Post did not do a story but they allowed their Editorial Page editor rotweiller Vincent Carroll to tear into Salaita unfairly in an editorial page column.. The Richmond Times in Richmond, Virginia did a story. Salaita’s story has been followed by The Arab Daily News, and several Op-Ed online Internet blogs. The Los Angeles Times also did not do a news story on the discriminatory firing, but they did publish an Op-Ed that defended Salaita by writer Michael Hiltzik.
Despite the mainstream news media blackout (or boycott), Salaita has received the support of the Illinois Chapter of the American Association of University Professors.
ULTIMATE PANDERING VOTE: Not wanting to be outdone by New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg in pandering to pro-Israeli voters, Gov.
Andrew M. Cuomo joined a delegation of New York legislative leaders declaring he wanted to “make a statement” in support of Israel, like he needed to do that. On Wednesday, Cuomo met Wednesday with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who has been denounced as a war criminal for ordering the massacre of babies and children among more than 2,000 civilians killed during five weeks of Gaza fighting, to recommit himself to “Israel’s security.” Cuomo made no mention of the Palestinian civilians who have been killed. The delegation also met with Israeli President Reuven Rivlin in a whirlwind first few hours on the ground here. In his usual glib fashion, Netanyahu compared Hamas to ISIS, the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria. In a comment made specifically to be used in re-election campaign materials, Cuomo fawned, “Prime minister, you are going through a very difficult time. That is precisely why we wanted to stand shoulder-to-shoulder with Israel.”
On the EL AL plane from New York to Ben Gurion Airport in Tel Aviv, Cuomo posed for pictures with passengers. Two weeks ago, the U.S. Ordered all American commercial jets to suspend flights to Tel Aviv, feating possible violence. Israelis said they were offended by the move claiming Israel is safe. But that contradicted their propaganda in which Israelis claim they live in constant fear of being killed by Hamas rockets fired from the Gaza Strip. Since the fighting began, more than 2,400 Palestinians have been killed, mostly babies, children and women. In comparison, 63 Israeli soldiers and three “civilians” with ties to the military have been killed.
THIS IS THE FIRST TIME in memory that the Michigan Legislature will not have an American Arab serving in its ranks. Term limits forced State Rep. Rashida Tlaib to retire from her three-term position and to run against fellow Democrat State Sen. Virgil Smith in the August 5 Democratic primary. Tlaib lost the race to Smith, a well-known and liked legislator. Community activist Rashid Baydoun tried but failed to win a seat in the Michigan State House, running an impressive second place in a field of 8 candidates. Many thought Tlaib should have focused her attention on another senate race. Baydoun is expected to run again given his surprisingly strong showing in the Democratic primary election.
CASEY KASEM STILL HITTING the charts even after his passing. Casey Kasem, one of America’s most popular radio music hosts, died June 15 after being hospitalized and since then his children believe his wife has been hiding his body and preventing his burial. The children have told media that they believe his wife, Jean Kasem, is secretly having his body transported to Europe. The animosity between Kasem’s new wife and his children from his first marriage, continues to boil. It’s a sad tragedy
EVENTS & MORE: ANERA, the American Near East Refugee Aid, will hold its annual fundraiser Friday Oct. 17 at the Omni Shoreham Hotel in Washington D.C. The organization helps refugees in Palestine, Jordan and Lebanon and the refugees have never needed support more than they do now. This year, ANERA is raising funds to open doors for women through education, health and development programs. For more information visit www.ANERA.org. … in Bridgeview Illinois, a southwest suburb of Chicago, the First Annual Watani Festival will kick-off Friday August 22 through Sunday August 24 at Toyota Park. The festival will feature 35 vendors and continuous Middle East entertainment along with carnival rides and food vendors for the family. For more information visit the Festival’s Facebook page.
Here’s a promo for the new festival which replaces the Arabesque Festival which was undermined by Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel. Emanuel has been hostile to the America Arab community, avoiding contact with them as much as possible and undermining their organizations like the Arab Advisory Commission, which in all honesty needed revamping and was poorly led for so long.
RADIO SHOWS YOU CAN’T MISS: The Arab Daily News managing editor Ray Hanania hosts Talk of the Town a weekly radio show on WCEV 1450 AM radio in Chicago every Friday at 4 pm CST. The show is also broadcast live online at www.YahalaVoice.com, and rebroadcast each week on Monday’s at 11 am online. … Detroit’s celebrated journalist Laila alHusini hosts US Arab Radio every morning Monday through Friday on WNZK 690 AM from 8 am to 9 pm (EST) and co-hosts with veteran Arab radio and broadcast reporter Atef Gawad who is based in Washington D.C. The show is simulcast there, also, on WDMV 700 AM Radio. …
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Hanania also writes about Middle East issues for the Arab News, and The Arab Daily News criticizing government policies in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.
Hanania was named "Best Ethnic American Columnist" by the New America Media in November 2007, and is the 2009 recipient of the SPJ National Sigma Delta Chi Award for column writing.
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The Tribune did a story last night, and that was then picked up by its sister TV station WGN TV … but generally, the media has this story on blackout ….
The Tribune did a story last night, and that was then picked up by its sister TV station WGN TV … but generally, the media has this story on blackout …