Race / Ethnic Issues

The Media: White, Male, Republican, Corporate

by Sheldon Rampton — June 17, 2002 - 11:55am

A new study by Fairness and Accuracy in Media (FAIR) shows that 92 percent of all U.S. sources interviewed on the nightly network news in 2001 were white, 85 percent were male and, where party affiliation was identifiable, 75 percent were Republican. Big business, too, was overrepresented. In a year in which the country lost 2.4 million jobs, corporate representatives appeared about 35 times more frequently than did union representatives.

Main Source: 
http://www.fair.org/extra/0205/power_sources.html

The Arab View

by Sheldon Rampton — April 16, 2002 - 12:00am

"Every Arab is watching this closely," says an Egyptian attorney who, like his neighbors, has been glued to the television in horror watching the Israeli military offensive in the Palestinian territories. "It may be worse for us even than Sept. 11 was for you - because it goes on and on," he says. "Every time you turn on the television, it's as though you were watching someone beat you." According to the New York Times, the story's impact in the Muslim world is comparable "to the way television news reports from the Vietnam War shook Americans in the 1960s.

Main Source: 
New York Times, April 16, 2002

Saudi Editor Admits that Jews Aren't "Vampires"

by Sheldon Rampton — March 28, 2002 - 1:00am

Thanks to Saudi Arabia's generous willingness to sell oil to the United States, politicians generally turn a blind eye to its repressive government and frequent anti-Semitism, which surfaced again recently when Al-Riyadh, the Saudi government's daily newspaper, published an article claiming that Jews celebrate the holiday of Purim by eating special pastries filled with "the blood of Christian and Muslim children under the age of 10" extracted using slow torture with sharp needles -- "torment th

Main Source: 
http://www.jpost.com/Editions/2002/03/20/News/News.45527.html

Arab Businessmen Launch Their Own PR Campaign

by Laura Miller — January 3, 2002 - 1:00am

PR trade publication O'Dwyer's PR Daily reports: "The Arab Intellectual Foundation plans a $2 million media drive to counter what it feels are the 'negative images' of Arabs and Islam that are presented in the Western press in the aftermath of the Sept. 11 terror attacks." Saudi Prince Khalid Al-Faisal is the president of AIF. Arab businessmen have been asked to contribute money to the campaign which will "promote the Arab perspective on the war on terror."

Main Source: 
O'Dwyer's PR Daily, January 3, 2002

Dreading Dreadlocks

by Sheldon Rampton — December 16, 2001 - 1:00am

Sahara Communications, a public relations firm hired to promote historically black Morgan State University, is under fire for telling students not to show up for a TV commercial with dreadlocks, head wraps, corn rows or braids.

Main Source: 
CNN, December 16, 2001

U.S. Sikhs Hire MWW

by Laura Miller — September 21, 2001 - 12:00am

A New Jersey Sikh group has hired MWW Group to launch a national PR campaign to educate Americans about the religion that was founded in India more than 500 years ago. There has been at least one hate-based killing of a Sikh and many other reported hate crimes against Sikhs in the aftermath of the World Trade Center and Pentagon attacks. There are 400,000 Sikhs living in North America.

Main Source: 
O'Dwyer's PR Daily, September 21, 2001

Palestinians Respond to the Attack

by Sheldon Rampton — September 13, 2001 - 2:17am

Following Tuesday's terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center and the Pentagon, U.S. television has repeatedly broadcast footage that shows Palestinians celebrating. The Electronic Intifida, which supports the Palestinian uprising in Israel, says this coverage is misleading. "The overwhelming number of Palestinians, like people of all nationalities, were sickened by the events in New York and Washington," it states. "Palestinians with relatives in New York and Washington spent much of yesterday worriedly trying to phone to check they were safe, exactly as many Americans did.

Main Source: 
http://electronicintifada.net/coveragetrends/rejoicing.html

Explaining Israel's Position

by Sheldon Rampton — September 9, 2001 - 12:00am

"Since the onset of unrestrained Arab violence almost one year ago, no expression has been heard more often than the word, 'hasbara' (explaining Israel's position, or positive public relations)," says pro-Israel media advocate Michael Friedson. Friedson says Israel's spokespersons should stop feeling "compelled to begin briefings with apologies ... for loss of life and property" and should "seize the rage. ...

Main Source: 
Jerusalem Post, September 9, 2001

Spinning a War

by Sheldon Rampton — August 10, 2001 - 11:50am

American coverage of the conflict between Israel and the Palestinians has almost always been sympathetic to Israel. For most U.S. news organizations, "objective" has long meant "pro-Israeli." This report in TomPaine.com details some of the behind-the-scenes PR aimed at keeping things that way. In the words of one Israeli official, "Engaging in a successful PR campaign is part of winning the conflict."

Main Source: 
http://www.tompaine.com/news/2001/07/24/1.html

Rain Dance: Mississippi's Choctaw Indians Find An Unlikely Ally In a GOP Stalwart

by Sheldon Rampton — July 3, 2000 - 12:00am

Lobbyist Jack Abramoff sets up and funds coalitions of conservative organizations that then work to push the agendas of his clients. Gambling, sweatshops, you name it and he represents them in Washington.

Main Source: 
Wall Street Journal, July 3, 2000
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