A subjective definition of objectivity
Following up to our earlier discussion of truth, preception, and bias in the media, Ha'aretz covers the Arab media in Israel:
Ashkar, who is 29 years old, has already managed to work for several Arab TV stations, and to write for several newspapers in the north. Despite the terms she plants in her broadcasts, she claims that "our news merely reflects the dilemma that Israeli Arabs live with every day. As the editor, I don't put across my personal views."Impossible. Something of your views must get across?
"Of course it is expressed in the content, in the choice of the items. That is why I decided, for example today, to interview Bishara rather than MK Majli Wahaba who is part of the establishment and supports the government that is attacking the Lebanese people. It's not that Wahaba never appears on our station, but he does so in other contexts ... I feel that Bishara gives better expression to the feelings of the Arab public of which I'm part. If I'd interviewed Wahaba, I'd have lost my legitimacy in the eyes of this public."
Let's see. You don't put across your personal views. But, you select content which reinforces the views that you subscribe to. Can you not see the vicious cycle you are a party to?
