ANDREA KOPPEL'S OBJECTIVITY (Believes Palestinians As "Fair" But Not Israelis)

AndrewSullivan.Com ^ | April 18, 2002 | Andrew Sullivan

[PJ-Comix]

A fascinating squabble over CNN senior correspondent Andrea Koppel is beginning to make the email rounds. It concerns allegations that the Israeli Defense Force has conducted a slaughter of civilians in the Jenin refugee camp. The reliably anti-Israel and pro-terrorism newspaper, the Independent, is running hard with the story today. The New York Times version is harrowing but doesn't find evidence of anything but collateral civilian deaths. Still, It seems Andrea Koppel knew for sure there was an Israeli massacre as early as last Sunday. Here's an email from an Israel-sympathizer who had an encounter with Koppel last week:

I am attending the Israel Venture Association annual conference in Tel Aviv and was introduced to Andrea Koppel from CNN as we were waiting for Prime Minister Sharon and Secretary of State Powell to finish their discussion Sunday evening at our hotel.
While we were chatting, an American-born Israeli joined us to tell Andrea about his perception of media distortion in that the press that stresses moral equivalence between Israeli civilian deaths caused by Palestinian terror and Palestinian civilian deaths caused by Israeli military actions. He argued that Israel has tried to engage in a peace process since Camp David and has been double-crossed over and over by the Palestinian Authority. Further, he argued the civilian deaths caused by Palestinians are intentional, whereas the deaths caused by Israel are mostly the tragic, unintentional results caused by Israel trying to defend itself.
Andrea replied, "So when Israeli soldiers slaughter civilians in Jenin, that is not equivalent?"
Israeli: "What are your sources? Were you in Jenin? How exactly do you
know there was a slaughter?"
Andrea: "I just spoke with my colleagues who were there, and they told me of the slaughter."
Israeli: "Did they actually see the shooting, the bodies?"
Andrea: "Palestinians told us about the slaughter."
Israeli: "And you believe them without evidence. Could they possibly be
lying and distorting facts?"
Andrea: "Oh, so now they are all just lying??"
The Israeli became emotional in describing that his children are afraid, his friends have been murdered, and if this goes on, "We could lose our lives or we could lose our country."
Andrea, "Yes, you will lose your country."
At this point, I interrupted the two of them and asked Andrea Koppel,
"Did I just hear you correctly-- that you believe the current crisis will lead to the destruction of the State of Israel?"
Andrea: "Yes, I believe we are now seeing the beginning of the end of Israel."

Koppel and Walter Isaacson have denied the gist of this account, and insist that Koppel didn't use the word 'slaughter.' The man present continues to insist that was precisely the word she used, and that she clearly predicted the demise of Israel. I wasn't there. I have no way to prove which party is lying. But when you see Andrea Koppel on television, 'reporting' on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, it seems to me you should be aware of this alleged exchange.

[PJ-Comix]

"Yes, I believe we are now seeing the beginning of the end of Israel."

It sounds like Ted Koppel's daughter is engaged more in her own wishful thinking than accurate prognosticating.

[Grampa Dave]

Sounds like Ted's daughter is as big of a left wing lying maggot as he is! She has this lying ability the natural way.

She inherited his DNA and learned how to lie and pretend that it is news from her Daddy while growing up!

When do left wing maggots/pressitutes lie to America/Americans?

[swarthyguy]

Last night on NBC news, there was a segment where they went to describe the reactions of the foreign press; primarily UK press to Powell's trip. Should not have been surprised but the three newspapers cited by the correspondent were the Independent, the Guardian and the Mirror. Sheesh!

[PJ-Comix]

Pretty lame denial by Koppel. She just denies she used the word "slaughter" so we can assume she agrees that she said we are beginning to see the end of Israel. This latter sounds like wishful thinking on Andrea's part. And THIS is someone that CNN hires to cover the Mideast?

[YaYa123]

Today I have carefully listened to the anchors on MSNBC. They may be bending over backwards to appear impartial to Arafat and the terrorists, that's the only logical explanation for the tilt of their questioning, their dialogue, and their reporting. I honestly couldn't believe some of what I was hearing, especially as they discussed the "Israeli's seige on the holy city of Bethelem", and "the battle being waged by Israeli soldiers on the birthplace of Jesus."

One asked, "Just how important are these Palestinians who are holed up in the church? Are they important enough for Israel to destroy this important 700 year old church?" The obvious implication viewers were invited to believe ws that stubborn, vindictive Israel was firing on the church and the men inside, who were nothing more than poor Palestinians seeking santuary.

[swarthyguy]

Unfortunately, this "slaughter" angle is gaining steam. AK is falling into that "moral equivalency" trap just like Gerry Rivers on Fox. This was a battle in an urban area. What the Palestinians call "slaughter" are the totally avoidable casualties of very intensive firefights. Avoidable in that if Jenin had not been a homebase for terrorist attacks the Israelis would not have gone in.

[Diogenesis]

Palestinian - American Media Fraud

In early 1988, reporters were called to el-Mokassed Hospital in Jerusalem
to film a dying Palestinian boy. His Palestinian doctor showed him hooked to life-support tubes,
and claimed the child had been savagely beaten by Israeli troops.
On February 8, 1988, ABC's Peter Jennings introduced the report by saying UN officials
"say that the Israelis have beaten another Palestinian to death in the territories."
NBC and CBS also gave the claims wide publicity.
But the story wasn't true.
According to the child's autopsy and medical records, he died of a cerebral hemorrhage.
He had been sick for more than a year.
Overall, the U.S. networks, Emerson wrote,
"have been complicit in a massive deception about the West Bank conflict.

---

Ashwari, Arafat: "All your media are ours."

[swarthyguy]

Exactly, we know why they chose the church. Unfortunately, due to NBC's spin as you have so accurately potrayed, this is turning into a PR disaster for the Israelis. It's too bad the israelis have to deal with sentimental reporters who lead with their emotions and have a total lack of knowledge and understanding of military affairs.

[PJ-Comix]

FYI

[TopQuark]

PJ, thanks for the post; it's important to know. Somehow the tone of the narration suggests that the source is credible.

I heard Ted, her father, say regarding the Palestinian cheering of the Sep 11, "I can understand the cheering, it's a spontaneous reaction (stemming from, to wit) the feeling of helplenssness." That is while the bodies were still warm under the WTC...

[Grampa Dave]

Thanks for posting this incredible comment by Clymer Koppel:

I heard Ted, her father, say regarding the Palestinian cheering of the Sep 11, "I can understand the cheering, it's a spontaneous reaction (stemming from, to wit) the feeling of helplenssness." That is while the bodies were still warm under the WTC...

I stopped watching this left wing mouth piece/spinner during the Chinagate hearings. He showed his true colors then by ignoring the reality of that situation.

This remark is reprehensible. Why didn't this get exposure like Maher's response?

[Sabramerican]

What the Palestinians call "slaughter"

......and massacre...

....is when any one fights back.

[JimRed]

...the word "slaughter"...

Had "slaughter" been the Israeli intent, they had no need to risk their ground troops. Instead of going house to house they could easily have had artillery, MLRS and fighter-bombers level the place (and all in it) in the middle of the night.

[The Electrician]

Wonder why none of these "reporters" ever mention how the Saudi's dealt with the armed gunmen who took control of the Grand Mosque in Mecca in 1979 (?). Sounds like a parallel situation to me - Islamic gunmen holed up in a holy site, with an army outside. In the case of the 'peaceful' Muslim state, the answer was a massacre of gunmen and hostages alike, perhaps to the tune of thousands. When it's the Israeli army outside the holy site, you have a standoff and negotiations. In the former case, it barely merited a blip on the news for a day or perhaps two. In the latter case, judging from the hysterical reporting that has been going on, you would have thought that the Israelis had stormed the church with guns and mortars blazing, in complete disregard of its historical and religious significance, when the opposite is true.

[swarthyguy]

I believe in the saudi case, they imported some French(!) paratroopers to help them out.
Other similar cases: King Hussein of Jordan - BlackSeptember for the PLO Assad of Syria - LEVELLING the city of Homa.

[Texbob]

I would love to see Andrea Koppel prove her support for the Pslestinians by standing beside the next homocide bomber.

[Texbob]

Is that a picture of Miss Koppel? It looks like an Arab.

[contessa machiaveli]

she's ted koppel's daughter? gee, i wonder how she got the job. however, in her defense, i've seen worse....ashley banfield is insufferable and we can't forget geraldo. actiually, i haven't seen ONE reporter who is staunchly pro-israel. although, the cutie on CNN (his last name is wimmer) has been doing a balanced job.

[Shermy]

They're not being "impartial." They are bending over backwards to push by innuendo that Israel would destroy the church. It's the attack of the lefty agenda journalists (the ones who right) in collaboration with Arab terrorists and their p.r. machines, which are very professional. CNN, others have heavy Saudi investments, and aim to capture Arab television markets, so they are paying their dues.

[Shermy]

right write

[LarryLied]

The obvious implication viewers were invited to believe ws that stubborn, vindictive Israel was firing on the church and the men inside, who were nothing more than poor Palestinians seeking santuary.

I don't hear anyone mention much that the IDF has offered them safe passage to a third country. That they have refused that is the most important part of the entire story. It was an incredible concession for Israel to make.

[YaYa123]

"sentimental reporters who lead with their emotions..."

And that's another point to be made!! Since when have you heard any media mouths espouse respect for organized religion? Usually religion is mocked in the mainstream media, if not held up for scorn. The media's feigned "emotional" distress at the shelling of this church is hypocritical to the max.

[Grampa Dave]

I haven't watched CNN since the 1996 presidential elections and all CNN channels are blocked on my satellite system, so I know no one on the current CNN. I just read about them here.

CNN will be a small foot note in history soon. As they continue to lose audiences, the bean counters with long corporate knives at AOL get more impatient each day. I would not be surpised if they are not trying to sell off CNN behind closed doors to competitors. However, all of the competitors except Fox are hurting and couldn't afford to buy the CNN trash talkers like this bimbo.

One of these days, AOL will have a sell off of CNN equipment and stations at fire sale prices. No one will want their over paid whining lefties. The other nets have more than enough of that excess whining commodity.

[YaYa123]

"CNN, others (media), have heavy Saudi investments, and aim to capture Arab television markets, so they are paying their dues."

Very good point! I hadn't thought of this, but I bet you're right.

[dennisw]

She is Ted Koppel's daughter? Terrible to see such swill from this woman who has a Jewish father. The world has gone nuts.

IIRC Ted's wife is not Jewsih.

[dennisw]

I knew you would make a post about Israel some day.

[JohnPaulJones]

she is a worthless reporter who has gotten by only by the name. I quess some reporters have a hard time when confronted with truth.....

[Ann Archy]

I assume that Andrea is Jewish as her dad is?? What's with all of the Lefty Jews on the side of the Palis???

[vrwc54]

See #25. Her dad is Jewish, but apparently she isn't. However, your point is well-taken.

[Arleigh]

It sounds like Ted Koppel's daughter is engaged more in her own wishful thinking than accurate prognosticating.

IMHO, this IS the beginning of the end for Israel. I've suspected that Israel was doomed since about 1990. Demographics are against them. But now I'm SURE that Israel is doomed. Why? Because America's Jewish elites have abandoned her like a business deal gone bad. "Nice try. Didn't work out. Time to cut our losses and move on."

Where are the Jewish elites supporting Israel? Where are the Spielbergs and Streisands and Seinfelds going to Tel Aviv to eat at a Sbarros? Where are the Jewish-American boys volunteering to fight in Israel the way the lefties did in the Spanish Civil War?

Smart money has already bailed on Israel. The entire country is going to relocate over here in the next few decades, except for the religious extremists who will go out in a Massada-like holocaust.

[Benrand]

Yeah, those Nightline shows right after 9-11 were absolutely astounding. it was as if they had the packages of why palestinians and Arabs hate us ready, or at least they knew what they wanted to put on the show. Well, maybe they knew what the people in the street were saying but didn't want to REPORT IT!

I couldn't believe how irresponsible and just arrogant the reporter was who told us that we are to blame, that we caused it and it was only a matter of time.

I wonder if we could have asked Daddy Koppel if he thought that was going to be the end of the US...wonder what he would have said.

[thucydides]

I saw more of this Israeli observer's report on Andrea Koppel than quoted here (unfortunately, I can't find it any longer). In it, Koppel says that while at Middlebury College, she read about the situation written from the Israeli point of view, and thought the Israelis were in the right. Then she read a book on the Palestinian side, and thought they were in the right. She concluded that she didn't know what to believe.

This was an extremely telling comment. Koppel effectively admits that she has never learned how to think for herself, i.e., evaluate conflicting claims, assess the evidence, and reach some at least tentative conclusions. Instead, she takes the intellectually lazy (and politically correct) approach of lapsing into complete relativism, which is a substitute for thinking and coming to reasoned judgments. Is it any wonder the media do such a poor job, when they employ persons of little intelligence and learning to report on complex situations?