Blast from the past.

Remember a few years ago when an pseudonymical poster with the moniker “Soothsayer”  ‘leaked’ an internal BBC message to the comments field at Biased BBC? It caused no end of confusion. From November 2012:  BBC Watch summed it up thus:

“Some unidentified BBC persona, perhaps resentful at being advised to report Operation Pillar of Cloud in a fair and impartial manner rather than with the usual partisan anti-Israel  twist, “leaked” the e-mails by posting them verbatim on Biased-BBC, confusingly and mischievously omitting to clarify that they were in fact BBC internal memos.”

Here’s the original.

“The way we have been wording our paragraph on when the fighting started is causing endless complaints. It’s the specific reference in time which is upsetting people.

We have been saying:

The conflict began last Wednesday when Israel killed a Hamas military leader, saying it wanted an end to rocket attacks from Gaza. More than 110 Palestinians and three Israelis have been killed.

To a lot of people, the conflict was already raging, and they interpret that as blaming or putting undue emphasis on Israel.

Can we please use the following form of words which gets round that:

Israel launched its offensive, which it says is aimed at ending rocket fire from Gaza, with the killing on Wednesday of a Hamas military leader. More than 110 Palestinians and three Israelis have been killed since then.

Thanks

Raffi Berg

Middle East desk

BBC News website

+44 203 614 xxxx

raffi.berg@bbc.co.uk

http://www.bbc.com/middleeast

and later:

Please remember, Israel doesn’t maintain a blockade around Gaza. Egypt controls the southern border. Israel maintains a blockade around its borders with Gaza, as well as a naval blockade. It also controls Gaza’s airspace.

We’ve mistakenly said “around Gaza” in a number of recent stories, which has generated complaints.

Raffi Berg

Middle East desk

BBC News website

+44 203 614 1824

raffi.berg@bbc.co.uk

http://www.bbc.com/middleeast

Because of the complete absence of explanation or background, at first glance these comments appeared to be questions posed by a BBC employee and apparently aimed at his critics at Biased-BBC. Messages that were eventually recognised as internal memos from a BBC journalist (presumably addressed to his superiors at the guidelines HQ) initially looked as if someone at the BBC had mysteriously begun to listen, perhaps with the intention of pandering to the 'notorious Israel lobby' at Biased-BBC.  This individual, based in the Middle East, appeared to be asking ‘our’ permission to use terminology we would find acceptable, so that we’d ease off with our constant criticism.  The pro-Palestinian bias is, and has been the status quo at the BBC for a number of years, and a complex variety of events have only emboldened the BBC and allowed it to become more openly pro-Palestinian than ever. Islamist terrorism and the cultural upheaval engulfing the western world has hardly dented the BBC’s anti-Zionist position. (What would it take?)

Who was this Raffi Berg, we wondered, and who was his pseudonymous saboteur? I don’t think we’ll ever know the identity of Mr or Ms Soothsayer, but the answer to the first question can be found in a remarkable Israel-related story has appeared on the BBC website; remarkable in that it goes against the flow. It’s a positive story about Israeli ingenuity, intrigue, suspense and even glamour and it’s written by the very same Raffi Berg.  The Holiday Village Run by Spies.

 H/T Harry’s Place, where it’s going down well.

Nice but dim

The BBC has presented Middle Eastern issues from a predominantly Arabist perspective for several decades, but when people observe the religiously fuelled turmoil that's erupting throughout the Arab world, the idea that the troubles behind the “Israel Palestine conflict” may somehow be related must surely occur to them sooner or later.  

The appointment of Raffi Berg as Tarik Kafala’s replacement as head of the BBC News website’s Middle East desk set off a reflexive response from the usual pro-Palestinian organisations. Events have shown that ‘pro Palestinian’ advocacy is actually ‘anti-Israel’ advocacy. The plight of the Palestinians is all but forgotten in the rush to hurt Israel with boycotts and bannings.

I imagine someone Googled “Raffi Berg” to see what dirt the wonderful worldwide web could unearth the moment the appointment was announced  

Lo and behold; up came a passing reference on this humble blog to two comments that had been posted on the Biased-BBC blog, apparently by Raffi himself, but with the handle ‘Soothsayer’. They concerned the phrasing and wording the BBC was using at the time of Operation Pillar of Cloud and dated November 22nd 2012

Why, one might have asked, use a moniker while at the same time signing off with full contact details? But such is the interweb. People do strange things there.

The comments in question appeared to be strangely and uncharacteristically sympathetic to the detractors of the BBC that inhabit the Biased-BBC blog. Mr. Berg actually appeared to be seeking the views of ‘Biased-BBC’s’ commentariat . Whatever next!

 “Can we please use the following form of words.....?” Mr B appears to ask. 

As the BBC reputedly regards  Biased-BBC as a hate site, and accordingly dismisses the commentariat as mouth frothing bigots and racists, this turn of events seemed most peculiar. One was bound to wonder about the credibility of those comments, but the fact that BBC employees had indeed engaged with the site in the distant past combined with my own stupidity and my natural generosity of spirit made me give them the benefit of the doubt. 

 However, if the whole thing was in fact a kind of whistle-blowing act on the part of some sneaky third party who had decided to post a couple of the BBC’s internal e-mails on a forum belonging to the opposition, (using the handle ‘soothsayer’) the whole thing would actually make sense. 

“Ah, I see” said the blind man, having missed the blindingly obvious. ” Now it all falls into place.” 

BBC Watch seemed to deduce the scenario straight away.

Some unidentified BBC persona, perhaps resentful at being advised to report Operation Pillar of Cloud in a fair and impartial manner rather than with the usual partisan anti-Israel  twist, “leaked” the e-mails by posting them verbatim on Biased-BBC, confusingly and mischievously omitting to clarify that they were in fact BBC internal memos.

So it’s likely that the posting wasn’t after all, Raffi Berg reaching out to the mouth-frothers, or in fact anything much to do with Raffi Berg - more’s the pity; instead it was either......: 

a) an anonymous attempt to reassure we Zionists that our concerns were being taken seriously, or 

b)  an anonymous attempt to insinuate that Zionist tentacles had reached the innards of the BBC, and reveal to the world at large what the wicked Zionist lobby had been up to.

If a) surely Soothsayer would have included a brief explanatory introduction such as: “See? we really do care what you think, here’s an internal memo to prove it.....”

So the more likely speculation is b) the tentacles.

Whatever it was, my somewhat obscure reference must have popped up on Google, and thus a molehill become a small mountain. One thing their hysterical reaction to Raffi Berg’s appointment shows clearly and unequivocally; some people get carried away with their own zeal. 

Tarik Rafala did make some attempt to appear impartial, and I daresay Raffi Berg will do likewise. We’ll just have to wait and see whether there’s any discernible  difference in tone on the BBC’s website 'going forward.'

 I can now sit back and marvel at my own stupidity for believing the unbelievable.

P.S. The author of the piece about Raffi Berg’s alleged pro-Israel bias that has been so widely disseminated on the internet is Amena Saleem.  The antisemitic comments it has attracted are staggeringly vicious and racist.

Amena is described as ‘a journalist and activist’ working closely with the Palestinian Solidarity Campaign in the UK.

Amena Saleem; sour and sad

In the picture she looks sour,  yet rather sad.  What a shame that people like this devote themselves to such a soul-destroying cause as the destruction of the Jewish state.

She sees Israel as an abomination, and Jews as inherently evil, instead of accepting that the Palestinians are the architects of their own misfortune and that Israeli Jews could easily be their salvation.

If people like Amena started appreciating Israel for the opportunities and prosperity its creativity and dynamism could bring to all the inhabitants of the region there would be no need for that sour face or all that bitter resentment. 

At the very least, by simply recognising  Israel’s right to exist and renouncing all violence against it, she and her co-PSCers could pack up their troubles in their old kit bags and smile smile smile.

How Rude

Several others have noticed the ‘Rude Israelis’ article. People don’t know what to make of it. Whether to laugh or cry. 

I think it’s fine, but it cries out for balance, without which it looks less than the light-hearted observational piece it’s probably meant to be. (Especially with that huge picture of a girl screeching, and that stupid, unfunny cartoon) Now all Raffi Berg needs to do is write about the wonderful things that characterise Israelis.

As commenter Sharon Klaff says on the BBCWatch thread:

“At the same time you can travel the world to find a more compassionate caring society. Any foreigner need only visit the Schneider children’s hospital to find a better place as evidence of the kind of society this is. There, as in all of Israeli healthcare, children of all backgrounds and religions are treated to the highest standard modern medicine can offer. This service extends to families from enemy lands Gaza, Judea and Samaria whose children are cared for in exactly the same way as any Israeli. Complimentary to this service any stranger will find communities offering palliative care, teenagers arranging rota visits to help distraught families, people offering entertainment for the children and support for the parents. This is simply a microcosm of a society based in Judaism that in fact wrote the very first social welfare treatise for the care of the family and broader society”

So BBC, how about that as the subject of another FOOC?

There are some interesting comments elsewhere too, but one aspect of their characteristic abruptness I haven’t mentioned because it seems almost too obvious, is the necessity of straight talking when you’re living in a constant state of high alert. One B-BBC commenter (although I couldn’t tell whether he was being ironic) seemed upset that an airport security check affronted his modesty. He was taking a pee at Tel Aviv airport, and the security officer was a girl. What’s more important?   Toilet privacy or being blown to bits? I think I know the answer.

Mustn’t forget the 'singling out' test. Has Israel’s rudeness been treated in the same way as any other country’s rudeness? Has anyone ever made an episode of FOOC that jocularly explores, say, the Germans behaving badly abroad?  If they did come up with such a thing, would it be considered affectionate or offensive?  

Humorous remarks about ‘Jewish‘ characteristics would probably be acceptable  if they were made fondly, but could easily appear antisemitic if uttered in a hostile environment. 

So maybe the Rude Israelis article is ahead of its time. The BBC is not an Israel- friendly zone, so the jury is still out.

That pointing Israeli girl is so rude, she's overlapped the sidebar. Typical.

Miscellany for the weekend.

Some tales that demonstrate the BBC’s confused approach to Jews and Israel.

They didn’t make much of Yom Hashoah, but a few new holocaust stories have appeared on the BBC, so perhaps this is their way of commemorating. 

There was Dorit Oliver-Wolff on Saturday Live, and  Anne Frank's stepsister Eva Schloss on the website talking to Stephen Sackur about her war-time experiences.

 But heartrending/heartwarming holocaust stories are nothing new for the BBC. It’s the Jews that defend themselves the BBC is less keen on.

 Another Donnison Tweet leads us to Lyse Doucet’s interview with Daniel Levy, the director of the Middle East and North Africa Programme at the European Council on Foreign Relations, Paul Charney, the chairman of the Zionist Federation of Great Britain and by Dror Moreh, the director of 'The Gatekeepers'.

It’s obvious that the BBC will like this documentary for the very reasons Paul Charney warned against, i.e. that criticisms of Israel’s political policies  expressed by the six former heads of Shin Bet in the film would be used as a tool by Israel’s detractors to further their ongoing delegitimization of Israel.

Donnison’s Twitter page also contained a Tweet by his colleague and award nominator Paul Danahar, which led to this interesting article by HRW on a topic also covered, in a weirdly sanitised form, by the BBC.

Interestingly, no details are spared in the HRW piece, and I well remember Middle East director at Human Rights Watch, Sarah Leah Whitson, causing concern amongst many people by ingratiating herself and her organisation with the Saudis during a fund-raising mission,  by highlighting  HRW’s  battles with "pro-Israel pressure groups in the US, the European Union and the United Nations." yet having nothing to say about Saudi Arabia’s own human rights abuses.

Here’s another thing that caught my eye, because it was written by Raffi Berg who once left a comment on Biased BBC asking for guidance on some phrasing. (November 22, 2012 at 6:47 pm)

“ The way we have been wording our paragraph on when the fighting started is causing endless complaints. It’s the specific reference in time which is upsetting people.We have been saying:The conflict began last Wednesday when Israel killed a Hamas military leader, saying it wanted an end to rocket attacks from Gaza. More than 110 Palestinians and three Israelis have been killed.To a lot of people, the conflict was already raging, and they interpret that as blaming or putting undue emphasis on Israel.Can we please use the following form of words which gets round that:Israel launched its offensive, which it says is aimed at ending rocket fire from Gaza, with the killing on Wednesday of a Hamas military leader. More than 110 Palestinians and three Israelis have been killed since then.ThanksRaffi Berg Middle East desk BBC News website +44 203 614 xxxxraffi.berg@bbc.co.ukhttp://www.bbc.com/middleeast

and another:

November 22, 2012 at 6:48 pmPlease remember, Israel doesn’t maintain a blockade around Gaza. Egypt controls the southern border. Israel maintains a blockade around its borders with Gaza, as well as a naval blockade. It also controls Gaza’s airspace.We’ve mistakenly said “around Gaza” in a number of recent stories, which has generated complaints.Raffi Berg Middle East desk BBC News website +44 203 614 1824raffi.berg@bbc.co.ukhttp://www.bbc.com/middleeast

These rather odd comments indicate at least that Raffi Berg is willing to listen to his critics. He also wrote this, which didn’t go down very well with BBCWatch

His article about Israeli ‘Frankness’ is quite nice as it happens, and most likely well-intentioned, but it also plays into the hands of people who consider superficialities to be the most significant pointers to ‘a peoples’ fundamental character.  How many times have I heard people praising the inhabitants of various Islamic states, poverty-stricken and wealthy alike, for their tradition of hospitality and generosity to strangers, and extrapolating from this that as a people they must be blameless for everything else. 

How many times have I heard tales of the rudeness of Israelis, whether at home or abroad, from people who extrapolate from this that Israelis must be solely to blame for the tribulations of the Middle East. They don’t get it, and the little bit at the end of the piece about “Sabra”, which comes from the name of a cactus fruit - prickly on the outside but tender within - characteristics which arguably best define Israelis, will probably be lost in the rush to condemn Israel yet again. For that reason, i.e., the likelihood that such things will only be half understood, and as such used as tools by Israel’s detractors,  articles like this are risky. In the current climate these things need to be strongly counter-balanced with an equal amount of positive stories. We’ve a long way to go....

Update.  See this post for  a full explanation. http://isthebbcbiased.blogspot.co.uk/2013/09/nice-but-dim.html
The post I referred to above that appeared on Biased-BBC was not put there by Raffi Berg. It was posted by "Soothsayer" in order to make a point. I assume it was an internal memo.