General Discussion
Related: Editorials & Other Articles, Issue Forums, Alliance Forums, Region ForumsIsrael-Gaza conflict: The secret report that helps Israelis to hide facts ( Patrick Cockburn )
Sunday, July 27, 2014
Israeli spokesmen have their work cut out explaining how they have killed more than 1,000 Palestinians in Gaza, most of them civilians, compared with just three civilians killed in Israel by Hamas rocket and mortar fire. But on television and radio and in newspapers, Israeli government spokesmen such as Mark Regev appear slicker and less aggressive than their predecessors, who were often visibly indifferent to how many Palestinians were killed.
There is a reason for this enhancement of the PR skills of Israeli spokesmen. Going by what they say, the playbook they are using is a professional, well-researched and confidential study on how to influence the media and public opinion in America and Europe. Written by the expert Republican pollster and political strategist Dr Frank Luntz, the study was commissioned five years ago by a group called The Israel Project, with offices in the US and Israel, for use by those "who are on the front lines of fighting the media war for Israel".
Every one of the 112 pages in the booklet is marked "not for distribution or publication" and it is easy to see why. The Luntz report, officially entitled "The Israel project's 2009 Global Language Dictionary, was leaked almost immediately to Newsweek Online, but its true importance has seldom been appreciated. It should be required reading for everybody, especially journalists, interested in any aspect of Israeli policy because of its "dos and don'ts" for Israeli spokesmen.
These are highly illuminating about the gap between what Israeli officials and politicians really believe, and what they say, the latter shaped in minute detail by polling to determine what Americans want to hear. Certainly, no journalist interviewing an Israeli spokesman should do so without reading this preview of many of the themes and phrases employed by Mr Regev and his colleagues.
in full: http://www.independent.co.uk/voices/comment/israelgaza-conflict-the-secret-report-that-helps-israelis-to-hide-facts-9630765.html
Link to pdf: http://mondoweiss.net/2009/07/no-it-isnt-the-pentagon-papers-but-heres-a-small-sign-that-the-msm-is-finally-going-to-take-on-the-b.html
Electric Monk
(13,869 posts)Jefferson23
(30,099 posts)Electric Monk
(13,869 posts)Okay, Frank, its widely known that youre evil. Youre evil because you think of words to get stupid people to vote against their interests. - Bill Maher
Jefferson23
(30,099 posts)DirkGently
(12,151 posts)bigtree
(85,999 posts)@JonDonnison @LTCPeterLerner @ChrisGunness and Mark Regev was claiming on C4 just now it was a hamas rocket that was fired on the school
Israeli army confirms it fired into UN Gaza school refuge, but denies anyone killed despite reports
http://www.democraticunderground.com/10025298697
catherine myles @catemyles · 7m
Regev: 'We don't want any civilian casualties' - video - #c4news http://www.channel4.com/news/mark-regev-gaza-israel-hamas-civilian-casualties-video
Jefferson23
(30,099 posts)That channel 4 group has produced some of the best coverage I have seen so far..kudos to them.
malaise
(269,079 posts)He lies and lies and is certainly not convincing. I watched Joy Reid school him on Friday.
Jefferson23
(30,099 posts)and the UN generally sort it out. I agree, don't count on Regev for honesty.