Corporate media/Islamophobia

Corporate media/Islamophobia (“islamophobia”)
Bob Beckel on Fox News declaring himself an islamaphobe

Islamophobia is promulgated by corporate media since 9/11 at least as much by what it omits to state than by what it reports. For example, the Corporate media in Western countries was quick to repeat the US government's official narrative about the 19 Muslim hijackers without subjecting it to any critical scrutiny (even to the point of not checking whether these people did in fact die on that day).

Trusting government

By and large, especially since 9/11, corporate media have been very reluctant to seriously question official narratives dispensed by establishment sources, are quick to equate Islam with terrorism, as if to establish a connection between the two. It is very rare that it does this with Christianity, Judaism or other religions. As former NSA director, William Odom observed:

“Terrorism cannot be defeated because it’s not an enemy, it’s a tactic. A war against Al Qaida is sensible and supportable, but a war against a tactic is ludicrous and hurtful... a propaganda ploy to swindle others into supporting one’s own terrorism ... and encourages prejudices against Muslims everywhere. What if we said “Catholic Christian IRA hitmen” ?”
William Odom (2006) 

Serious doubt

In 2016, Jon Austin of the UK's Daily Express was the first UK corporate media to express serious doubt about the highly dubious official narrative of the "19 hijackers" which has so effectively fuelled the islamophobic "war on terror".

Tackling the issue

Different corporate media address different population segments, and some are much more islamophobic than others. The Huffington Post has run several articles challenging the facile equation of Islam with terrorism, such as article from December 2015, entitled "Muslims Are Not Terrorists: A Factual Look at Terrorism and Islam". In November 2015 Gabriel Arana headlined an article for the Huffington Post "Islamophobic Media Coverage Is Out Of Control. It Needs To Stop" and wrote that "as journalists, it is our duty to dispel myths and counter misinformation -- not perpetuate them."

 

Related Quotation

Page	Quote	Author	Date
"Islamophobia"	“"terrorism" in the post-9/11 American vernacular has become shorthand for "Islamic terrorism."”	Gregory Krieg	2 April 2017

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