PrintMarch 24, 2011
NYT, WaPo agree -- Deadly Jerusalem bus bombing was not an act of terrorism
A British woman was killed and dozens of bystanders were injured when a bomb exploded in the center of Jerusalem. An all too familiar event in Israel -- a country that has sustained more terrorist attacks than any other nation.
But as far as the Washington Post and the New York Times are concerned, the bomb explosion -- designed to kill and maim as many civilians as possible -- was not an act of terrorism.
Both newspapers go to great lengths to avoid describing the Jerusalem bombing as a terrorist event. . The Washington Post headline -- "Blast fractures Jerusalem calm -- Bomb Kills One at Bus Strop -- Dozens hurt in city once accustomed to attacks" -- carefully elides the "T" word. Ditto the New York Times headline: "Explosion in Jerusalem Kills One and Shatters Relative Calm."
Keeping to the Post's long-held doctrine that there is no such thing as Palestinian terrorism, Jerusalem correspondent Janine Zacharia reports merely that a "bomb detonated...the attack came...the Jerusalem attack....the bombing..." Any Orwellian euphemism to avoid use of the "T" word.
Zacharia even quotes Jerusalem Mayor Nir Barkat as referring to "terror" in his city. But she stoutly refuses to endorse his view. Never mind that President Obama in condemning the Jerusalem bus bombing, used the "T" word. "Terrorism" against Israel simply is not part of Zacharia's personal vocabulary.
The same goes for New York Times correspondent Isabel Kershner, who also tiptoes around this terrorist attack without ever designating it with the "T" word. Her dispatch mentions that a "bomb exploded...the worst attack in Jerusalem in four years...the Jeruslaem bombing...the blast." Anything except actual terrorism, as far as Zacharia is concerned.
Never mind that in Kershner's own article, Defense Secretary Robert Gates and even UN Secretary General Ban Ki-Moon and Palestinian Prime Minister Salam Fayyad all use the "T" word. It makes no difference to Kershner, who's determined not to emulate them.
When terrorism strikes across the globe, the Times and the Post have no hesitation to use the "T" word in their own copy. Except when it happens in a place pummeled by terrorism more than any other -- Israel.
