Holy crap, I just got off the phone with my Mom and she thinks Al Jazeera is run by the "bad guys"

[tridim]

Radical Muslims, Bin Laden, etc.

WTF? She wouldn't tell me who told her that, but I'm guessing it's Fox.

Anyone know who is spreading this dangerous rumor? Is it a faux reality for the entire RW?

[tekisui]

1. They have always thought that.

Hell, dubya bombed their HQ when he invaded Iraq.

[EFerrari]

2. Rumsfeld spread that rumor deliberately at the Pentagon Ministry of Truth.

Remember Victoria Clarke?

[Ian David]

3. They're not THAT bad. They're like Fox News for Muslims.

They're not closing their broadcasts with shouts of, "Death to the Infidel."

Tell her they're just the Muslim version of Sean Hannity.

(Actually, they've moderated their tone in recent years).

See their Wikipedia entry:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Al_jazeera

[Dennis Donovan]

8. "Fox news for Muslims"?

I've been watching them since Fri PM - their coverage has been fair.:shrug:

[Ian David]

14. Like I said, they've moderated their tone in recent years.

They've made some apologies and been more balanced.

But if you tell a naysayer that they're "Like Fox News for Muslims," they'll have to come to one of two conclusions:

1) Either Al Jazeera is okay
or
2) You wouldn't want Muslims saying the things about Christians that Fox News says about Muslims (and everyone else) so therefore Fox "News" is bad.

[Turborama]

22. What "things about Christians" does Jazeera English say?

Also, what apologies have Al Jazeera English had to make?

http://iwantaje.com/hm

[verges]

28. 3) You don't know what you're talking about.

And I would guess that (3) is the conclusion they would come to. The RWers I seem to have contact with aren't as easily cowed as the ones most people here seem to encounter.

[Ian David]

30. Oh, you're dealing with THESE right-wingers...

[jonnyblitz]

40. oooh i know. they are probably critical of Israel which you will

have none of. islamophobia.

[dixiegrrrrl]

32. Their geography has not:

Look where they are telling people Egypt is.

[Capn Sunshine]

34. !!!! !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

That is so classically Fucked up right there. What the HELL is wrong with those idiots?

[hlthe2b]

15. Wow.. that's a rather nasty exaggeration...

Open-minded DUers should see the documentary on the Iraq War "spin" and intentional propaganda campaign that covers the intentional villainization of Al Jazeera by the Bushies* and their Neo-Con/AIPAC factions.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Control_Room_

[Turborama]

18. You're not talking about Al Jazeera English

If you are you don't know what you're talking about and must have swallowed Rumsfeld's red pill.

[BlueMTexpat]

23. Exactly. nt

[social_critic]

39. Al Jazeera is my favorite

Never heard them say Death to Infidels. Osama bin Laden can do Sean Hannity, but he's not an al Jazeera regular. No other muslim comes close to Sean Hannity, who is in a class by himself. I used to think Rush was better, but Rush dropped off after he started doing drugs, and the others in the Fox News stable fall short: O'Reilly is a liar, Beck is a madman, Huckabee is soft, and Palin is stupid.

[Hannah Bell]

41. what? founded & run by former bbc people.

[justiceischeap]

4. When the Bush admin illegally invaded Iraq

Al Jazeera was the only news outlet that really didn't tow the US government line. Called them on their bullshit and were bombed for their efforts.

[cutlassmama]

36. Yes, I remember that.

[Odin2005]

5. MSM propaganda WORKS.

:puke:

[Cleita]

6. Tell her a little white lie and tell

her they are the ME outlet for Fox News and watch her head explode.

[Drale]

7. That rumor has been spreading since 9/11

I know so many people to believe Al Jazeera is just the news front for al-Qaeda. Just more stupid false information spread by the right.

[Ian David]

10. Their primary sponsors are (officially, anyway) allies of America. n/t

[Quantess]

9. The name is very suspicious.... Al Jazeera.

I doubt any of them have ever watched Al Jazeera for more than a split second, because if they had, they would know better.

[tishaLA]

11. I turned to O'Reilly for 3 minutes Friday evening

and he was telling his audience that al Jazeera was indeed run by the bad guys and they wouldn't be happy until they had managed to have even the legitimate ME governments--Saudi Arabia? UAE?--toppled.

He--and this is Bill O'Reilly we are talking about here--claimed that al Jazeera is just a bunch of shit stirrers.

[Fuzz]

44. Factual reporting should stir up the shit.

[DCKit]

45. "...claimed that al Jazeera is just a bunch of shit stirrers." Unlike, say, Fox.

Sorry Ian David, I usually respect your views on a lot of things, but when I want "just the news, folks", it's usually RT or AJ that I tune to. By comparison, CNN, MSNBC and Fox are fluff interspersed with propaganda. Neither RT or AJ take the time to "analyze" the news with the help of a cadre of talking heads, they simply report what's going on.

Thankfully, I get both "over the air" here in DC.

[upi402]

12. BushCo -and justice for them is delayed, and denied to this day. n/t

[hlthe2b]

13. Al Jazeera has been villainized since the start of Iraq war...

Do folks here not remember? If you never saw the documentary, "Control room" that discusses this, you damn well should. Excellent.

Here's a blurb: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Control_Room_

[GSLevel9]

16. well in all honesty...

they were THE place to watch beheading videos... although their current news coverage is excellent.

[tishaLA]

26. no, they weren't

http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2005/nov/24/usa.terrorism

[GSLevel9]

29. I stand corrected... I could have sworn they did. nt

[nadinbrzezinski]

17. Fox is running their feed

and yesterday... the hour of Gerardo I saw, serious cooties were breaking over there as they were actually trying to do REAL analysis...

Let me turn on fox...

[drm604]

19. They have a Muslim sounding name

so by definition they're the bad guys. :sarcasm:

Seriously, many people think like that.

[Turborama]

20. Does she use the internet? If so, send her this link --->

http://iwantaje.com/

[PassingFair]

21. A friend of mine, who is a very religious Xtian from Egypt, says that

Al Jazeera is Muslim propaganda, but he admits
to watching it because it is the only new outlet
that has constant coverage.

[BlueMTexpat]

27. Al Jazeera (Arabic) & Al Jazeera (English) are

practically two different networks. While both may be streaming the same events, the level and focus of commentary/rhetoric are generally different. Certainly the languages are.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Al_Jazeera

As one who remembers when CNN was actually a decent 24-hour news channel, Al Jazeera (English) is at least as good as that. In non-US-related coverage, it's better than CNN in its heyday (clearly not now). It also has a lot of former reporters from CNN in its glory days and news anchors from the Beeb, so it has combined higher caliber coverage generally.

[tavalon]

38. Wow, that's a blast from the past!

CNN was a good news station in the 80's.

[Warpy]

24. The far right, especially the Christian right, has always

demonized Al Jazeera simply because it is a Muslim news operation.

It doesn't make any sense, at all, since they have an accuracy record Pox News can only dream of.

Your mom is wrong but she's still your mom. You can only wait for your mind to stop boggling and hope she catches a clue somewhere else. You can't be the one to give it to her.

[mzteris]

25. tell her my daughter's highschool sweetheart

is a producer for them.

He's definitely one of the "good guys"! Used to produce a popular BBC America program.

[jimmie]

31. Holy Crap is right.

Don't do what I did...sue for emancipation.

( just kidding)

[Kievan Rus]

33. I have mutual feelings for Faux News. I think it's run by the "bad guys" too

[Gregorian]

35. Funny name means evil.

Too bad many people can't see past the skin. Because much is not as it seems. Can't we use a little effort? Just a little thought?

Sorry if I offend you. I'm generalizing.

[tridim]

43. It doesn't affend me.

It's just something I have to deal with.

[tavalon]

37. Hmmm, too bad

Al Jezeera is my go to station for all things Middle Eastern. Very straightforward. The way journalism used to be in this country.

[Capitalocracy]

42. The other day my mom told me she wasn't so sure about this global warming stuff.

After all, there's snow. And before, people said the problem would be global cooling.

The worst part? My mom's been a Dem all her life. :banghead: