Ray Hanania's article is the exact opposite of what is really the case - the media is blatantly biased against Israel and has been since the Oil Crisis after the Yom Kippur War. Organizations like CAMERA have demonstrated conclusively that literally thousands of newspaper, television and radio pieces about the Middle East are the most distorted pieces of anti-Israel and anti-Semitic lies. The media is the vehicle for leftist pro-Palestinian propaganda - just spend some time listening to the BBC or ex-President Jimmy Carter. The reason why? When Arab oil is $65.00 US a barrel, and the Saudis have $800 billion worth of investments in the US, you can be sure that powerful interests want to blame Israel for all of the Middle East's ills.

The Chicago Tribune is a conservative newspaper and tends to have conservative columnists. I'm not sure that there are any Conservative Palestinian columnists. I have no problem in theory with Palestinian columnists. I saw the Palestinian ambassador in Washington DC on CNN. He blamed the publishing of the Danish cartoons of Muhammed on Israel and the Likud who were trying to create a clash between the West and Islam. This is classic antisemitic conspiracy theory. This is the Palestinian idea of diplomacy and they wonder why they have a bad image in the US.

You've got it backwards. It is Jews who are bludgeoned by critics of Israel who claim Jews are blackmailing critics of Israel. Whatever happens, I know that they will blame Israel and only Israel.

The Tribune is about the most pro-Palestinian major paper in the US. Along with Wycliff's comments defending Mohammed Salah in his Public Editor column, the Trib has printed editorials from the likes of Abu Alinimah (a co-founder of the Pro-Palestinian website “Electronic Intifida”), had feature articles on a visiting Palestinian Christian cleric that compared the Palestinian situation to the Crucifixition and blames the Jews for the death of Jesus. Last year, they also ran a "human interest" story that implied that Palestinians have no access to Israeli hospitals, which is patently false if you read stories on the Ynet or Ha'Aretz English-language websites. Actually, I wrote Wycliff a letter about the column you cited, and told him that if they were to have a Palestinian voice, you're as good a one as any. Although I don't think you'd be enough of a politically correct "Palestinian" enough to satisfy that audience. The issue with the Trib isn't just Wycliff's views, it's the culture there that calls Hamas terrorists "activists" and "militants" and runs stories about the Museum of Tolerance that suggest in the headline that the Israeli gov't is deliberately destroying Muslim cemeteries, without revealing that it was the imfamous Mufti of Jerusalem (al-Husseini) that allowed excavation of those graves in the 1920's for a hotel! They don't need a Palestinian columnist when the paper is a PR arm of the Palestinian Authority.

Ynet needs a Palestinian columnist, I noticed this news letter does not let its neighbours speak to the israeli public, who knows , maybe it will sway both sides to piece.

And become journalists and model citizens. Everyone would be happy.

Hi Ray, have you heard of a website called Honest Reporting??? please visit it. I think it will stop you from writing these articles. Evryone who want to really know about media bias in middle east coverage can learn for themselves and see the extreme bias shown towrds Israel. And why would we want to hear the Palestinian voice after all the lies (Massacre in Jenin, fake funerals etc.) they have told???Answer that Ray!!!

you write the most blatantly untruthful articles you can come up with just so you can get a rise out of your readers!

Surely this was extracted from one of Mr. Hanania's comedy sketches and wasn't meant to be taken seriously. Right? Huh. And I thought the mainstream media in the US had it in for Israel... Guess I had it all wrong! Unquestioningly giving column inches and air time to representatives of Protocols-believing, terror-embracing kleptocrats isn't enough. One must whole-heartedly agree with them too. Well don't despair, Ray -- it's out there. Just start reading the New York Times...

unintelligent analysis of an Arab commedian claiming to be a Palestinian from Chicago it will totally lose its credibility.

The Palestinians don't want the West to know that they are terrorists. They hand out candy after the Twin Tower catastrophe, and then a spokesman says that a handful of the bozo's were celebrating. The Palestinians and Arabs in general, try to keep their image in the middle. They don't want America, or Europe to think they are Terrorist Nuts. America or Europe might have to do something about it, if the truth came out. Keep spinning about how the Palestinians want us to know them Ray. Tell them to come on over to our schools, to teach our children how to strap on a suicide belt. They can come over and teach the, Hate the Jew, and Infidel crap, that is taught to their children. Are you really just trying to get a spin masters voice in the American Media Ray? To tell us how wonderful the Jihad is? How about a Muslim who just tells me he hates me, for not being Muslim. Someone who tells me that the World Trade Center attacks were aimed at infidels, who won't let your fellow Arabs, wipe the Jews off the face of the planet. How about reporting that a good portion of the Arabs, just want the Jews gone. No matter if it starts a nuclear war. Isn't that why they don't report Ray? They would have to tell their ugly truth's to the world? I wasn't suprised to see Hamas voted in Ray. Just the ignorant Americans who think Palestinians are really great guys, believed that crap. Get your spin masters in place. Like Al Jazeera isn't the number one Arab news manipulator out there already. Maybe America should get their voices on Al Jazeera Ray. Then the Muslims could get a taste of how we despise their religious hatred towards us infidels.

my dear you do not know the poem [alsayfu asdaku anbaaa mna alkutubi ] yes evry one believe and listen to the might now all is saying about hamass becouse of the victory in election when we say might it is never the araby one it is the palastinian //but in arab lands there is might it is the oil .and in arab land there is jornalists better than the palastinians as ex haykal and i think he can do better than others but weneed palastinians might not just a pen salam hanania

B"H The USA media focuses on the USA and not world events. It has an inward focus and is not a Hamas propoganda voice-piece. During the uprooting, I was very frustrated by the level of journalism. No one from Gush Katif was interviewed, either Jewish or Arab, but propoganda for it was simply spewed. That uprooting was totally Hamas- and Kadima- biased in favor of the "Arab" Judenrein perspective. Hire a Jewish journalist already at the major papers from that area. He or she might actually report the full story right! I have not heard you or any other Arab journalist lay the facts straight about Hamas treason. Ray, I hope you stay out of USA media because you are already corrupting the Israeli media too much in my opinion with your cries of "equality" when the Arab PA choice of Hamas is not even equal-oriented enough to recognize Israel or the United States for that matter. Where are your cries and tears over that? Until I hear those cries, I have suspicions that you are attempting to underhandedly undermining the governments in place to promote a Hamas agenda of totalitarian rule.

Israel you won't fool the American's forever, we give you aid and gain enemies. You occupy the land which the UN gave to Palestinians and then deny them a state. They fight back and you drag us stupid gullible American's to support you. Your days are limited.

Anybody in chicago knows that the tribune doesn't lack for pro-palestinian voices. Don Wycliff in particular has been reflexively anti-Israel. Drucker has it dead on.

Ray, the Palestinian voice was clearly heard when the majority of its population spoke and elected Hammas. They voted to destroy Israel and lead a monolothic Islamic life. Adding a writer like you is like adding another Arafat. You'll slow down a natural process by not being a true representative. You'll tell the world that Palestinian's want peace, when in fact they want Israel and Jews removed from the middle east. They want Christians out of there to, preferrably by converting them to Islam. Ray, I look forward to a Hammas Palestinian writer in US papers. That will truely alienate the Palestinians from the US because of their core beliefs of hatred and intollerance.

I didn't even mention a story (or was it a cartoon?) about Sharon a couple of years back, where the syndicated writer made up a racist quote that he supposedly uttered, even admitted it when the story got nationally publicized, and the Tribune never printed the retraction. Our local free paper (the Chicago Reader) ran a story about it, and from the Wycliff quotes, it was clear that Wycliff was hard-core anti-Israel, if not anti-Semitic when it came to his feelings about Jews. It's probably still on the Reader archives somewhere(www.chireader.com). It's not just news, either. They have a movie critic, Allison Benedikt, that wrote a scathing review of Marc Levin's "The Protocols of the Elders of Zion" that implied that he was not only an hysterical paranoid, but fostering racism by the way he showed vocal Arab-Americans propounding the conspiracy theory. In comparison, Ray Hanania would almost be a moderate voice in Trib terms. The Sun-Times isn't perfect, and doesn't have the depth of the Trib on reporting, but its heart is in the right place when it comes to Israel, for all its publisher-related problems over the years.

Everything I see is pro palesinian despite any evidence into their nefarious dealings. The media is so left leaning that if you aren't an abortion supporting homosexual Palestinian, you aren't a true American.

the arabs living in our midst, wether israeli citiziens(oy vey), or the so called "palestinans", are for the most part responsible for-- modern day terrorism as we know it. the sucide -bombing phenomena, the plane hijacking, the twin tower and other notivcable bombing that caused thousands of deathes-- so ,yes ,face it , the arabs as a whole ,and "palestinans " in particular are not a welcome commodity, if you will, in the average american houshold. and no ,the american media ,as liberal as most of it is , canot ,and will not accept "palestinas" bombing of innocent civilans, anywhere.

The problem with the Tribune is that they feed the guilt of thie rbias by publishing the most obnoxious anti-Israeli columns, rather than publishing the columns of moderate Palestinians. Although on this discussion list, many of those who write don't believe that the phrase 'moderate palestinian' exists :) ... Anyway, the Tribune has always had a failing. Too arrogant. Too insistent that they know everything. And, they always want to chose the voices, which usually reflect the most extremist of Palestinian writers, including some that you have mentioned. In my view -- despite the propaganda campaign by some writers on this list -- my view of a moderate Palestinian is this: - Opposes all forms of violence - Supports peace based on negotiations - speaks out not just against Israeli policies but also Palestinian policies - speaks out when Palestinians murders Israelis, not just when Israelis murder Palestinians - acknowledges that the Right of Return is unrealistic in the context of compromise - speaks out against anti-Semitism and Holocaust revisionism - and can take the heat when fanatic Jews, fanatic Israelis, fanatic Muslims, fanatic Arabs and Fanatic Palestinians bash him :) Again, I like to engage readers so I do write here. Most writers prefer to publish their columns and not read the responses but I read everyone and reply to all emails, and more seriously to the ones that are genuinely interested in a discussion. My primary critics are not thinned-skinned Israeli extremists, but rather Palestinian fanatics wo want the instability to continue because they believe prolonged conflict keeps their one chance of destroying Israel alive. Ray Hanania www.hanania.com

I don't know if you are old enough to remember the Smothers Brothers comedy team here in the USA but the younger brother would always tell his older brother TImmy, "Dad always did like you best!" My point? This battle has been going on since Isaac and Ishmael. It won't end overnight I'm afraid. The lesson to learn here is this is what happens when we try to play G_d and not turn to Him for help guidance and strenght. Read Jeremiah in the Old Testament. Its painful, but I cannot point a finger at anyone Im just as guilty. the UN cannot give the Land to THE Palestinians its not theirs to give . That was the Almightys doing.As a Mxican American I can accept this and am not threatend. Nor should you be.

Jeff, if you are an American, the U.S. must have a lousy educational system because you are truly a stupid bastard. Exactly when did the UN give the land to the Palestinians. For your information, the UN voted in 1947 to partition the small part of the land that was left after Jordan was created into a Jewish and Arab State. The Jews accepted. The Arabs refused and attacked Israel. Now you dumb shit bigot, what the hell are you talking about ?

Agreed that more Palestinian voices are needed, but please, not yours Ray because you speak according to who your audience is. We need credible Palestinian voices.

The majority of Arabs who call themselves "Palestinians" support the cold-blooded murder of Jewish women and children. That is why they elected to hamass to represent them. How could any decent person support evil people like these? Americans will never won't forget the Arab so-called Palestinians celebrating in the street after 9/11. That is why I, like most non-Jewish Americans, support Israel over the people who want to destroy them. Long live Israel!

I was looking over the Newsweek edition that came out for the week of Feb 7. They had a large section covering the Palestinian elections and analysis of them. They also had a letter written by ABu-Tir (Hamas#1) full of lies, which I won't even go into. But one article, written by an arab claiming to be from some Palestinian demographic research agency, said that only 45 % of the popular vote was for Hamas while 55 % was for Fatah and the remaining 4 parties. He went on and on pulling numbers out of his ass, trying to prove that the palestinians really want peace despite having voted for Hamas. I admit it was encouraging to me. But then I read the other article and it said that Hamas recieved 74 out of 134 parliament seats. Now I'm no math major but I know that 74 out of 134 is not 45%. Something is fishy here and I'm still not sure what... I notified the magazine of the discrepancy but still have not recieved a response...

You are very wrong Jeff. America needs Israel just as much as Israel needs America. Where do you think American inteligence in the middle east comes from, Syria??? No Jeff, it comes from Israel. Without Israel there, the middle east would be a mess. Those Arab countries would wage war on each other, but now they have Israel to fight . Anyone who does not support Israel supports terror and is against democracy. Are you for those things Jeff????

First of letr me say that I don't believe Hamas should have been permitted to run candidates in the elections. It was wrong. Hamas is a terrorist organization and a religious fanatic group that doesn't respect the rights of other religions. AND ... Hamas spent 15 years trying to undermine the PNA Peace with Israel, regardless of how you view the peace process. In otherwords, Hamas acted as an illegal vigilante group that violated the PNA government policies, engaging in violence and killintg civilians. Until they put down their arms, recognize "real Democracy" and accept the basis upon which the PNA was established, they should not have been allowed to participate as a political party in the elections. Now, to your question. Palestinians voted on two separate lists, one by Party Choice (selecting 66 seats) -- Hamas did slightly better than Fatah winning 29 seats to Fatah's 28 (if I recall without looking at my notes); and one by individual candidates for the remaining 66 seats. On the second list, rival fatah candidates ran against each other splitting the vote and allowing the Hamas candidates to win. The process was a freakish distortion of Democracy. Even in the US, we use a Primary System to select who represents a party, and then the candidates of the major party go head-to-head. And to Lois D. : Thanks for clearing up your views. :) I'm the moderate voice who speaks to the evils and good of both sides; you would prefer a fanatic voice that champions Palestinian Cause and blasts Israel (no different than what many Israelis who write on this list also want in reverse). Fortunately, I think the moderates are the majority, even if we allow the minority extremists to undermine what we try to achieve. Ray Hanania www.hanania.com

B"H Ray, the "Arab palestininians" have selected Hamas. If you are moderate and want to dialogue, put yourself in the shoes of a Jew, and ask yourself what kind of impression should a Jew get from a people that elects a convent intent on destruction of Israel and murder of its leaders and people? Already, we see Hamas positioning the release of Zeev Ghandhi's murderer. Can you tell me how you can be moderate and support such a concept? Even if it is a "freak" of democracy, it is not at all moderate but quite extreme position officially represented. This whole "friendship" with a Nuclear Iran (it DOES admit it is persuing nuclear technology, the sort only needed for weapons), and speaks about destroying Israel also. What kind of atmosphere is that for your "moderate" dialogue? It is a very poisoning atmosphere, and you really have not offered any solutions aside from putting these voices in the American press, because Americans really cannot effectively promote the moderate over the extreme. If the situation is something desirable, I would think that your real complaint would be to put these moderate voices in the PA press, in the textbooks for the children who grow up currently extremely bent on hate. If you want dialogue, please comment on that Ray. Because sometimes I get the impression that your asking for support is asking for the kind of support that undermines the very foundations of expression. When Hamas starts riots over cartoons that underscore the point that the prophet Mohammed is being subjugated to a violent objective by muslim leaders (and that IS what that fuse symbolizes), there are massive riots that Hamas supports. Please respond and let me know where that moderation is Ray, that basis for dialogue, when the "choice" Hamas fails to recognize the Jewish State or even the right of Jews to live in Israel. What are you going to effectively do about Hamas to turn the situation around so it does not represent YOU in its violent schemes?