[Palestine] CNN and Innocent Victims of Violence

[Dayne Goodwin <dayneg@xxxxxxxx>]

---------- Forwarded message ----------
Date: Thu, 27 Jun 2002 15:35:49 -0700
From: Salem Ajluni <ajluni@xxxxxxxxxxx>
To: cnn.feedback@xxxxxxx, community@xxxxxxx, reliable@xxxxxxx
Cc: jill.neff@xxxxxxxxxx, kurtzh@xxxxxxxxxxxx, bernard.kalb@xxxxxxxxxx
Subject: CNN and Innocent Victims of Violence

27 June 2002

To Whom It May Concern:

It has come to my attention that CNN is about to embark on a five-part
series on Israeli civilian victims of the violence in the
Palestinian-Israeli conflict and the toll the violence has taken on Israelis
and Israeli society.  In addition, CNN has published on its web site the
names, pictures and biography of all Israeli killed over the past two years
with a "special report" on Israeli victims of Palestinians violence.

It is commendable that CNN would honor innocent Israeli civilians killed in
a tragic and brutal cycle of violence by seeking to humanize them, to
elevate them above mere statistics, to give them names and histories and
human dignity.  In so doing, I hope that CNN would focus on the political
context in which such unjustifiable acts have been committed.  Thus, rather
than a lurid or sensationalist presentation that could feed the impulse for
revenge, I hope that the series will help transform mourning for the loss of
innocent life into action that would put an end to the senseless cycle of
violence.  This would be a proper and worthy way for a media organization to
honor those whose lives have been lost.

By the same token, Israeli violence, both official and unofficial, has
taken the lives of innocent Palestinians - more than three times the
number of Israelis killed.  For the most part, and especially in the
Western media, these equally innocent victims of violence have been
anonymously killed in "clashes," "gun battles," "crossfire," "collateral
damage."  The effects of Israeli violence on Palestinian society has been
more devastating both because it has been disproportionate and because
Palestinian society has far fewer resources to cope with the consequences.

I think you will agree that respect for the sanctity of human life is sorely
missing among the extremists who have engaged in the killing of innocent
civilians.  It would be an injustice and a tragedy for CNN to denigrate the
loss of innocent Palestinian life by not showing at least equal compassion
for the ordinary and innocent Palestinian civilians killed in the past 22
months.

Will CNN produce and air a series on innocent Palestinian victims of Israeli
violence and its effects on Palestinian society?  Will CNN post the pictures
and stories of the Palestinian men, women and children on its web site?  If
not, why not?

Sincerely,

Salem Ajluni
San Jose, California
USA


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