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An Eye for an Eyelash

medialens analyses the way the media - and politicians too - deals with topics of critical importance. It often finds lack of balance or accurate reporting.

In the current malstrom brought about by Israel's bombardment of Gaza and Israel's ban of reporters into Gaza, what the media reports becomes even for critically important.

medialens' first report "An Eye for an Eyelash: The Gaza Massacre" makes for "interesting" reading.

UPDATE: Interestingly, The Guardian also has an article "Why we have to let pictures tell the real story" which deals with the way the media has "covered" the present conflict:

"British media coverage of the Israel-Palestine conflict has changed radically over the past five years. From broad sympathy for Israel, the tone has become critical and hostile. This has been evident during the invasion of Gaza, just as it was during the Israeli incursion into Lebanon in 2006. Media attitudes are largely dictated by what makes good drama and, above all, by pictures. The violent death of 700 people in a week – in the midst of shattered homes and schools – is a bigger and more shocking story than the same number of deaths on, say, 30 or 40 separate occasions. The Independent's Robert Fisk said on the BBC that "it is the job of journalists to be impartial on the side of those who suffer most". But as Fisk knows, it isn't like that: journalists are impartial on the side of those who suffer most visibly and dramatically."

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