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How To Make An Ass of a Story
January 20, 2012
Just when you thought the media had already surpassed itself in its unbalanced reporting about Israel, the NZ Herald surprised us all by offering up a pre Christmas ‘special’ about donkey abuse in the Holy Land. Sourced from the UK Independent and also appearing in the Daily Telegraph, the local NZ Herald version managed to acquire a few unique features of its own. (click here) to read more on how headlines, photos and captions can distort and misinform.
Seasonal Illwill
January 9, 2012
The Christmas period is traditionally one of love and goodwill to all people. However, there are exceptions and reporting about Israel in the newspapers seems to be one of them. This Festive Season was no exception and true to form the public were able to read an article depicting alleged problems encountered by Christian pilgrims wanting to visit Bethlehem. This surfaces every year with the media continuing its negative, unbalanced and ill informed stories. However this year they surpassed themselves. In the interests of bringing you the facts you wouldn't normally see, please (click here) to read what is really going on and continues to be unreported in your local newspaper.
Spring turns to winter
December 16, 2011
We all know that the lazy hazy days of summer follow spring. Therefore, one could reasonably expect that following the much touted Arab ‘spring’ the same feelings of joy and contentment are about to sprout forth. Unfortunately, in this case, the climatic forecast is for a stormy winter, the first signs of which are already discernible on the horizon. Instead of recognising the impending upheavals, our politicians and media prefer to pretend that the forecast is wrong. For an alternative analysis of the situation ( click here ) to read what our correspondent on the ground in Israel has to say. KBRM is dedicated to bringing you a fair and balanced presentation of facts and opinions which your local media prefers to ignore.
November 30, 2011
Safe Haven In The Jewish State
Do you realise that thousands of African refugees, Moslem and Christian, are seeking asylum in Israel? Are you aware that these men, women & children, fleeing from religious and ethnic persecution, are finding a safe haven in the Jewish State? Why is it that only in Israel they are finding refuge? You will not find the answers in your local media. Therefore in the interests of fair and balanced reporting we reproduce a letter written by a young Israeli man doing his reserve duty on the Egyptian/Israel border which provides not only an eye witness account of the dramatic plight of these refugees but also demonstrates an aspect of Israel which the media prefers to ignore. Click here to read more.
November 21, 2011
UNESCO And The U.N. — What is all the fuss about?
Do taxpayers realise that their hard earned money is being used to fund organisations which are engaged in deligitimising and demonising Israel? The United Nations and UNESCO are two examples where double standards rule and hypocrisy reigns. As you are never likely to read about it in your local media and in order to understand the full scope of this scandalous situation, please Click Here for further enlightenment.
September 28, 2011
You Are Way Off, Mr. Goff
The Leader of the Opposition, Mr. Phil Goff, recently set out his position concerning the intention of the Palestinian Arab leadership requesting the UN to recognise a Palestinian State with defined borders and his advice to the NZ Government to vote in favour of such a unilateral move. The reported statement is riddled with inaccuracies and omissions.
In the interests of a balanced and informed understanding of the real situation, it is necessary to unravel the myths and expose them to reality. (read More)
September 12, 2011
Excessive And Non Proportional?
The recent UN Palmer Report is rather unique in that it tries to strike an even balance, something most UN reports concerning Israel never seem to achieve. His conclusions that Israel's blockade of Gaza is legal, that Israel has every right in International Law to prevent weapons' smuggling into Gaza and that those on the Turkish boat leading the flotilla were more interested in becoming martyrs than promoting meaningful aid, were generally ignored in the media headlines. Instead, Israel's use of force to protect its sailors was highlighted, thus creating the immediate impression of criminality.
In the interests of a more fair and balanced perspective on this particular aspect of the Report, which by the way you will never read in your local newspaper Click Here and learn some of the missing truths.
September 7, 2011
Aftershocks of Christchurch
Now that the dust has settled after the Christchurch ‘spies’ story, it is possible to take stock. The SIS, politicians of more than one party, security experts and media commentators all made public their suspicions that Israelis unlucky enough to be in Christchurch during February’s earthquake were spies. The SIS went further and claimed that all Israeli visitors to New Zealand were suspect. …. (read More)
August 24, 2011
Advertising Complaints Rejected
The Advertising Standards Authority recently sent us two complaints from members of the public about our advertising. The complaints alleged that our advertisements were misleading, deceptive, socially irresponsible, and — most implausibly — promoted violence.
In response, we noted that our advertising offers facts which are not generally available in the New Zealand media, and thus promotes public understanding of Middle East affairs — inarguably a socially-responsible action. We stand by the accuracy of the facts we publish, and reject claims that our advertisements are misleading or deceptive. Both complainants expressed strong anti-Israel views, and clearly would have preferred the facts in our ads not to have been published, but this does not entitle them to try to suppress them. As regards incitement to violence, the complainant cited Goldstone’s allegations (which he subsequently retracted) of deliberate Israeli attacks on civilians in Gaza. KBRM does not, of course, in any way support or promote violence. The unfortunate reality of warfare is that innocent people can be harmed or killed, especially when civilian targets are attacked by armed militia who hide behind their local population and use them as human shields - as is the case in the Israel/Palestinian Arab conflict.
The ASA did not uphold either complaint.
August 23, 2011
Six Years, Until When?
1 million Israelis under missile fire
Do you wonder what is missing from recent newspaper reports on the events in Gaza and Israel? To read the human story behind the headlines and view the trauma caused by rockets being fired from Gaza at Israeli civilians ( click here) We can guarantee that you will not read or see this in any of your local newspapers.
August 19, 2011
PA Plans for Western Wall — no Jews
A Palestinian Arab State with East Jerusalem as its Capital, living in peace and security with Israel. That is what New Zealand and the UN insist must happen. A startling report from PMW reveals the true intentions of Israel's so called peace partners.
To read what The Palestinian Authority's real aim is, ( click here), to learn more about how they define religious tolerance and how they view the future of Israel and the Jewish People. You will not see this reported in the NZ media.
August 14, 2011
Where Is The Outrage
Has anyone seen the usual protesters marching in their masses in the main cities of New Zealand? Where are the outraged editorials and pontificating politicians spouting their gratuitous advice? If you are mystified as to the silence enveloping those who normally have no hesitation in either condemning Israel or demanding boycotts of that country, ( click here) to read more about the selective amnesia afflicting our champions of the oppressed.
July 25, 2011
I Spy with My LIttle Eye…
During the Cold War period it was ‘Reds under the Bed.’ Now, thanks to the Southland Times, whose Editor apparently has had an exclusive leak from a secret SIS source, we have …‘Mossad Moles in Cathedral Square…’
Within the space of 24 hours this story circled the globe and unleashed in New Zealand reactions ranging from paranoia and anger to disbelief and incredulity. We bring to this continuing saga, the personal perspective of a New Zealander now living in Israel. You are never going to read it in any local newspaper. Therefore (Click Here) for a KBRM exclusive.
July 13, 2011
Instead of educating the next generation for peace and mutual respect,the Palestinian Authority is continuing its campaign to deligitimise the Jewish presence in Israel. The latest proof of this is reported by Palestinian Media Watch.
As you are never likely to see these facts reported by the NZ media, in the interests of fair and balanced reporting we are bringing this to your attention.
Click on our 'From other angles' page (on your right) to read more.
June 21, 2011
A Night to Remember
Dame Kiri Te Kanawa, New Zealand's world renowned soprano, recently visited Israel. Returning after 10 years, she delighted an enthusiastic capacity audience in Jerusalem with her operatic selections. Having been urged by New Zealand protest groups to boycott the Jewish State, she received an overwhelming ovation when she declared her pleasure at being in Israel, where culture knows no barriers. This event, unsurprisingly, did not appear in any NZ newspaper and it is therefore posted here so that you can read what the media are not interested in publishing. (read more)
June 10, 2011
Partners for Peace? Where are They?
The New Zealand media loves to portray Hamas and Fatah (Palestinian Authority) as genuine partners for peace, with the latter and its leaders described as ‘moderates’. Reality is vastly different but you would never know that listening to your local radio, watching TV or reading the newspapers. In an effort to bring the hidden truths to the attention of the New Zealand public, an advertisement setting out the real facts was recently published in the main metropolitan newspapers. It is a pity that KBRM has had no alternative, but the refusal of the media to publish fair and balanced news concerning Israel, leaves us no option. For an honest update on why peace is so elusive take a look at our advertisement. (See Advert here)
June 10, 2011
Study shows anti-Israel bias in media
A KBRM study of coverage of Israel in New Zealand's largest newspaper, the New Zealand Herald shows that over the 13 months to December 2010, it presented almost exclusively the Palestinian-Arab side of the issues involved.
The study analysed over 300 items of news and opinion published in that period.
46 news items were found to breach the New Zealand Press Council's Principles of fair reporting, all to the discredit of Israel. The probability of this ratio occurring by chance is less than one in 1 trillion. The most common breach involved presenting pro-Palestinian Arab opinion as fact.
26 opinion items were unfavourable to Israel and one favourable; the probability of getting this ratio by chance is less than one in 1 million.
Having identified this bias, we followed the complaints process laid down by the Press Council. The Council banned us from communicating with editors and described us as a ‘Zionist’ organisation seeking to ‘disrupt the media’. We then presented to the Council a detailed submission demonstrating the bias observed. The Council rejected this without explaining its decision.
John Roughan, a senior member of the Herald's editorial staff whose published views are strongly anti-Israel, is also a member of the Press Council.
Since making our submission to the Press Council, we have observed an improvement in the Herald's coverage of Israel. We hope that this will be permanent.
(Click here to view or download the full report)
June 7, 2011
Apartheid - We don't think so
These posters were produced as a response to the recent campaign at universities to paint Israel as an ‘apartheid’ State. (See more)
April 3, 2011
Goldstone Report discredited by own author
NZ newspapers were quick to publish the The Goldstone Report, published in September 2009 but the author South African judge Richard Goldstone has himself changed his view. In an opinion piece in the Washington Post on Friday, Mr Goldstone wrote that his conclusions about Israel appeared to have been wrong. New accounts indicated Israel had not deliberately targeted civilians. He said that if he had known what he knew now, ‘the Goldstone Report would have been a different document’. The NZ Herald published a news item on April 4th. Judge backtracks on Israel's conduct in Gaza
At the time the Goldstone report was published KBRM had to pay for an advert providing the missing truth concerning the Goldstone Report Ad # 9 UN REPORT ON GAZA: THE MISSING TRUTH and a member wrote to Foreign Minister Murray McCully — See New Zealand's Response to UN Report New Zealand's Response to UN Report.
March 8, 2011
Exposing The Myth of ‘Apartheid’ Yet Again
Following the refusal of NZ newspapers to publish an article written on this subject last October by a retired Kiwi now living in Israel, another article, detailing daily life there, was again submitted a few weeks ago.
This deals with his experiences in one of the major hospitals in Jerusalem where he witnessed first hand how patients and their families from a multitude of ethnic and religious backgrounds all interacted in friendship, concern and support. In other words the exact opposite of what is portrayed in the media and by those whose agenda is to accuse Israel of discrimination and other crimes.
It came as no surprise that once again the NZ newspapers evinced no interest in publishing this first hand account of reality in the Jewish State. The response from one editor was ‘not for us’ and the 2nd was ‘I will pass’. The response from all the other newspapers was a deafening silence.
Therefore in the interests of providing you with facts which you would otherwise never see, we reprint the article here. (read more)
November 2, 2010
Christian Pilgrims Welcomed With Open Arms
Recent statements by the Vatican which deny the Jewish People's ancient historical bonds to Israel have received much media attention. Likewise the actions of some other Christian denominations in promoting boycotts and revisionist versions of Judaism's connection to the Promised Land. In an effort to show that not all Christians hate Israel one of our NZ members now living in Israel wrote a short report of the recent annual Tabernacles Pillgrimage solidarity visit by thousands of devout Christians. Portraying a positive aspect of events in Israel which normally do not see the light of day in the NZ media, this was submitted for publication to most NZ newspapers. It came as no surprise that not one paper acknowledged or published it, something which has become standard practice. Therefore in the interests of presenting missing truths we post it here so that you can read what your newspaper will not print. (read more)
October 18, 2010
“Apartheid” Israel
Israel is frequently accused of being an ‘Apartheid’ State, with all the negative connotations that this implies. In the majority of cases, the people making these accusations have never visited the country or seen at first hand exactly how Israelis of diverse ethnic backgrounds live, work and socialise together. They remain amazingly silent when confronted by actual daily human rights abuses occuring in countless other countries. It is well known that if one repeats an untruth often enough it soon becomes accepted as the truth. This is exactly what has happened with the false accusation leveled against Israel.
In an effort to counter such libels, one of our members who was born in New Zealand and now lives in Israel, wrote an article exposing the myth of ‘Apartheid’ Israel.
He describes his personal experiences of daily life and how Arab Christians and Muslims and Jews interact with each other in a free and equal manner. (read more)
October 15, 2010
KBRM advert complaint dismissed
On 10 Aug the Advertising Standards Authority received a complaint that the KBRM ‘flotilla ad’ disguised itself as an editorial piece allowing an imbalance of truth and should not be published in the New Zealand Herald. (See Advertisements #15 and ‘Kicks’ post dated 10 Aug on Feedback Page.) On 20 August the ASA ruled ‘that there were no grounds for the complaint to proceed’. The full text of the ruling was released on 15 October, as follows:
The relevant provisions were Basic Principle 4 and Rules 2 and 11 of the Code of Ethics. The chairman noted Complainant's view. In making her ruling she took into account Chairman's Ruling 09/272 which concerned a similar advertisement by the same Advertiser, where the Complainant was of the view that the advertisement was racially biased and should not have been published in the New Zealand Herald. That Ruling said ‘However, she [the Chairman] said Rule 11 made provision for the expression of opinion in advocacy saying that it was an essential and desirable part of the functioning of a democratic society, and that such opinions may be robust.’ (read more)
September 14, 2010 (updated September 15, 1.25pm.)
TVNZ's Close Up A Shocker
On 13 September 2010, TVNZ's Close Up current affairs programme interviewed Roger Fowler of Kia Ora Gaza in an episode that looked more like a promotional recruiting video than a piece of investigative journalism.
In ‘Risking their Lives in Gaza’, reporter, Gill Higgins, hung on every word Mr Fowler said, never questioning the sweeping generalisations he made against Israel, never probing into the political nature of Kia Ora Gaza and its links to the radical, pro-Hamas Viva Palestina. Interspersed with video clips of injured civilians, IDF personnel and anti-Israel demonstrations. Close Up created an oversimplified, erroneous impression of Israelis as aggressors and Arabs as innocent victims. The ‘humanitarian’ Mr Fowler made no comment about the kidnapped Israeli Gilad Shalit, who remains in captivity, without ever receiving a single humanitarian visit, after being kidnapped by Hamas four years ago. Nor did Roger Fowler express any sorrow over the recent Hamas killing of four Israelis, including a pregnant mother and her husband. Members of KBRM responded to this biased piece of Kia Ora Gaza promotional material masquerading as ‘current affairs’ by writing to Close Up. (read more)
