Statement of the Arab and Middle East Journalists Association in Reference to Newseum Scandal

The Arab and Middle Eastern Journalists Association (AMEJA) condemns in the strongest possible terms, the decision of the Newseum to exclude Palestinian journalists Mahmoud al-Kumi and Hussam Salama from its memorial of journalists killed in the line of duty.

Israeli missiles fired at a car clearly marked “TV” during Israel’s attack on Gaza in November, 2012, killing Messieurs Al-Kumi and Salama as they returned from covering a story for TV station Al-Aqsa at Al-Shifaa Hospital.    The Newseum justifies its exclusion of the two journalists because of claims that they worked for news network run by Hamas, the governing party in Gaza.    The Committee to Protect Journalists, Reporters Without Borders and The World Association of Newspapers and News Publishers all recognize that both Mr. Al-Kumi and Mr. Salama were legitimate journalists, and therefore entitled to all protections afforded non-combatants in times of armed conflict.    Human Rights Watch, which investigated the affiliations of the two men, has determined that neither was a member of any political party, nor was either a combatant.

AMEJA wholeheartedly supports the statements of peer groups The Committee to Protect Journalists, Reporters Without Borders and The World Association of Newspapers and News Publishers, and is appreciative of the investigations of Human Rights Watch.  However, AMEJA firmly holds that a journalist’s political affiliations, whatever they might be, are irrelevant to the question of whether he or she is a journalist.   Applying a political litmus test to determine whether one is a journalist is a slippery slope that serves no useful purpose in the service of an informed public.

If the Newseum truly wishes to honor the principle of press freedom, it must reverse its decision of exclusion and restore Messrs. al-Kumi and Salama from its memorial of journalists who perished while working to inform the public of vital matters of the day.

 

Call for applications from Lebanon, Palestine and Syria for the Said-Asfari Fellowships for Journalists at the Reuters Institute for the Study of Journalism, Oxford University for 2013-14. Closing Deadline for applications at noon on 1st May 2013.

The Reuters Institute for the Study of Journalism has announced the call for applications for the Said-Asfari Fellowship jointly sponsored by the Asfari Foundation and the Said Foundation. This gives a unique opportunity for journalists from Lebanon, Palestine and Syria (candidates should ideally be based in the Levant region or Egypt and intend to work there upon the completion of the Fellowship) to benefit from a funded fellowship at the University of Oxford. All Institute and University/College fees will be paid by the Fellowship, and the fellows will also receive their travel costs and a modest stipend to cover housing and living expenses in Oxford.

For more information on how to apply for a 6 month fellowship commencing October 2013, please go to: https://reutersinstitute.politics.ox.ac.uk/about/news/item/article/call-for-applications-for-said-asfa.html

AMEJA congratulates member Lara Setrakian for the launch of her new website SyriaDeeply.org. Billed as a “”a creative media project led by journalists and technologists, building a new model of storytelling around complex global issues. Using all the latest digital tools of the day Syria Deeply fuses professional journalism, user generated content, social media, and news aggregation to create a new user experience online,” SyriaDeeply is proof again that the unique insights AMEJA members have into the Middle East and North Africa make them stand apart in the world of journalism.
Please go here to learn more about the initiative.

Congratulations to AMEJA member Sophia Al Maria who’s new book The Girl Who Fell to Earth hit the shelves a few days ago.

Mabruk Sophia!

Reviews for The Girl Who Fell to Earth:
“Daring, witty, and brimming with the unexpected, Sophia Al-Maria’s riveting memoir is as much about America as it is [about] the Arab world. Chronicling a coming-of-age between Washington State, Doha, and Cairo, this bracing first book startles and illuminates.”
—Yasmine El Rashidi, author of The Battle for Egypt

“Riveting … From an intimate vantage point, Al-Maria sees and translates challenges that the Bedouin, who lived for ages in the desert navigating by the stars, now face in the era of big cities and washers and dryers. What makes Al-Maria’s story unique is not only its rare insider’s glimpse of modern Bedouin life, but the outsider’s sensibility that magnifies her exquisite observational gifts. Frank, funny and dauntless.”
—Kirkus Reviews (starred review)

“… wry, eloquent … her commentary gets it exactly right.”
—Booklist

Edited by AMEJA members Ahmed Shihab-Eldin and Maytha Alhassan; Demanding Dignity: Young Voices from the Front Lines of the Arab Revolutions brings together essays written by today’s generation of Arab youth who have directly inspired and sparked a revolutionary spirit that toppled governments, unearthing the corruption of decades of dictator dominated countries in the Middle East and North Africa.

The authors will be in attendance at this event to discuss the book.

LOCATION: WORLD ROOM, JOURNALISM SCHOOL, COLUMBIA UNIVERSITY
DATE: 12/6
TIME: 7-9 PM

In partnership with the Columbia Students Chapter of AMEJA
For details on how you can start your own chapter of AMEJA email join@ameja.org

The Arab and Middle Eastern Journalists’ Association strongly condemns the deliberate targeting of media by Israeli armed forces in Gaza City. The shelling of a car containing two al-Aqsa TV cameramen after they had filmed casualties at a nearby hospital is unjustiable. Journalists and media professionals have for decades been regarded as civilians under the Geneva Convention and international humanitarian law – not combatants – and should be treated as such. The two deaths and eight eariler injuries after Israeli bombardment of buildings housing Al Arabiya, MBC, Sky News, ARD and other European broadcasters is unacceptable. This latest attack indicates a trend of Israeli harassment of international media that includes at least two incidents earlier this year, in August and March. Israel’s disregard for established standards of protecting journalists and other civilians is totally unjustifiable.

AMEJA Board Nov. 22, 2012

September Panel: So You Want to be a Foreign Correspondent: Journalists Reporting From the Middle East

Join the Newswomen’s Club of New York for an exciting panel discussion with three prominent journalists with wide experience covering the Middle East. Mona Iskander of PBS, Courtney Kealy of Fox News Radio, and Tamer El-Ghobashy of the Wall Street Journal will describe their experiences reporting from one of the most volatile regions of the world and answer your questions, including questions about how to break into the field of foreign reporting.

Date: Thursday, September 20, 2012
Time: 6:30 – 8:30 PM
Place: NYC Seminar & Conference Center, 71 West 23rd Street, Suite 515, New York, NY
Cost: $5 for members / $10 for nonmembers
RSVP: Please pay and reserve your spot at www.newswomensclubnewyork.com/events

Panelists:
Mona Iskander is an award-winning producer and correspondent for Need to Know on PBS, a weekly, national news magazine show. Her reporting has taken her to the streets of Cairo, Ramallah and Amman and to the remote island of Kiribati in the South Pacific to report on climate change. She has also traveled extensively throughout the US to produce stories on the economy, the environment and social issues. Previously, Mona was a field producer and correspondent for the weekly news magazine show “NOW” on PBS and an associate producer for CNN. She has a master`s degree from the Columbia Journalism School and is a founding board member of the Arab and Middle Eastern Journalists Association.

Courtney Kealy is a national correspondent for Fox News Radio, currently based in NYC. Until last fall, she was based in Jerusalem, covering stories in Libya, Egypt, Yemen, Iraq, the United Arab Emirates, South Africa, Gaza and Afghanistan. From 2005-2009, she was based in Baghdad and covered Saddam Hussein’s trials, the explosion of sectarian violence and U.S. military strategy while embedded with U.S. troops. She has covered the political crises of Lebanon, Syria’s role in the region, as well as the Intifada, the fracturing of the Palestinian Authority and Israel’s response. She has gone on air for Fox from Jerusalem, London, Washington DC, and New York, as a reporter and on-air analyst. Previously, she has worked on air for ABC News outlets in TV and radio and published photographs in The New York Times, Time, Newsweek and Der Spiegel. She has a master’s degree from Columbia Journalism School.

Tamer El-Ghobashy joined The Wall Street Journal in 2010, where he covers criminal justice for the Greater New York section. He has also covered the Egyptian revolution for the paper, returning twice to cover parliamentary and presidential elections there. Previously, he was with NBC Local Integrated Media, where he worked as a national editor for 10 news websites in markets including New York, Los Angeles, Chicago, and Miami. Tamer spent eight years at The New York Daily News, where he covered everything from local New York City news to national and international events, including Hurricane Katrina, the 2006 war in Lebanon, and wild fires in San Diego. He is a founding board member of the Arab and Middle Eastern Journalists Association.

The PBS affiliate in Maryland has made the full length version of “Born in the USA: Muslim Americans” available for viewing on their website. This unique film challenges the misrepresentations of Muslims in America. It follows a Muslim American doctor and teacher in a post 9-11 world during the Muslim holy month of Ramadan. It looks at their everyday lives, as well as interactions with their families, friends and colleagues, sharing startling and often funny insights into what it means to be a Muslim American.

Recent demographic studies show that a majority of Muslim Americans are highly educated and registered to vote. One would think these factors would command a great deal of respect in American Society, but unfortunately the reverse is true. The entertainment industry rarely shows the millions of Muslim American heroes that have earned the respect of their fellow citizens. They treat our ill, teach our children, police our streets, prosecute our criminals and provide a host of other contributions to our society that simply go unrecognized – until now.

The film may be viewed by going to the following link: http://video.mpt.tv/video/2251669701

Insightful and hip, Boho Beirut: A guide to the Middle East’s Most Sophisticated City

is a new book from AMEJA member Shirine Saad. The book is an insider’s guide that captures the culture and glamor of a post war city that is pulsing with creativity. “In recent years the generation that had grown up in Lebanon or abroad during the war is determined to contribute to their country’s future,” explains author Shirine Saad “They are creating a new energy, mixing local traditions and the skills acquired throughout their travels, and collectively redefining the country’s new identity. Now despite the tense political atmosphere in the region, Beirut is buzzing with innovation.” Saad’s new book shares that energy with the world.