Nathan Guttman has a piece in today’s Forward on the political corruption involved in the AIPAC-sponsored trips to Israel that have provided such titillation recently when it came out that a congressman skinnydipped on such a trip last summer. Guttman wisely focuses on the journalists, and catches a confession from Chris Matthews that Matthews and MSNBC refused to elaborate upon.
AIEF [American Israel Education Foundation, a branch of AIPAC] takes more than just members of Congress on trips to Israel; it takes journalists, too, on a regular basis. Discussing the latest Sea of Galilee events, Chris Matthews host of MSNBC’s“Hardball,” said on August 20: “I’ve been there a number of times, a trip sponsored by a pro-Israel group, Jewish group, very educational trips. They show you a lot about the geography of the land and the situation they’re facing with the Palestinians.”
MSNBC did not return several calls requesting comment on Matthews’ participation in these trips and the network’s policy on joining press junkets.
A spokesman for AIEF would not provide details on the number of reporters hosted by the group in Israel, but there are estimates based on reports of participants indicating that dozens of journalists have participated in pro-Israel junkets throughout the years.
“It’s a super-effective strategy,” said David Plotz, editor-in-chief of the online magazine Slate. Plotz attended an AIEF trip in 2007. He noted that while the junket was “incredible fun,” with business class travel and fancy hotels, organizers packed the agenda with informative tours and “amazing interesting people,” including Israeli President Shimon Peres, top officers of the Israel Defense Forces and a senior Palestinian representative. Participants were free to quiz their hosts and to pose tough questions, but still, Plotz said he left Israel with the impression that “Gaza is a mess, the [security] wall is serving its purpose and that — oh, my God —Iran is six months away from nuclear weapons.” Slate does not have a policy prohibiting participation in junkets as long as reporters clearly state where the funding came from….
“A responsible journalist has no business taking a free trip to Israel — or to any other country, or to a Hollywood film studio’s junket at a resort, or to any other destination that is involved in the subject matter that the journalist covers or is likely to cover in the future. Period,” said Samuel Freedman, a journalism professor at Columbia University’s Graduate School of Journalism and an expert on media ethics.
So MSNBC is not accountable! Eric Alterman has previously questioned what MSNBC’s policy is on such junkets and said that these trips prove the Walt and Mearsheimer argument; and he’s right. Why, just look at Matthews’s paeans to Israel over the years, which are not likely to get him in any trouble with Comcast’s brass, Brian Roberts and David Cohen, both Israel supporters.
Also, kudos to Jodi Rudoren and Eric Lichtblau at the Times for taking this skinnydipping corruption story seriously and focusing on Sheldon Adelson’s sponsorship of the trips.
With hundreds of Washington lawmakers having gone to Israel courtesy of the program, the trips have a reputation as being the standard-bearer for foreign Congressional travel. “We call it the Jewish Disneyland trip,” said one pro-Israel advocate in Washington….
Since 2000, the American Israel Education Foundation has been more prolific than any other in sponsoring overseas trips for members of Congress and their staffs, organizing 733 trips for both Republicans and Democrats at a cost of more than $7 million. Last year, it spent $2 million to sponsor 146 trips, far outpacing a Turkish coalition that ranked second, sponsoring 32 trips.
Last summer, there were so many members of Congress traveling — about 80 — that the education fund sponsored two separate trips. Israeli officials who met with the Congressional delegation that included the swim party said it seemed to include many first-time visitors, who knew little about Israel and appeared a bit naïve about its policies and traditions.
I wonder if the American taxpayers sponsor these trips with their tax dollars. isn’t AIFF tax exempt?.
we need to reinvent the wheel
in fairness to Matthews, he regularly sneers and contorts his face with disgust when reporting on israeli shenanigans and openly discusses israeli lobby influence in a way almost no other major news talking head does
Just an aside, but remember that AIEF has somehow been granted 501(c)(3) status. That means it’s not just tax-exempt (like AIPAC), but tax-deductible (like the Red Cross). That means all Americans are effectively subsidizing its work.
Yes I mentioned this Chris Matthews confession on Monday on a Mondoweiss thread. Interesting who Phil chooses to bring attention to when they are dogging a critical issue. Interesting indeed. Tribal? I think so.
Chris only mentions Israel as being a friend to the U.S. Have watched Hardball for years almost daily. Never ever mentions the illegal settlements, abuse to Palestinians, bulldozed Palestinian homes, Israel being in violation of more UN resolutions than any other nation, Israel’s unwillingness to sign the IAEA’s non proliferation while calling out other nations who signed the NPT and have the right to enrich uranium for peaceful purposes. The height of hypocrisy. And Chris Matthews ,Rachel Maddow,Ed, Al Sharpton, Lawrence O’Donnell (you know those liberal MSM outlets) never whisper about these critical issues. We know where Chris Matthews balls are toasted and buttered. Shameful.
On Google more and more stories switching from the congressional naked swimming in Israel now spotlighting who paid for the trips and what do they get. When will Pro Publica focus on these congress people and their staffs paying back the pay for play money paid by lobbyist group American Israel Educational Foundation. Will they be forced to pay back that dirty money?