The television network NBC will receive a $6.5 million (22 million NIS) grant from the Israeli government to film the new archeological thriller Dig, in the East Jerusalem neighborhood of Silwan. Meanwhile Palestinians residing in Silwan are plagued by poor infrastructure even though East Jerusalemites pay 47% of the city’s municipal taxes, but receive a limp 5% of the revenue back in benefits.
The most recent neglect in Silwan, located outside of the Old City just beyond the Western Wall, is the lack of safe drinking water. Silwan is one of ten neighborhoods in east and south Jerusalem that are under warning from the city to boil water for two-minutes before consumption.
Aside from contaminated water, in Silwan the roads are pot-holed and narrow like a refugee camp and the neighborhood itself is overpopulated and in an enclave away from the rest of the city.
Moreover, the government funding for Dig has caught ire from another television network, FX who is currently filming a series from the creator of Showtime’s blockbuster Homeland, loosely based on the life of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad. The Tyrant, is being filmed in Kfar Sava in Central Israel where the show’s production has reproduced a variation of al-Assad’s castle for the program’s set. FX requested the same $6.5 million grant as NBC from the Israeli government, but were turned down.
From i24 a little about The Tyrant, which will premier this summer:
‘Tyrant’ follows an American family whose patriarch, Bassam ‘Barry’ Al Fayeed, played by Adam Rayner, is a royal son of the Arab dictator of a state called Baladi. Barry left his home country for America 20 years before the start of the series, becoming a doctor, and returns for his brother’s wedding, only to be met by a coup that thrusts him back into the corrupt government he tried to escape.
Making money off a brutal military occupation, land grabs and control of water.
Shame on NBC to aid and abet criminals. They seem to lack any sense of decency, and concern for human rights. They will sell their souls for ratings.
Au contraire, Kay24 — there will be no ratings for NBC. The show is pure hasbara, and who wants to watch that tripe? It’s a paid infomercial that NBC is only airing because it comes at almost zero cost on production.
Expect it to be on this list this time next year:
http://insidetv.ew.com/2014/05/09/broadcast-ax-canceled-shows/
Citation?
The willingness of NBC to take this dirty money and undertake this odious project answers all the questions about why the “progressive” MSNBC hosts never comment on any I/P issues.
Well let’s be fair – if you want to make a program about Ahnenerbe “archaeology” then Israeli occupied East Jerusalem is obviously the place to go.