Jodi Rudoren of the New York Times has responded directly to our sharp critique of her recent article about wine-making in Israel/Palestine. In an interview today with HuffPostLive, she called our post “nuts,” and dismissed our point about the Jewish National Fund, which is the major funder of the effort to recreate ancient wine. “They said that I didn’t talk about the JNF, the Jewish National Fund, that was responsible for the uprooting of hundreds of thousands of Palestinians,” she said. “Well, I didn’t. That’s background that’s not really relevant to the story, but I did put in that it’s funded by the Jewish National Fund, and people can find other articles about the Jewish National Fund that would give more background.” (Rudoren’s defense of her article starts at about 11:30 in the video.)
But you won’t find many of those “other articles about the Jewish National Fund” in the New York Times. Patrick Connors, a friend of this site, did a search of the Times‘ archives. Here’s some of what he found; Jodi Rudoren “never wrote about the JNF during her entire tenure, nor did anyone she supervises, except for Isabel [Kershner] in 2012 in a puff piece, and the NYT almost never talks about the JNF and its role in dispossessing Palestinians.”
Connors did, however, find one part of the paper in which the JNF is mentioned frequently. He discovers, “You will find tens of people requesting donations be made to the JNF in paid obituaries in the NYT.”
Her article was basically promoting the wine company, talking about how it was indigenous wine, etc.
“With a budget of about $750,000, mainly from the Jewish National Fund — a century-old Zionist organization that has helped transform Israel’s agricultural landscape” ~Rudoren.
It just sounds from this like JNF is a normal economic or charitable development fund that means not much more than its name, kind of like the UNDP’s funds, YMCA, or United Way.
“They said that I didn’t talk about the JNF, the Jewish National Fund, that was responsible for the uprooting of hundreds of thousands of Palestinians,” she said. “Well, I didn’t. That’s background that’s not really relevant to the story”
So mentioning HOW the JNF acquire all that land to make their crappy wine is not relevant to the story. That is some world class cluelessness right there.
Jodi, please leave now. And don’t let the door hit ya.
Well, at least (it seems) she spelled Mondoweiss right!
PW has been griping about the nyt for so long he is simply pleased as punch that his baby MW got another mention in the rag. the fact he/it was called “nuts” doesn’t matter one bit to him
http://wp.me/pDB7k-Yr
How many times have you heard “Jewish settlers and the JNF purchased “territory” in Palestine “
Again, from the Israeli Land Fund
As always, the Hasbara has a gaping big hole. The Jewish National Fund trips up on its own lies. The JNF also says:
Land is ‘real estate’. ‘Real estate’ is not ‘territory’. Japanese, Chinese, US and other foreign companies own real estate in Australia. They cannot vote, do not have citizenship and have no territorial rights what so ever in Australia. The same goes for all other states.
Not a single cent was paid for the territory of the State of Israel.