Sunday, September 18, 2011

Why does Noushin Framke use Press TV?

The news site, Spero News has an article entitled, “Iranian Doctoral Student Lashed In Connection With Postelection Arrest.” The story is about a woman in Iran who was flogged because of her opposition to the totalitarian government of Iran. Azarmehr, on his blog, also writes of Somayeh Tohidlou. His blog is, “For a Democratic Secular Iran. For Peace and Prosperity in the Middle East.” He writes that although she was let out of prison she nonetheless received 50 lashes. The article is here: Fifty Lashes for Somayeh Tohidlou."

The Spero news article states:
The incident has led to outrage among intellectuals and opposition activists who have sent Tohidlou messages of support on Facebook and blogs, and issued statements condemning the sentence. Some have changed their Facebook profile pictures to images of Tohidlou, while others have joined a Facebook page that has been created to demonstrate support for her.
I partially linked to these postings because it draws the reader’s attention to the kind of government that exists in Iran. I also linked because as a woman I view Somayeh Tohidlou as a very courageous woman.

But there is another reason. Noushin Framke and those who work with her on the Israel/Palestine Mission Network of the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A) communications committee have once again placed a video from Press TV, the official Iranian government TV, on their web site with the words, “Bet you didn't see this event in your local or national news,” and “What are you doing in your community?" Not beating young women with 50 lashes is one good answer.

The link Framke posted is "NY residents protest US support of Israel." It is a video put up on Press TV’s YouTube site about a demonstration against Israel. The problem is the whole story is never told on Press TV. For instance an article in a different paper, about the same demonstration, entitled,  IN PICTURES / Hundreds turn out in New York for pro-Palestinian rally, tells a more complete story. The news site, Haaretz, an Israeli newspaper that IPMN sometimes uses, states that one of the main speakers was “Riham Barghouti,whose relative Marwan Barghouti is serving multiple life sentences in an Israeli jail for his role in a series of deadly terror attacks.”

And while on the Press TV video the viewer is shown several Jewish men protesting vehemently against Israel, it is Haaretz who reports that:
The anti-Zionist Orthoidox [sic] Jewish group Neturei Karta participated in the march, along with their spokesman Rabbi Yisroel Weiss, who has gained notoriety for his anti-Israel activism, including a meeting with Mahmoud Ahmadinejad in Tehran in 2006.
This is a small Jewish sect that exists in Iran as well as a few other places, and has no influence with most other Jewish groups. And it should be pointed out that their very existence depends on the leader of Iran, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad who denies the Holocaust and has vowed to annihilate Israel.

I think it is important to point out that Framke was born in Iran and lived there during at least some of her childhood. This is not the first time she has linked to Press TV. I wrote about another time when IPMN was linked to Press TV at A huge protest in London against Israel? Really? Up-date.

But my whole point of this posting is that since Press TV is very much a part of Iran’s totalitarian government, I have to ask, again, why is Framke linking to it, why is she promoting such news? Why is she holding Press TV up as a model? Why not use Haaretz instead? (Maybe because they tell the whole story?) And last of all why not link to an article about Somayeh Tohidlou who is one of the brave women of Iran.

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