Wednesday, May 28, 2008

More on Meron Rapoport and Haaretz

Well, although I googled "Amira Hess" in Hebrew before I posted the story below. I didn't google "Rapoport." I should have: his departure from Haaretz already appeared on Monday here:

Apparently, Rapoport is one of three reporters associated with former editor David Landau who are leaving Haaretz. Landau appointed him news editor. His departure may be filed under the headline "New Editor Shakes Things Up at Haaretz."

David Landau was a good editor (I am sorely tempted to add, "for a liberal Zionist.") He was to be congratulated inter alia for bringing in Rapoport. I haven't noticed an ideological shift with the changing of the guard, but, then again, I haven't been looking. Before Meron Rapoport came over to Haaretz, he worked at Yediot Aharonot as a desk editor. He was fired from that position after he published Moti Gilat's story under the headline, "Sharon Did Not Speak the Truth"

Haaretz has been a courageous, if elitist, newspaper. Let us hope that this will not change. I certainly hope that Rapoport will continue to write his exposes.

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2 comments:

  1. AnonymousMay 30, 2008 at 3:03 AM

    You say "Landau was a good editor". What do you make of his statement that the newspaper would not publish stories about Olmert's corruption investigations as long as he carried out the foreign policy that Landau approved of?

    Ha'aretz is a commercial newspaper. It exists to make money for its owners. As you probably know, Amos Shocken sold something like 50% of the paper to a German (who is old enough to remember "the good old days" there...he as a youngster growing up in an important family, got to meet a lot of the VIP's in the Nazi regime). What is important to them is the bottom line. Ha'eretz's circulation (always the lowest among the major newspapers) has been dropping for years, and Landau's comment that I mentioned above, plus his statement to Condi Rice that he wanted the US to "rape" Israel (interesting that that is how Landau views the US forcing Israel to do what he wants) apparently turned off just too many people. That's life.

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  2. AnonymousAugust 9, 2008 at 8:34 PM

    only tell the truth if you have a fast horse.

    bring it on

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