As of March 26, we're $27,100 in the red for the quarter. Donate here to support this vital work
Subscribe here and join over 13,000 subscribers to our free weekly newsletter

Gag Order From Israeli Court Raises Questions
Key Excerpts from Article on Website of New York Times


New York Times, April 18, 2014
Posted: April 21st, 2014
http://publiceditor.blogs.nytimes.com/2014/04/18/gag-order-f...

The [New York] Times published an article [on April 17] about an Arab citizen of Israel a 23-year-old journalist and Palestinian rights advocate who was detained by Israeli authorities last weekend. The man, Majd Kayyal, was not allowed a lawyer until Wednesday night, and he was interrogated for five days on suspicion that he was being recruited by a hostile organization after he visited Lebanon. He was released on Thursday but ordered to be kept under house arrest. The Times article mentions a court-imposed gag order that was lifted on [April 17]. What it doesnt mention is that The Times, too, is subject to such gag orders. According to its bureau chief in Jerusalem, Jodi Rudoren, that is true. The Times is indeed, bound by gag orders, Ms. Rudoren said. She said that the situation is analogous to abiding by traffic rules or any other laws of the land, and that two of her predecessors in the bureau chief position affirmed to her this week that The Times has been subject to gag orders in the past. The Timess newsroom lawyer, David McCraw, [said] that he was consulted by Times journalists this week as they considered publishing an article about Mr. Kayyals arrest. Although the situation is somewhat murky, he said, the general understanding among legal counsel in other countries is that local law would apply to foreign media. Ive never seen us actually challenge it, Mr. McCraw said. Meanwhile, an online publication called The Electronic Intifada published a number of articles about Mr. Kayyals detention over the past several days. The author of those articles, Ali Abunimah, said in an email that readers have a right to know when [the New York Times] is complying with government-imposed censorship.

Note: For more on mainstream media cover-ups, see the deeply revealing reports available here.


Latest News


Key News Articles from Years Past