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British tabloid news makes Gaza look good

Posted: Thursday, January 18, 2007 12:02 PM
Filed Under:

By Martin Fletcher, NBC News Tel Aviv Bureau Chief

When I got the assignment to come to work out of the NBC London bureau I was delighted. That should make a nice change from war and mayhem in the Holy Land, I thought.

After ten days, I can't wait to get back to Gaza.

First ‘Posh and Becks’
First, David Beckham announced he was going to earn $128,000 a day by leaving Real Madrid and going to play for the Los Angeles Galaxy in the American soccer league.

That kept us busy recycling every poor pun from the soccer and financial worlds. "From Becks to Bucks" won my lottery for best headline.

"Would Posh buy Michael Jackson's dilapidated Neverland ranch?" That fed a busy news cycle that ended with the word, No.

‘The next queen?’
After two days of Posh and Becks, Kate Middleton took over. Anxious questions like, "Would Prince William propose?" And "Is she the future Queen of England?" left Fletcher floundering.

The airwaves were inundated with the same barely watchable loop of the 25-year-old being hounded by paparazzi as she left her home to get into her car. Speculation mounted feverishly over the haute couture provenance of her snazzy dress, which turned out to have been bought for $65 in a high-street sale.

I found myself answering the question, "What will Kate and William do tonight as it's her 25th birthday?" Well, maybe dinner and a movie? They didn't inform me. Floundering again.

Now Celebrity Big Brother
Then, another tabloid drama -- Celebrity Big Brother.

Racism had reared its ugly head in a country with a large Asian population. White contestants on the reality TV show ganged up on the only Asian in the house, a beautiful actress from India.

They swore at her using four letter words, made fun of her accent, her hygiene and her cooking. They asked her whether she lived in a house or a shack. As it turned out, she lived on the entire floor of an upscale apartment building, no doubt putting her taunters to shame.

Still, the TV show has received at least 21,000 complaints, more than any other British TV show in history.

Anyway, Gaza here I come. Although what with the state of global communications, no doubt the first question my Gaza friends will ask is, "So, did Posh buy a house yet in Hollywood?"

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Comments

I love you, Martin Fletcher! While I agree it is a bit beneath you to report on such pedestrian news, I have to say you pulled it off with wit and charm. I do look forward to seeing you back in the Middle East, however; your reports from Israel during last summer's Israeli-Hezbollah conflict were superb! Take care, and remain safe.

LNP, Maryland, USA (Sent Thursday, January 18, 2007 1:10 PM)

Err- hands up: How many people in the US know who the hell 'Gazza' is ??? I can understand that the British tabloid press is interested in that- i have "enjoyed" their scribblings for almost as long as i'm living in Ireland (since 1984)- but i must ask you: Do you really want to go down that road...?!?

Josef Balzer Askeaton Ireland (Sent Thursday, January 18, 2007 1:22 PM)

To Martin Fletcher: Sorry- should have read this piece properly. Was fired up about the fact that *every* time i send an email to America, i get the same error-message from the qmail-daemon... Something is wrong here. I sent emails to Brazil and other places before- the US are the only place i got that problem. Someone's interferring...?!

Josef Balzer Askeaton Ireland (Sent Thursday, January 18, 2007 4:35 PM)

Thanks for your report- I had ample opportunity to enjoy the British tabloid-press since i moved to Ireland (in 1984). They are usually referred to as "gutter-press" around here; i can attest to the fact that there is what i can only describe as an organised campaign against Asians- particularly if they are from Islamic countries- for months now. There used to be a number of very good papers in Britain (a few are still around), but that has changed drastically since about 1984. When i arrived in Ireland that year, there was a major scandal going on in Britain: Evidently, the BBC had been undermined completely by MI6- the internal security-service. As a result of the scandal, all editors with MI6-links were fired and replaced with the original editors. At around that time, Rupert Murdock was collecting Newspapers like other people collect stamps...

Josef Balzer Askeaton Ireland (Sent Thursday, January 18, 2007 4:46 PM)

"Err- hands up: How many people in the US know who the hell 'Gazza' is ??? " Who? WHO? Ya got me.

hand down, USA (Sent Thursday, January 18, 2007 8:02 PM)

OK so the Star, the Sun and the Mirror are obsessed with Posh, Becks and the royal family, but then in the US the National Enquirer and your own Star contain just the same irrelevant trash and you have a whole cable channel E! that devotes itself to the same trivia. Don't tell me the British are more into trivia than the Americans, that a huge stretch. How do I know this I am British and have lived in the US for the past 15 years and am married to a very intelligent, but trivia obsessed American lady. I’m sure the issues in Gaza are the things we should be concerned about and I applaud you devotion to that but the west has for a long time put trivia above the serious issues of our time. That’s the real problem in my view.

Bill Owen, Annapolis MD (Sent Friday, January 19, 2007 9:51 AM)

Wouldn't have Ms. Middleton bought a dress on High Street, as in, "Kensington High Street," not in a "high street" sale? Still, obviously, not the same as in Gaza...

Smyrnagirl, Smyrna, Georgia (Sent Friday, January 19, 2007 10:18 AM)

Hey Josef - I don't know WHO Gaza is but I do know WHAT the Gaza is. Guess you're not immune to prejudiced attitudes either.

hand-held-in-question (Sent Friday, January 19, 2007 10:32 AM)

Thank you for letting your readers know that while Posh & Becks are travelling the globe, human beings are killed with our superbly made weapons.

Sherif, New York, NY (Sent Friday, January 19, 2007 11:09 AM)

It is a real shame that some of the individuals commenting on your article do not know what Gaza is. Although these individuals are at fault for their own ignorance, I do also believe that it is the responsibility of the press to make sure the public hears more about the events that occur in Gaza than what it going on in celebrity land. If any reportrs are reading this, PLEASE take your careers seriously!

Shadow Mack (Sent Friday, January 19, 2007 11:29 AM)

I do know what Gaza is--but as for my main topic, I do not think the American news media (especially the electronic) has been lagging very far behind the British tabloid press when it comes to reporting on such topics as celebrity news, news about TV shows and other entertainment such as the start of the new season of "American Idol," stories about the British royal family, and other fluff. Such trivia crowds out more important stories about both national and international issues that really matter, about which people should be better informed. The American news media feel they have to cover fluff in order to attract ratings (because this stuff is popular with a lot of people) and the consequent advertising dollars. Perhaps if more people paid attention to hard news instead, more people would know what Gaza is.

Olivia, Peoria, Ill. (Sent Friday, January 19, 2007 1:54 PM)

I'am a Palestinian/American and I sure know what is Gaza. I wonder if we the Palestinian have any rights in this world People from the west act like we dont exist and treat us like we are worth nothing. We Palestinians need people like Martin Fletcher to report to the rest of the ignorant world what goes on there under Isreali rule. I thank you Martin Fletcher

Zackariya Hamad ,Brooklyn,New York (Sent Friday, January 19, 2007 6:15 PM)

Dear Mr. Fletcher, I have to say when I saw that you were reporting from London, I was happy to see you were in a safer place. However, I have to admit the stories you covered were not the most earth shattering news. Too bad you can't have your cake and eat it too. You do an excellent job. Please stay safe.

l (Sent Saturday, January 20, 2007 11:53 PM)



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