Reporting from Beirut
Haifa ... BeirutLisa Goldman, an Israeli journalist and the author of a very interesting blog named On the Face, managed to sneak into Lebanon with a third-country passport and to report from Beirut and Bint Jbeil for Israel's Channel 10.
Part of the footage was re-aired on Saturday afternoon by Al-Jazeera, which claimed that Goldman managed to report live from Beirut, while Goldman vehemently denies that.
Goldman's report elicited interest in Israel (where apparently quite a few people were surprised to learn that Beirut is not a slum inhabited by cavemen) and sparked enormous reactions in Lebanon. Furious attacks against "security breaches" and "collaborationist rings" (as if Mossad didn't already have its informers) were balanced by some supportive comments. You can have a sample of the discussion on this Orange Room thread.
My assessment is mixed. On one hand, it's only positive that a report is showing the human side of the story to "the other side" and describing what Lebanon really is, although I am somewhat critical of Goldman's description of the situation in the South. On the other hand, I am worried that those people who came in contact with Goldman (such as hotel staff, taxi drivers, etc.) risk being accused of "conspiracy". Furthermore, I hope this "cool" journalistic feat will not unintentionally result in a curtailing of media freedom in Lebanon.
Part of the footage was re-aired on Saturday afternoon by Al-Jazeera, which claimed that Goldman managed to report live from Beirut, while Goldman vehemently denies that.
Goldman's report elicited interest in Israel (where apparently quite a few people were surprised to learn that Beirut is not a slum inhabited by cavemen) and sparked enormous reactions in Lebanon. Furious attacks against "security breaches" and "collaborationist rings" (as if Mossad didn't already have its informers) were balanced by some supportive comments. You can have a sample of the discussion on this Orange Room thread.
My assessment is mixed. On one hand, it's only positive that a report is showing the human side of the story to "the other side" and describing what Lebanon really is, although I am somewhat critical of Goldman's description of the situation in the South. On the other hand, I am worried that those people who came in contact with Goldman (such as hotel staff, taxi drivers, etc.) risk being accused of "conspiracy". Furthermore, I hope this "cool" journalistic feat will not unintentionally result in a curtailing of media freedom in Lebanon.
posted by Skylark at 7:29 PM
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