Journal for the Study of Antisemitism

170 JOURNAL FOR THE STUDY OF ANTISEMITISM [ VOL. 1:139
excluded from serving in the Israel Defense Forces. 120 A reader pointed out
that many Israeli Bedouins, who are Arab Muslims, have indeed been members
of the IDF, as have some Christian Arab volunteers. The reader asked
the newspaper’s foreign desk for a correction. The Post declined. Its
ombudsman, Deborah Howell, wrote an explanation in a column entitled,
“Was ‘Excluded’the Wrong Word?” 121
Reporting about Israel and the Middle East is an important but thankless
task; getting a Middle East reporting assignment means catching flak
from pro-Israel and pro-Arab groups who often see stories through their
own lenses. Although the Post had been informed that thousands of
Bedouin have served in the Israeli military as reconnaissance scouts and
trackers, the paper insisted only a few did so–as “spies.” Excluding
Bedouin (as somehow non-Arab and only “spies”), the Post asked that
Leibowitz “give . . . the name of one Arab.” She replied with the names of
three Israeli Arab soldiers killed in the line duty just since 2000, and
referred to five others. 122
C.A.M.E.R.A. subsequently published ads headlined “The Washington
Post Refuses to Correct Key Error on Israel” in the Washington Times and
the Washington Jewish Week. The ads noted that the Los Angeles Times
had corrected a similar error, and that other news media had reported the
matter accurately. In response, Ms. Howell acknowledged that the IDF does
have about 400 non-Druze Arabs “out of about 1.2 million Israeli Arabs,”
but still pointedly refused to print a correction. The Post’s ombudsman
concluded that “it would have been better if Wilson had qualified
‘excluded’ and mentioned the Bedouin.” 123
Yet the Code of Ethics of the Society of Professional Journalists, to
which the Post subscribes, requires journalists to “be accountable [and]
admit mistakes and correct them promptly.”
120. Washington Post, December 20, 2007, p. A1.
121. Eric Rozenman, Insisting on an Error: The Washington Post - Infallible, or
Just in Denial?, C.A.M.E.R.A., April 23, 2008.
122. Id.
123. The comparison between non-Druze/non-Bedouin Arab soldiers and Israeli
Arab society at large is inappropriate; the more relevant comparison would be
between the number of active non-Druze Arab soldiers and the entire standing
army–nearly 1,500 out of 170,000. Id.