This is not the first time that Rolling Stone has glamorized jihadis.
“Rolling Stone Jumps On Pro-Terrorist Bandwagon,” by Karen Bekker, CAMERA, August 3, 2023:
Although they’re slightly late to the party, Rolling Stone seems to have gotten the memo that the latest trend in antisemitic agitation posing as journalism is glamourizing young Palestinian terrorists. A nearly 6000-word piece by Jesse Rosenfeld – who has previously written for +972, The Nation, and Al Jazeera – fails to inform readers of Palestinian rejectionism, payments of salaries to convicted terrorists, or the effect of terror on Israeli society.
Instead, Rosenfeld portrays “Gen Z” terrorists as having no alternative but to take up arms against Israeli civilians: “‘Israel has left us no choice,’” he quotes his 22 year-old interview subject, a member of a Jenin-based terror cell, saying. “‘The occupation has proven that the more we are silent, the more it will take from us.’” What Israel has attempted to give to the Palestinians – that is, independence – isn’t mentioned.
And at the same time, the article portrays Israeli actions as wantonly evil. (“Generals, Peaceniks, and Palestinian Fighters Agree: Bibi Must Be Stopped,” July 22, reprinted on Yahoo.)
The piece brings to mind the adage that “a half-truth is a whole lie.” Consider the following passage from Rosenfeld’s article:
Elias and Mohammad al-Ashqar are in a state of shock. Sitting in the living room of their modest ground-floor family apartment in the Askar refugee camp on a brisk winter evening, they are surrounded by men from the community. The al-Ashqar brothers’ father, 61-year-old Abdel Hadi, had been shot and killed during an Israeli-army raid in the adjacent northern West Bank city of Nablus hours earlier.
The Israeli army stormed the crowded city at 10 a.m., opening fire as residents scrambled, abandoning their midmorning shopping to run for their lives down the winding streets.
Several paragraphs later, Rosenfeld does add that “the bloody Feb. 22 raid-turned-firefight was directed against the Lions’ Den.” From his description of events, however, a reader could easily think the IDF opened fire on Palestinian civilians for no reason at all. In fact, the Times of Israel reported, “The Israel Defense Forces said troops had entered Nablus to arrest [Hussam Bassam] Isleem, a senior member of the Lion’s Den terror group, who was allegedly the third member of a cell that killed Staff Sgt. Ido Baruch during a shooting attack in October.” According to a military source, “soldiers surrounded a home where three suspects, all members of the Lion’s Den terror group, were holed up, demanding they turn themselves in,” a gun battle broke out between the members of the terror cell and the IDF, and civilians were tragically killed in the crossfire. But Rolling Stone would prefer its readers to think the Ashqar brothers’ grief is solely a result of gratuitous Israeli violence.
This is typical of the nature of the entire piece, which is so one-sided as to be grossly dishonest. As another example, Rosenfeld tells us that in 2022, “29 Israelis were killed in Palestinian attacks.” But he did not humanize a single one of those Israelis, or the 20 civilians, including four children, that were killed so far in 2023, with the kind of story that he told about the Ashqar family. Posting the article, Rosenfeld tweeted, “I spoke to Palestinian fighters, leaders and occupied residents; former Israeli PM’s, a Shin Bet officer, a General and an army refusnik for this @RollingStone long read about Palestinian revolt in West Bank and unprecedented mass protest in Israel.” But he doesn’t appear to have spoken to any of the Israelis whose family members were lost to the terrorism he glamorizes, or those whose day-to-day lives have been damaged because of it.
Nor does he, in a 6000-word piece that took several months to report, relay any conversations with any members of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s own party, or with any of the approximately one million Israelis who voted for it. He does, however, speak to many Israelis who oppose Netanyahu. The Palestinian Authority has exacted retribution on its critics in the past, which is presumably at least one reason why Rosenfeld’s Palestinian interview subject “Abu Nidal,” uses a pseudonym. But the many opponents of the Netanyahu government in Israel, including his political rivals, feel free to speak openly to Rosenfeld, who obligingly quotes them at length and uncritically. They know that no harm will come to them as a result of their words….
Wellington says
As Dennis Prager has often said, truth is not a Left-wing value. Here Rolling Stone and Jesse Rosenfeld demonstrate this, primarily this time by way of deceit by omission.
Oh yes, so much has been omitted in Rosenfeld’s article. An enormous amount. The “imbalance” is in overload mode. Thus is the way of what passes for most of journalism in the West these days. Oh, almost forgot, long live Israel.
Alan Knight says
What else can we expect from “Rolling Stone”, who glamourized the Boston Marathon bomber who killed and maimed innocent Americans?
Hoi Polloi says
Rolling Stone, Sound of Freedom, Miles Klee, and relentless ranting about QAnon, whatever that is, come to mind. Can’t just report on child trafficking and end it. Oh, no. Not Rolling Stone. They’re so cool their icy hearts can’t even warm for children.
Fitna says
It’s ideological blinders…when you’re indoctrinated into Leftist thinking, you demonize the Right wing. It was only in university where I started educating myself on both the Left and Right was I able to see how much “programming” or brainwashing happens on the Left.
Sadly Leftists think that whatever the Right is against, they should be for it…and vice versa. They’re so arrogant and convinced they’re right on everything they don’t bother to second-guess themselves, which is foolish and dangerous.
I think this is largely why they blindly take the side of Muslims/Islam, because for them it’s about western imperialism stepping on those poor, down-trodden “brown people” (Arabs).
If Muslims fly planes into buildings, it’s our fault, because we’re after their oil! Since Israel is the dominant military power in the mideast, they must be the bad guys…so they think they need to prop up the Palestinians and gloss over their cause…because whatever it is, it must be right…because they’re fighting the big bad Israelis and their bigger, badder, brother the US military-industrial complex.
If only we stopped oppressing the Muslims, them freedom and democracy would flourish everywhere. I guess it’s good that I didn’t know too much in my univ classes, or I’d have some tough debates with my liberal sociology profs and end up with bad grades, something I couldn’t afford to do.
Rolling Stone clearly put one of the terrorists on their front page because in their minds he was a hero fighting ‘fascist America.’ It was one of the most disgusting and infuriating things I’ve seen. But to Leftists, innocent people being injured and killed are just necessary casualties that will bring on a glorious future.
We’re going to have to fight back against Leftists, because for many of them their programming is too deep and it’s unlikely they’ll wake up one day and realize they were wrong.
It’ll be a case of being punished for doing the right thing. Tomorrow we could eradicate all Islamic terrorism and they’ll hate us for killing all those “freedom fighters” even though we’d save them from future terrorist attacks.
If they’re not going to help us stop Islam, then they just better not get in our way, or they’ll be treated as the enemy as far as I’m concerned.
It’d be best if we can get most of them on our side, or they might stupidly align with Muslims and they’ll learn too late they were fighting for the wrong team…it’ll also make our battle that much harder.
James Lincoln says
Fitna says,
“I guess it’s good that I didn’t know too much in my univ classes, or I’d have some tough debates with my liberal sociology profs and end up with bad grades…”
After college, you went on to become very informed.
All the while, your liberal sociology professors became less and less informed.
George says
The cover indicates this lunatic falling into “radical” Islam.
This is propaganda trying brainwash people into thinking that there are 2 types of Islam….. radical and peaceful.
This was a faithful Muslim….. not radical Muslim.
World@70 Richard says
Does anyone these days want to be “On the Cover of the Rolling Stone”?
libertyORdeath says
It’s no surprise that the Western leftists have such an affinity for islamists in general and “Palestinian” terrorists in particular. Both faiths share a mindset that says that no matter how much they are given, it will never be enough.
Just as the globalist/leftist cabal is still not satisfied despite having nearly full control over the majority of Western nations (Canada, the UK, France, Germany, etc.), the islamists are NEVER satisfied despite controlling nearly all of the Middle-east.
Anybody thinking that we can compromise with these fascists should look at the situation in Israel – 75% of Palestine was already given to the muslims (see Jordan)
– dozens of peace deals, including proposals for a “Palestinian” state have been summarily rejected
– Israel has won multiple wars and countless conflicts in which they were outnumbered and surrounded
– Israel has consistently refused to do what is necessary to provide safety and sovereignty for their people (exile so-called “Palestinians” to their share of Palestine i.e. The Kingdom of Jordan)
– despite their careful handling of “Palestinian” terrorists and Arabs in Israel they are still smeared by the media, the West, the UN, etc.
If they’re not happy with 80+% of Palestine, they will NEVER be happy…until Israel is completely destroyed. The same goes for America – they will not stop until the biggest threat to the Marxist new world order is defeated and destroyed. America is the last hope for a free world, and our enemies know it.
James Lincoln says
libertyORdeath says,
“…they will NEVER be happy…until Israel is completely destroyed.”
Their so-called “happiness” would last a day or two, and then the “Palestinians” would again be “unhappy” – while directing their hatred of Jews in other parts of the world…
Ester Ruth says
Fact: They/Samaritan community within ISREAL is provided by ISREAL government in all ways. Who do they vote for during elections: Abbas!
ISLAM IS A CANCER. WITHOUT LIES ISLAM DIES!
gravenimage says
Rolling Stone becomes latest Leftist publication to glamorize ‘Palestinian’ jihad terrorists
………………………………..
Yes, they’ve done this before, with Dzhokar Tsarnaev.