Fóra De Contexto O Conflito De Gaza Nas Principais Cadeas Internacionais De Tv

1

Lack of context

The Gaza Conflict in International Opinion leading TV News

December 26th, 2008-January 6th, 2009

MEDIA TENOR INTERNATIONALRoland Schatz

+41-43-25519-25

• Does TV coverage help understanding of the Gaza conflict?

• How does journalism cope with the impact of war?

2

André Marty, Swiss TV Reporter in Gaza

Quotes on TV war coverage

1. We are excluded from the actual battle.

2. Independent reporting is impossible.

3. AP mixes up HAMAS with Hizbullah – the speed and the pressure take their toll.

4. What concrete facts do we journalists know from the front line about military actions, number of victims, diplomatic activities’? Not many.

5. There is a jealous relationship between the correspondents “out in the field” and the editors “at home”. Those in their warm armchairs have their special problems, that’s what we in the field say. The people outside are difficult, comes the response.

6. The newsroom wants to see soldiers: Get uniforms. But even the Israeli TV does not come anywhere near to their troops.

3

André Marty, Swiss TV Reporter in Gaza, cont.

Quotes on TV war coverage

1. Even more silly, if a Kassam missile hits nearby, just when the journalists wants to talk about civilian victims with his boss in Germany.

2. We are exposed to a propaganda concert - astonishing how many spokespersons are created by the war. Just give them a microphone: the Army, the Foreign Department, the Government Press Office, lobby organizations like The Israel Project, civilians, religious organizations.

3. You can have them in German, Russian, Spanish, English or French –almost no one among the journalists speaks Hebrew.

4. From the Hamas you get sometimes some tapes with pure propaganda statements. Interviews are only possible in Beirut.

5. And so in the end you realize again that 1:40 is not sufficient to put the things into their context. One minute, forty seconds, to speak about death, politics and failure – be fluid, neutral and balanced.

6. You are amazed, how many journalists seem gladdened by death.

7. My cameraman insists on listening to the CD of “Spiel mir das Lied vom Tod” – the main theme of “Once upon a time in the West”.

André Marty, Frankfurter Allgemeine Sonntagszeitung, Jan 11, 2009

Highlights 26.12.2008-06.01.2009

Structures of foreign news in comparison

Visual coverage of the Gaza conflict

Arguments and evaluations

5

Footage from within Gaza dominates the screens

News routines determine, what is on the screen: Devastation in Gaza has become an iconic element of reporting. But which journalist can check, if all the killed in Gaza have really been innocent civilians?

26 Dez

27 Dez

28 Dez

29 Dez

30 Dez

31 Dez

1 Jan2 Jan

3 Jan4 Jan

5 Jan6 Jan

0%

20%

40%

60%

80%

100%

Israelis Palestinians

Highlights, 26.12.2008-06.01.2009*

Timeline: The Israeli Army and Hamas fighters on screen

Basis: 15h of airtime in 20 news shows from 9 countries (* preliminary results)

6

The pattern of visual coverage remains static

The other side of the conflict: Hamas fighters stay off the screen most of the time. How can journalists convey a fair story of the conflict, if they show primarily Israeli tanks in their reports?

26 Dez

27 Dez

28 Dez

29 Dez

30 Dez

31 Dez

1 Jan2 Jan

3 Jan4 Jan

5 Jan6 Jan

0%

20%

40%

60%

80%

100%

Israelis Hamas

Highlights, 26.12.2008-06.01.2009*

Timeline: The Israeli Army and Hamas fighters on screen

Basis: 15h of airtime in 20 news shows from 9 countries (* preliminary results)

7

Israel gets blamed more often in the second week

New statements often do not bring new insights: Despite new arguments simply lifted from the archives – e.g. the tunnels at the Egyptian – Israel remains the villain in the story.

26 Dez

27 Dez

28 Dez

29 Dez

30 Dez

31 Dez

1 Jan2 Jan

3 Jan4 Jan

5 Jan6 Jan

0%

20%

40%

60%

80%

100%

not mentioned Israelis Palestinians

both parties other protagonists

Highlights, 26.12.2008-06.01.2009*

Who is responsible for the conflict?

Basis: 1,350 news stories in 20 news shows from 9 countries (* preliminary results)

Highlights 26.12.2008-06.01.2009

Patterns of foreign news coverage compared



9

Gaza conflict hits the Arab screens

The Palestine conflict is a defining element of Arab identity – Arab TV accordingly devotes half of its total coverage to the Gaza conflict. But awareness in Western outlets is rather strong as well.

Arab satellite TV

USA*

UK

Germany

France

Italy

CH*

Spain

0% 20% 40% 60% 80% 100%

Gaza conflict all other topics

Structures of foreign coverage, 26.12.2008-02.01.2009*

Focus on the Gaza conflict: Comparison of media countries of origin

Basis: 3,773 news stories in 18 TV news shows (*ends on 31.12.)

10

Little variance in Arab outlets

While there is some variance among Western stations, Arabic outlets display similar patterns. Al-Jazeera seems to have established itself as the champion of the Palestinians: It switched to non-stop reporting on January 3rd.

Al-ArabiyaAl-Jazeera

LBCNBC Nightly News*

ABC World News Tonight*CBS Evening News*

FOX Brit Hume*BBC 1 10 o'clock news

ITV News at TenARD TagesthemenZDF heute journalARD Tagesschau

ZDF heuteRTL Aktuell

TF 1RAI Uno

SF DRS Tagesschau*TVE 1

0% 20% 40% 60% 80% 100%

Gaza conflict all other topics


Focus on the Gaza conflict: Comparison of TV stations

Basis: 3,773 news stories in 18 TV news shows (* ends on 31.12.)

11

High awareness in American foreign coverage

Visual clues are probably more important than spoken words for the TV public. In Arab and US TV news nearly half of the foreign coverage related to the Palestinian territories – but one has to take into account, that US news is more introspective.

Arab satellite TV

USA*

UK

Germany

France

Italy

CH*

Spain

0% 20% 40% 60% 80% 100%

Israelis Palestinian Territories other locations


Location of the reports: Comparison of media countries of origin


12

US devotes higher share to Gaza than Al Arabiya

NBC, ABC and CBS news devoted a higher percentage of its foreign coverage to the Palestinian territories than Al-Arabiya. In absolute terms, of course, the Arab station reported much more intensively.







TF 1RAI Uno


0% 20% 40% 60% 80% 100%

Israel Palestinian Territories other locations


Location of the reports: Comparison of TV stations


13

British and German news targets Israelis

British and German news reports from a different angle than the other outlets: They focus on the decisions of the Israeli government, while Swiss and Spanish news looked at the fate of the people in Gaza.

Arab satellite TV

USA*

UK

Germany

France

Italy

CH*

Spain

0% 20% 40% 60% 80% 100%

Israel Palestinians both parties other protagonists


Protagonists in Gaza coverage: Comparison of media countries of origin

Basis: 1,076 TV news shows focusing on the Gaza conflict in 18 TV news shows (* ends on 31.12.)

14

Al-Jazeera champions Palestinians







TF 1RAI Uno


0% 20% 40% 60% 80% 100%

Israel Palestinians

both parties other protagonists


Protagonists in Gaza coverage: Comparison of TV stations

Basis: 1,076 TV news shows focusing on the Gaza conflict in 18 TV news shows (* ends on 31.12.)

While the availability of TV footage determines what the public gets to see, the storyline can be shaped by the journalists: The three Arab channels treat the conflict parties rather differently.

15

No open support for Israel

Negativism is a perennial quality of foreign news – as both sides are associated with the suffering in Gaza, both sides are portrayed rather critically. But there is as well little open support.

44,0%

52,8%

3,2%

55,1% 38,3%

6,6%

15,1%

84,9%

25,4%

73,8%

0,8%

negative no clear rating positive


Evaluation of Israeli / Palestinian protagonists: Comparison of overall and explicit tone

Basis: 377 / 514 TV news shows focusing on the Gaza conflict in 18 TV news shows

Overall toneOverall tone

Explicit toneExplicit tone

16

British news holds back from negativity

In most countries the Palestinians have been portrayed more negatively, as the reports focused on the situation of the civilian population in Gaza. US coverage was extraordinary negative on Israel.

Arab satellite TV

USA*

UK

Germany

France

Italy

CH*

Spain

0% 20% 40% 60% 80% 100%


Evaluation of Israeli / Palestinian protagonists

Arab satellite TV

USA*

UK

Germany

France

Italy

CH*

Spain

0% 20% 40% 60% 80% 100%

Basis: 377 / 514 TV news shows focusing on the Gaza conflict in 18 TV news shows (* ends on 31.12.)

17

Fox less critical of Israel

Ideological differences show most clearly in the US: Fox took a clearly less negative stance on Israel than the three other networks. But in German, there were differences too, for instance, Tagesthemen was more critical than heute journal.

Al-Arabiya

Al-Jazeera

LBC

NBC Nightly News*

ABC World News Tonight*

CBS Evening News*

FOX Brit Hume*

BBC 1 10 o'clock news

ITV News at Ten

ARD Tagesthemen

ZDF heute journal

ARD Tagesschau

ZDF heute

RTL Aktuell

TF 1

RAI Uno

SF DRS Tagesschau*

TVE 1

0% 20% 40% 60% 80% 100%


Evaluation of Israeli / Palestinian protagonists

Al-Arabiya

Al-Jazeera

LBC

NBC Nightly News*


CBS Evening News*

FOX Brit Hume*


ITV News at Ten

ARD Tagesthemen

ZDF heute journal

ARD Tagesschau

ZDF heute

TF 1

RAI Uno

SF DRS Tagesschau*

TVE 1

0% 20% 40% 60% 80% 100%


18

Criticism of Israel mostly indirect

Explicit criticism, using words like “killer” or “war criminal” played no crucial role in the evaluation of Israeli protagonists – but the events seemed to speak for themselves (cf. slide 15).

Arab satellite TV

USA*

UK

Germany

France

Italy

CH*

Spain

0% 20% 40% 60% 80% 100%


Evaluation of Israeli / Palestinian protagonists: Explicit tone

Arab satellite TV

USA*

UK

Germany

France

Italy

CH*

Spain

0% 20% 40% 60% 80% 100%


19

US news takes sides against both parties

While most European outlets refrained from direct criticism, US outlets took a clearly negative stance on both sides, criticizing the Palestinians even more severely than the Israelis.

Al-Arabiya

Al-Jazeera

LBC

NBC Nightly News*


CBS Evening News*

FOX Brit Hume*


ITV News at Ten

ARD Tagesthemen

ZDF heute journal

ARD Tagesschau

ZDF heute

RTL Aktuell

TF 1

RAI Uno

SF DRS Tagesschau*

TVE 1

0% 20% 40% 60% 80% 100%


Evaluation of Israeli / Palestinian protagonists: Explicit tone

Al-Arabiya

Al-Jazeera

LBC

NBC Nightly News*


CBS Evening News*

FOX Brit Hume*


ITV News at Ten

ARD Tagesthemen

ZDF heute journal

ARD Tagesschau

ZDF heute

TF 1

RAI Uno

SF DRS Tagesschau*

TVE 1

0% 20% 40% 60% 80% 100%


20

Summary of structural analysis

● Patterns of reporting were most strongly shaped by the national outlook: While the Arab stations were preoccupied by the Gaza conflict and the American channels devoted most of their foreign coverage to these events, European programs were less strongly focused on the war in Gaza.

● The news programs showed some scope of diversity in the way they told their stories: British news as well as ABC and CBS focused more often on Israeli protagonists than the other outlets, while Al-Jazeera risked becoming perceived as a sort of Hamas channel.

● Negativity resulted more from the telling of sad stories of human suffering than from directly blaming the opponents.


Summary

21

Media Set/Methodology● Arabic Satellite TV

Al-Arabiyah: 430 storiesAl-Jazeera: 333 storiesLBC TV: 608 stories

● USA (* ends on 31.12.)NBC Nightly News: 112 storiesABC World News Tonight: 90 storiesCBS Evening News: 92 storiesFOX Brít Hume: 134 stories

● UKBBC 1 10 o'clock news: 114 storiesITV News at Ten: 108 stories

● Germany:ARD Tagesthemen: 109 storiesZDF heute journal: 81 storiesRTL Aktuell: 116 storiesARD Tagesschau: 132 storiesZDF heute: 153 stories

● All 3,773 news stories in the listed TV news shows have been analyzed.Evaluation of the war coverage is based on:all news stories referring primarily to Israel or the Palestinian Territoriesor dealing primarily with the Palestine conflict.

● The analysis refers to the main protagonist of a news story.

● Ratings apply to the main protagonists. Ratings are based on either explicit tone (e.g. “Terrorist” vs. “Freedom Fighter”)or the positive/advantageous or negative/harmful context (e.g. “hit by cluster bombs”).


Media Set

● France: TF 1, 228 stories

● Italy: RAI Uno, 308 stories

● Switzerland (* ends on 31.12.)SF DRS Tageschau, 261 stories

● Spain: TVE 1, 364 stories

Highlights 26.12.2008-06.01.2009




23

Lack of new images brings journalists on the screen

British news took a different angle, showing Israeli protagonists relatively more often than all other stations. Journalists were most often on the screen in US, German and Swiss news.

Arab satellite TV

USA*

UK

Germany

CH*

0% 20% 40% 60% 80% 100%

Israelis Hamas Palestinians

other protagonists journalists

Visual coverage of the Gaza conflict, 26.12.2008-02.01.2009*

Protagonists on screen: Comparison of media countries of origin

Basis: 14h 21 m in 6,261 takes of TV coverage of the Gaza conflict(the breakdown relates to the protagonist visible on the screen / * ends on 31.12.)

24

British news tells a different story

Arab and British news mark the two ends of a continuum. British news does not only show Israelis more often than the other programs, but displays a higher share for Hamas – fighters and leaders – as well.

Arab satellite TV

USA*

UK

Germany

CH*

0% 20% 40% 60% 80% 100%



The conflict parties on screen: Comparison of media countries of origin

Basis: 2h 18m, 43m, 4h 21m of TV coverage of the Gaza conflict (* ends on 31.12.)

25

Arabic TV underrates Hamas violence

The ready availability of footage of the Israeli Defence Forces is used without restraint by all outlets. The lack of images of Hamas fighters on the other hand leads to a one-sided visual perspective for the news stories.

Arab satellite TV

USA*

UK

Germany

CH*

0% 20% 40% 60% 80% 100%

Israelis Hamas


The Israeli Army and Hamas fighters on screen: Comparison of media countries of origin

Basis: 1h 4m, 17m of TV coverage of the Gaza conflict (* ends on 31.12.)

26

East-Western divide on Israeli victims

Israeli victims play only a slight role on Arab screens, while German TV devotes the highest share to them. But at least ¾ of all images showing victims relate to Palestinians.

Arab satellite TV

USA*

UK

Germany

CH*

0% 20% 40% 60% 80% 100%



Victims on screen: Comparison of media countries of origin

Basis: 19m, 2h 8m of TV coverage of the Gaza conflict (* ends on 31.12.)

27

Al-Arabiya and Al-Jazeera tell the same story

Intra-national differences are rather insignificant again, as British or German news show the same protagonist structures. Fox on the other hand distinguishes itself from its competitors by using only limited visual material.







SF DRS Tagesschau*

0% 20% 40% 60% 80% 100%


other protagonists journalists


Protagonists on screen: Comparison of TV stations

Basis: 14h 21 m in 6,261 takes of TV coverage of the Gaza conflict(the breakdown relates to the protagonist visible on the screen / * ends on 31.12.)

28

Intra-national variations are low – Fox breaks the ranks

When only the opponents are taken into account, Fox takes a “British” view of the conflict, showing more often Israelis than Palestinians. Apart from Fox and the British programs, all other outlets focus more on the images of Palestinians.







SF DRS Tagesschau*

0% 20% 40% 60% 80% 100%



The conflict parties on screen: Comparison of TV stations

Basis: 2h 18m, 43m, 4h 21m of TV coverage of the Gaza conflict (* ends on 31.12.)

29

Al-Jazeera has a better connection to Hamas

Hamas fighters are shown only rather infrequently by Al-Arabiya or LBC, while Al-Jazeera assigns them about ¼ of all the visual material focusing on armed groups or military.







SF DRS Tagesschau*

0% 20% 40% 60% 80% 100%

Israelis Hamas


The Israeli Army and Hamas fighters on screen: Comparison of TV stations

Basis: 1h 4m, 17m of TV coverage of the Gaza conflict (* ends on 31.12.)

30

Fox shows Israeli victims prominently

The salience of Israeli victims clearly seems to depend on a conscious editorial decision: Only Fox, ITV, ZDF heute journal, RTL and SF Tagesschau assign them more than10% of all visual material relating to war victims







SF DRS Tagesschau*

0% 20% 40% 60% 80% 100%



Victims on screen: Comparison of TV stations

Basis: 19m, 2h 8m of TV coverage of the Gaza conflict (* ends on 31.12.)

31

Summary of visual analysis


Summary

● Video footage of the victims and the destruction in Gaza shapes the image of the conflict in most markets.

● As Hamas fighters are not readily accessible for the camera, video footage of the Israeli Army on the other hand compounds the effect of the focus on Palestinian victims.

● Only few stations, like Fox, BBC or ITV, manage to show a different picture.

32


Al-Arabiyah: 6h 19mAl-Jazeera: 5m 6mLBC TV: 6h 43m

● USA (* ends on 31.12.)NBC Nightly News: 28mABC World News Tonight: 27mCBS Evening News: 18mFOX Brit Hume: 31m

● UKBBC 1 10 o'clock news: 14mITV News at Ten: 14m

● Germany:ARD Tagesthemen: 37mZDF heute journal: 34mRTL Aktuell: 11mARD Tagesschau: 36mZDF heute: 30

● SF DRS Tagesschau: 25m (* ends on 31.12.)

● All news stories referring to the Gaza conflict in the listed TV news shows have been analyzed.

● Evaluation is based on the whole time of the news stories, addressing the Lebanon war.

● Analysis refers to the duration of the visual depiction (film/photo) of the respective classes of protagonists.


Methodology

Highlights 26.12.2008-06.01.2009




34

1/4 of reports do not address responsibility

As the force of the visual coverage exerts a strong influence on the perception of the conflict by the viewing public, it becomes more important for the journalists to give background to their viewers.

Arab satellite TV

USA*

Germany

UK

CH*

0% 20% 40% 60% 80% 100%

Israel Hamas both parties Palestinian Authority

several other not mentioned

The Gaza conflict: Arguments and evaluations

Who is responsible for the conflict?

Basis: 957 news stories in 18 TV news shows (* ends on 31.12.)

35

German and British news blames both sides

As open hostility towards Israel is not politically correct in many countries, in most markets journalists chose to assign the blame for the latest to crisis in Gaza to both opponents.

Arab satellite TV

USA*

Germany

UK

CH*

0% 20% 40% 60% 80% 100%

Israel Hamas both parties


Who is responsible for the conflict: Focus on Israel and Hamas?


36

Fox blames the Palestinians

Only the Arabic outlets and Fox take sides openly in the Gaza conflict. Hamas on the other hand evades the blame most of the time. On RTL and Fox, Hamas is more often held responsible than the Israeli side.







SF DRS Tagesschau*

0% 20% 40% 60% 80% 100%

Israel Hamas both parties


Who is responsible for the conflict: Focus on Israel and Hamas?


37

Context I: UK news mentions end of ceasefire

As most of the stations have difficulties staying abreast of the overall course of events, only British news mentions the end of the Hamas ceasefire as one decisive element of the Gaza crisis regularly in its reports.

Arab satellite TV

USA*

UK

Germany

CH*

0% 20% 40% 60% 80% 100%

not mentioned mentioned


Is the end of the ceasefire by Hamas mentioned?


38

Context II: Gaza blockade of no interest for Arab news

The same observation holds true for the blockade of the Gaza strip by the Israeli forces, who tried to subdue the ongoing missile attacks. This aspect played no significant role in the coverage of the Arab stations.

Arab satellite TV

USA*

UK

Germany

CH*

0% 20% 40% 60% 80% 100%



Is the Israeli blockade of Gaza mentioned?


39

Context III: Guerilla strategy not on the screen

Although the strategy of Hamas can not be understood without noticing the importance of the civilian environment, both for evading Israeli attacks as well as a means for mobilizing international support, this aspect was widely ignored by the TV journalists.

Arab satellite TV

USA*

UK

Germany

CH*

0% 20% 40% 60% 80% 100%



Is mentioned that Hamas fighters are hiding among civilians in Gaza?


40

Facts are subject to ideology

When it came to mentioning the ongoing missile attacks on Israel, there was again a marked West-Eastern divide. Only 1 in 10 stories in the Arab channels mentioned the missile attacks.

Arab satellite TV

USA*

UK

Germany

CH*

0% 20% 40% 60% 80% 100%



Is mentioned that Hamas is firing missiles on Israel?


41

Arab news show unity in ignoring the Kassam threat

While there was some variance in the way and the number of times Western TV stations mentioned the Kassam attacks, Arabic programs displayed a similar position in this aspect.







SF DRS Tagesschau*

0% 20% 40% 60% 80% 100%



Media comparison: Is mentioned that Hamas is firing missiles on Israel?


42

Context IV: Only British news interested in solutions

Even more sobering is the fact, that possible solutions to the conflict were addressed rather infrequently. British news again gave more depth to its coverage than the other outlets in this respect.

Arab satellite TV

USA*

UK

Germany

CH*

0% 20% 40% 60% 80% 100%



Are solutions to the conflict mentioned?


43

German news stays on the surface

Whereas British and American programs showed some interest in possible ways out of the conflict, German and Arabic news stayed on the surface of events, simply describing what happened in Gaza.







SF DRS Tagesschau*

0% 20% 40% 60% 80% 100%



Media comparison: Are solutions to the conflict mentioned?


44


Summary

Summary of argument analysis

● All stations with the exception of Fox blamed the Israelis directly or indirectly – while blaming both opponents – but Israel more often than Hamas.

● Only British news gave important background to its coverage by referring regularly to important wider aspects of the conflict and its history.

● The core aspect of the guerilla strategy chosen by Hamas to challenge Israel from the civilian substrate in Gaza was not recognized by most stations. The Israeli military action thus appeared as an act of indiscriminate violence.

45


Al-Arabiyah: 220 storiesAl-Jazeera: 173 storiesLBC TV: 292 stories

● USA (ends on 31.12.)NBC Nightly News: 7 storiesABC World News Tonight: 23 storiesCBS Evening News: 13 storiesFOX Brit Hume: 22 stories

● UKBBC 1 10 o'clock news: 21 storiesITV News at Ten: 24 stories

● Germany:ARD Tagesthemen: 20 storiesZDF heute journal: 21 storiesRTL Aktuell: 12 storiesARD Tagesschau: 37 storiesZDF heute: 31 stories

● Switzerland: SF DRS Tagesschau 38 stories (ends on 31.12.)

● All news stories referring to the Gaza conflict in the listed TV news shows have been analyzed.

● The research questions were assessed on the story level


Methodology

News & Politics

Fóra De Contexto O Conflito De Gaza Nas Principais Cadeas Internacionais De Tv