Two journalists were suspended by Al Jazeera over anti-Semitic content posted to their Arabic-speaking AJ+ website. The video in question featured a woman wearing a hijab giving so-called facts about the Holocaust. According to translated transcripts, the woman accused the Jewish community of exaggerating suffering they received at the hands of Nazis during the Holocaust. The video went on to suggest Jews used financial resources to keep Jewish suffering in the spotlight and were allowed to create their own narrative regarding the Holocaust.
Six million Jews perished in the Holocaust, having been systematically exterminated by the Nazis. While there were other oppressed minority groups, Jews were targeted for annihilation and suffered the most severe treatment. While there’s no denying the Holocaust actually occurred, there has been a rise in anti-Semitism. It thrives online in the darkest shadows of the anonymous chat-board world and also via mainstream news networks like Al Jazeera and The New York Times.
Qatari-owned Al Jazeera runs an English version of AJ+ with locations in the United States. While that version offers progressive content aimed at young liberal Americans, the Arabic version offers content tailored to Middle Eastern audiences. This means vast differences in content offered on the English-speaking AJ+ website versus Arabic. Many bilingual journalists have reported shady content featured by Al Jazeera‘s Arabic-speaking websites and television programs.
Yaser Bishr, a network representative, released a statement following massive social media backlash: “Al Jazeera completely disowns the offensive content in question and reiterated that Al Jazeera would not tolerate such material on any of the network’s platforms.” Al Jazeera didn’t release the names of the journalists, who were suspended for violating editorial standards.