Offensive Cartoons

Media Apologize For Offending Muslims While Ignoring Anti-Semitic Cartoons“The publication of cartoons that incite religious or ethnic hatreds is unacceptable.” —U.S. Department of State

The decision of several European newspapers to publish cartoons portraying the Islamic Prophet Mohamed has led to death threats and rioting around the world. While many in Europe are standing firm, the cartoons’ publication has also produced strong apologies by international leaders and some of the media. The managing director of France Soir (one of the papers that published the cartoons) was even fired “as a powerful sign of respect for the intimate beliefs and convictions of every individual for allowing them to be published.”

Jyllands-Posten, the original Danish paper that published the cartoons, had this to say: “They (The cartoons) were not intended to be offensive, nor were they at variance with Danish law, but they have indisputably offended many Muslims for which we apologize.”

We wonder why no similar outcry and apologies have come after viciously anti-Semitic and anti-Israel cartoons are published on an almost daily basis throughout the Arab world. The following cartoon (as reported by Palestinian Media Watch) was published in Al-Hayat, the official newspaper of the Palestinian Authority, last month. Perhaps the reason that it did not provoke an outrage is that by the standards of the Arab press, it is hardly exceptional. “Offensive” Cartoons in the Arab World