Thanks to JoeSettler for bringing to our attention the Jerusalem Post's recent outrageous act of censorship. I sent the following letter tonight to the Post's editor-in-chief, David Horovitz:
To David Horovitz:
Why has the Jerusalem Post censored this blog article by Edwin Bennatan? (The link is a snapshot from Google's cache.)
The entire article has disappeared, and has been replaced with this apology.
I understand from the apology that there were some user comments to the article that were deemed “defamatory, threatening, and inappropriate”, and I can certainly understand why the Post would delete such a comment.
But why was the article itself taken down? Did it contain something that you find to be “defamatory, threatening, and inappropriate”? If so, then what was it, exactly? And if it did not contain anything “defamatory, threatening, and inappropriate”, then why has it been deleted and replaced with an apology?
I would point out that the Post's censorship of this article has already become a subject of discussion in the blogosphere. (See here for an example.) This action calls into question the Post's journalistic standards, and its commitment to freedom of speech.
Mr. Horowitz: In the past, I have admired you for your defense of Israel against egregious media bias against Israel. The article by Bennatan was very similar to many such defenses that you yourself have presented in the past. His article was well-written, reasoned, and free of any ad hominem attacks or anything even remotely inappropriate. I am shocked that the newspaper under your editorship has chosen to censor it. I would not have expected this from you.
I (along with many others) am interested in an explanation of why the Post has done this.
P.S.: I am also quite curious to know which charity Mr. Freedman has selected for the Jerusalem Post to make a contribution to.
If you are also disturbed by the Post's censorship of this article, why not tell them? Here is David Horovitz's e-mail address.
Wherever I am, my blog turns towards Eretz Yisrael טובה הארץ מאד מאד