War, Media, and Manipulation: The Battle Over Narratives - Maulana Syed Muhammad Rizvi

- War often distorts the truth, especially in media and historical accounts, so viewers should be cautious. - Media owners can influence narratives based on their personal biases, as seen with Israel Asper, a pro-Zionist founder of CanWest Global Communications. - Honest Reporting Canada (HRC) seeks to shape Canadian media to support Israeli perspectives, often pressuring outlets to modify or withdraw certain language or headlines. - HRC uses its network to protest perceived negative portrayals of Israel, such as changing terms in headlines related to Palestinian detainees. - Journalists in conflict areas have faced direct attacks; Israel has been accused of targeting media workers to suppress critical coverage, even those marked as press. - HRC promotes a narrative that excuses such incidents, suggesting some journalists may have ties to Hamas. - The 2022 killing of Al-Jazeera journalist Shireen Abu Akleh led to Israel's use of a “deny and deflect” strategy, which TIME analyzed as Israel’s approach to dealing with high-profile deaths. - Deflection tactics include blaming Palestinian militants, claiming accidental deaths, or alleging victim involvement in attacks on Israelis. - Readers should remain aware of potential media biases, as advised in the Qur’ān, which promotes verifying information. - The “deny & deflect” strategy is not new and can be traced back to historical conflicts, such as between Imam Ali (a) and Mu‘āwiyah. - During the Battle of Ṣiffīn, Mu‘āwiyah’s forces used a similar tactic, with historical references showing attempts to shift blame for killings onto opponents. - This tactic was criticized, with Imam ‘Ali (a) drawing a parallel to the flawed logic of blaming the Prophet for the death of Hamzah at Uḥud. Friday Juma Khutba November 11th, 2024 Donate towards our programs today: https://jaffari.org/donate/ Jaffari Community Centre (JCC Live)