Israel Matzav

Al-Guardian's unbiased Israel correspondent

Normally when a mainstream journalist calls it’s for help, for a quote or for something specific. Not this time. Ms Sherwood rang me to scream at me for publishing a piece by Geoffrey Alderman last week, which began:

Few events – not even the execution of Osama bin Laden – have caused me greater pleasure in recent weeks than news of the death of the Italian so-called “peace activist” Vittorio Arrigoni.

Pretty arresting, indeed, and not something I would have written. But then the editor of a paper doesn’t agree with everything in the paper. Ms Sherwood doesn’t seem to realise that.

‘How could you print that? Don’t you think that is a disgusting thing to say? You are happy to publish that?’

I pointed out that it’s not my view but it’s the view of the writer.

‘That is disgusting. He was a peace activist!’ she screamed back.

I pointed out that Mr Arrigoni was not a ‘peace activist’ but a member of ISM, a hardcore anti-Israel group. Ms Sherwood then started screaming at me in a frankly unintelligible manner, but which included more about him being a peace activist and asking me:

‘So you take pleasure in someone’s murder at the hands of Hamas?’

I pointed out again that it wasn’t my piece.

‘But you’re the editor! You must think it worth publishing’.

Labels: al-Guardian, British media bias, Vittorio Arrigoni

posted by Carl in Jerusalem @ 6:50 PM