In Norway Attacks, the Media Jumped the Gun by Blaming Islamic Radicals
The New York Times and many other elite media outlets completely blew this one, quoting “authorities” on terrorism who proclaimed that Al Qaeda types were responsible.
Talk about jumping to conclusions.
Very soon after the bomb exploded in Oslo, Norway, the finger-pointing started. This is definitely the work of Muslims, a cacophony of voices began shouting on the web. An article from the Atlantic magazine last year was cited as explanation for why Norway would be the target.
The media jumped the gun. There are many parallels with the 1995 Oklahoma City bombing, also initially blamed on Islamic radicals, only in this case the misinformation spread even more quickly because of social media networks that were not available sixteen years ago. The New York Times and many other elite media outlets completely blew this one, quoting “authorities” on terrorism such as Will McCants, who proclaimed that Al Qaeda types were responsible (making him the contemporary version of Steve Emerson, who was similarly cited to show that jihadists were responsible for Oklahoma City).
It didn’t take long for prejudice to rear its ugly head. Many among the supposedly liberal, urbane readers of the Washington Post and the New York Times revealed their true side.
Incredibly, some readers of the Post were busy venting their anti-Islam prejudices and warning about a Muslim “takeover” of Europe even after it became completely clear that the attacker was not of a Muslim background.
Over at the Times website, the tone wasn’t much better.
“It is probably some radical Norwegian Lutheran sect, no wait, I bet it is some atheist comic book fans,” wrote one Times reader soon after the news broke. “Whoever it really is, I bet we collectively ignore their religious background out of political correctness.”
“Let me guess?” another Times reader shot off. “We all know who is behind this—Muslim extremists.”
Yes, we all know, don’t we?
In fact, the suspect, Anders Behring Breivik, is a far-right Muslim hater.
“Norwegian TV2 reports that Breivik belongs to ‘right-wing circles’ in Oslo,” writes Devin Burghart of the Institute for Research and Education on Human Rights . “Sources in Norway tell IREHR that Breivik has been known to write posts in right-wing Internet forums in Norway, where he has described himself as a ‘nationalist’ and has also written numerous screeds critical of Muslims.” <
Breivik is apparently a fan of American Islamophobe Pamela Geller, who was a prime mover behind the campaign against the interfaith center in lower Manhattan last summer, and of Robert Spencer (who he cites voluminously in his manifesto) and Daniel Pipes, two of the most prominent Muslim-bashers in this country.
But surely, you say, mistaken assumptions about Islamic extremists being responsible for the Norway attacks are understandable, since the vast majority of terrorist plots in Europe are planned by Muslims. That’s completely untrue.
“In 2009, there was only one Islamist terrorist attack, directed at a military target in Italy,” states the European Union’s Terrorism Situation and Trend Report 2010.
Non-Muslims plotted or initiated hundreds of other attacks.
“In 2009, six member states reported 294 failed, foiled or successfully executed attacks,” says the EU report. “Furthermore, an additional 124 attacks were carried out in Northern Ireland. Separatist terrorist organizations were responsible for 237 attacks; all of which were carried out in France and Spain.”
There were real-life consequences of the haste to place blame in all the wrong places. In the immediate aftermath of the killings, Muslims started getting hassled in Norway.
“Tweets tell of harassment against Muslims in Oslo—stop this if you see it happening!” tweeted Norwegian commentator Rune Hakonsen, an invaluable source of information on what was actually going on.
What happened in Norway was horrific. Many folks made things worse by rushing to judgment and tarnishing an entire people in the process.
Amitabh Pal
The Progressive