A typical letter on the Bonnie Bernstein controversy

Here is a typical exchange, one involving a reasonable question, that I thought i owuld share (removing the name of the sender). I've received a lot of email, much of it anger from people trying to fight the Arab-Israeli conflict. And few reasoned emails like this one:

Hello Mr. Hanania. I just read your story about Bonnie Bernstein's offensive comments on the Mike and Mike show. I read that apology in a story aboutthe incident on AOL News. I am quite surprised that you found that apology acceptable. It seems Ms. Bernstein was only sorry that she mixed politics andsports but not really sorry about what she said. She had made another comment about the recent Don Imus controversy on that same show in which she said shedidn't care about the Imus story. I guess the people who do care about such things do not register in her little world. to me that's sad because itmeans when these issues arise in sports as they often do she will have very little insight to offer. Anyway, that is my take on the whole situation. For what it's worth. Sincerely ...

Hi … actually when I reviewed her comments and the context in which it was made, I concluded (after talking to several NAAJA members) that she did not intentionally slam Palestinians … she DID use a stereotype … we thought her apology was not as strong as it could have been but we felt as weak as it was, it still covered the real concern that her comment addressed.Bonnie is not a racist promoting a racist view of Palestinians … given her past (I have not seen anything suggesting she has used racial stereotypes in the past) and given the context of the discussion, and being that we are journalists, we felt the apology in and of itself was acceptable.Now, had it been that she was blasting Palestinians as a people for raising their kids to be suicide bombers, and arguing that point, we might have responded much differently. This was on the line, and we prefer to give people without a past the benefit of the doubt …Now, racists like Sean Hannity, Glenn Beck, Michelle Malkin and Ann Coulter are a different breed. Bernstein isn't in that category in my opinion thank you for writing and best regards

Ray Hanania# # #

what is real bigotry and racism

This week, Bonnie Bernstein , a well known sports reporter, made a casual reference comparing NBA hopefuls to Palestinians who push their children to be suicide bombers. She was on a popular ESPN talk show broadcast I Chicago called "Mike and Mike."

NAAJA protested after receiving many complaints, demanding an apology.

Bernstein, ESPN, and the producers of Mike and Mike apologized.

NAAJA accepted the apologies, yet still, many people continued to criticize Bernstein, Some demanding Bernstein did not properly apologize.

Some argued Bernstein should have apologized for the stereotype, insisting that she ackowledge it is not true.

Here are the facts:

BB did not argue that Palestinians raise their children to be suicide bombers. She DID reference the stereotype in an unrelated discussion, citing something she said she read in the New York Times -- clearly a disreputable source when it comes to Middle East issues.

There are two kinds of racism: the first is when people assert, argoe and claim a stereotype is true. This happens all the time; the second is when someone innocently constructs a racist comment, uiing a stereotype naively.

I do not believe BB intentionally made the commentt as an attack against Palestinians. I think she did cross the line, though. Stereotypes are never appropriate, whether you are a bigot or a caring person who slips.

BB has no history of racist comments -- like Sean Hannity or Anne Coulter or Glenn Beck ...

Bernstein apologized for referencing the stereotype. It was carefully constructed so she clearly knew she was walking a fine line. She did apologize but never went the extra mile to acknowledge how much hurt the stereotype inflicted. It would have mitigated the problem to acknowledge the stupidity of the stereotype. You don,t paint an entire people because of the actions of a few.

Bernstein is also controversial and the debate is embroiled in other sports issues beyond the Palestinian comments.

When you confront stereotypes, you must be fair yourself. I'm satisfied she did the minimal thing needed. Couald she have said more. But that is not NAAJA's responsibility to make reporters more caring or human. We asked only that she address and apologize for using the stereotype.

Ray Hanania
www.TheMediaOasis.com