Hey, CNN: When Will Octavia Nasr Get the Shirley Sherrod Treatment?

Submitted by toddshui on Wed, 07/21/2010 - 18:08

CNN did a great job of giving covering the Shirley Sherrod story, giving both Sherrod and the farmers she was wrongly accused of treating badly a chance to tell their versions of the story. Their excellent and speedy reporting may have played a role in getting Robert Gibbs to apologize on behalf of the White House to Sherrod.

 

So when will we see them giving Octavia Nasr the chance to explain herself?

Several commenters have compared the situations between the women. Here's how Wikipedia describes how and why CNN fired her:

Following the death of Mohammad Hussein Fadlallah on July 4, 2010, Nasr tweeted on the same day that she was "Sad to hear of the passing of Sayyed Mohammad Hussein Fadlallah.. One of Hezbollah's giants I respect a lot..."[2]

Nasr was criticized for this perceived show of sympathy and support for Hezbollah, an organization which the U.S. government designates as a terrorist group, amid claims that her stated position was incompatible with her role at CNN as editor of news on the Middle East.[3][4][5]

In response to reactions on her comment, Nasr wrote on July 6 that the tweet was "an error of judgment". She concluded her statement by saying that Fadlallah was "revered across borders yet designated a terrorist. Not the kind of life to be commenting about in a brief tweet. It's something I deeply regret."[6] A CNN spokesman responded saying that "CNN regrets any offense her Twitter message caused. It did not meet CNN’s editorial standards."[7] The following day, on July 7, CNN fired Nasr. In an internal CNN memo announcing Nasr's departure, CNN International’s senior vice president for newsgathering, Parisa Khosravi, wrote, "We believe that her credibility in her position as senior editor for Middle Eastern affairs has been compromised going forward."[8]

Reaction

Articles and commentaries following Nasr's sacking have been divided. Mediaite's Dan Abrams asked "Can you imagine what would happen to an American journalist expressing admiration for an Al Qaeda leader who had other, better, attributes?"[9] Others expressed concern over what they viewed as similar incidents, most notably Hearst syndicated columnist Helen Thomas retiring under criticism one month earlier.[10][11][12] Those who agreed with CNN's decision stated that it had a right to enforce standards of objectivity in its reporting. Those who supported Ms. Nasr felt her firing constituted a new trend in the political climate for journalists and journalism covering politically sensitive issues in general,[13][14] and the Middle East in particular.[15][16]Robert Fisk derided CNN and its credibility over the firing, writing "Poor old CNN goes on getting more cowardly by the hour. That's why no one cares about it any more."[17]

 

Wouldn't it be wonderful if CNN treated Nasr with the same care they have rightly lavished on Sherrod?

A sex toy recommendation for CNN: the Basix 16" Double Dong. That way they really can have it both ways, the way they want to with unjustified, racially motivated firings.