Committee for Accuracy in Middle East Reporting in America

This article is about the media lobby group known by the acronym CAMERA. For other uses, see camera (disambiguation).
Committee for Accuracy in Middle East Reporting in America
Formation1982
FounderWinifred Meiselman
Type
52-1332702
PurposePro-Israel Media Advocacy
HeadquartersBoston, Massachusetts, U.S.
Region served
Global
National President
Andrea Levin
Volunteers
Over 65,000 (according to CAMERA)[1]
Websitecamera.org

The Committee for Accuracy in Middle East Reporting in America (CAMERA) is an American non-profit pro-Israel[2] media-monitoring, research and membership organization. According to its website, CAMERA is "devoted to promoting accurate and balanced coverage of Israel and the Middle East."[3] The group says it was founded in 1982 "to respond to The Washington Post's coverage of Israel's Lebanon incursion", and to respond to what it considers the media's "general anti-Israel bias".[1]

CAMERA is known for its media monitoring and advocacy.[4][5][6] CAMERA releases reports to counter what it calls "frequently inaccurate and skewed characterizations of Israel and of events in the Middle East" that it believes may fuel anti-Israel and anti-Jewish prejudice.[3] The group mobilizes protests against what it describes as unfair media coverage by issuing full-page ads in newspapers,[7] organizing demonstrations,[8] and encouraging sponsors to withhold funds.[8] CAMERA reports it has over 65,000 paying members[9][10] and that 46 news outlets have issued corrections based on their work.[11][self-published source]

Critics of CAMERA claim that it is an ‘extreme Israel advocacy group’,[12] aligned with hawkish rightwing viewpoints; that it pays stipended fellows to write anti-Palestinian articles; and that it employs smear and intimidation tactics, routinely targeting media and journalists critical of Israel and pro-Palestinian activists on campuses.[13][12][14]

  1. ^ a b "Welcome to CAMERA". Camera.org. Retrieved April 6, 2017.
  2. ^
    • Zara Myers. The Name of the Game? Advocacy for Israel. Jewish Exponent. Philadelphia: November 25, 2004.

      To encourage effective advocacy on behalf of Israel, the Center for Israel and Overseas of the Jewish Federation of Greater Philadelphia will host a daylong program -- its inaugural advocacy event -- on Sunday, Dec. 5, from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m., at Hillel at the University of Pennsylvania, Steinhardt Hall, 215 S. 39th St. in Philadelphia. In the morning will be a panel featuring representatives from the Jewish Council for Public Affairs, the Committee for Accuracy in Middle East Reporting in America and the American Israel Public Affairs Committee, all of which will discuss "Methodologies on How to Advocate for Israel...Dr. John Cohn, a local physician named Camera's "No. 1 Letter-Writer" in 2004, will serve as moderator of the panel.

    • CAMERA Articles For Students. Apply Now to Be A CAMERA Student Representative—Earn a Free Trip to Israel and $1000! Archived May 27, 2009, at the Wayback Machine Posted on CAMERA website, September 25, 2007.

      CAMERA is looking for fifteen passionately committed undergraduate students with excellent communication skills who can organize pro-Israel events on campus. Students earn $1000 and a free exclusive trip to Israel in June by becoming a CAMERA Fellows Representative.

    • Jerusalem Center for Public Affairs. CAMERA: Fighting Distorted Media Coverage of Israel and the Middle East: An Interview with Andrea Levin. Posted on JCPA website, June 1, 2005.

      Their work undoubtedly has impact, but the non-Israel-related groups do not have the same activist focus. They produce studies and polls. It is for this reason that I think pro-Israeli media watching has an importance beyond the cause of Israel. Efforts that induce better adherence to ethical journalism in one subject area are positive generally in helping to strengthen American democracy, especially, again, as there are no enforceable codes of professional conduct in the media. – CAMERA Executive Director Andrea Levin.

    • The New York Times. Mideast Turmoil: The News Outlets – Some U.S. Backers of Israel Boycott Dailies Over Mideast Coverage That They Deplore. Posted on NYTimes website, May 23, 2002.

      While the the [sic] pro-Israeli Committee for Accuracy in Middle East Reporting in America, or Camera, studies newspapers for evidence of bias, Palestine Media Watch has been monitoring the coverage of newspapers like The Philadelphia Inquirer, The New York Times and The Atlanta Journal-Constitution.

  3. ^ a b "About". Camera.org. Retrieved April 6, 2017.
  4. ^ Manfred Gerstenfeld and Ben Green. Watching the Pro-Israeli Media Watchers. Jewish Political Studies Review. 16:3-4 (Fall 2004).
  5. ^ Lando, Michal (November 4, 2007). "Israel critique on campus". Jerusalem: Jerusalem Post.[permanent dead link‍]
  6. ^ Rob Eshman (January 25, 2008). "Butt out". Los Angeles: Jewish Journal. Archived from the original on April 30, 2008. Retrieved March 5, 2008.
  7. ^ U.S. newspapers catching flak for Mideast war coverage: Media caught in the cross fire as both sides complain of bias

    He said the network has been targeted by the Committee for Accuracy in Middle East Reporting in America, which ran a full-page New York Times ad calling NPR's coverage "false" and "skewed" against Israel. The advertisement also urged NPR's financial backers to stop supporting the network.
  8. ^ a b Mayes, Ian (October 30, 2006). "Open door: The readers' editor on ... a ruling in favour of freedom of expression". The Guardian. Retrieved October 23, 2015. In general, the methods employed by Camera seem to me to go beyond a reasonable call for accountability. It has, for instance, been involved in a long-running battle with NPR, National Public Radio, in Washington, over its Middle East coverage, organising demonstrations outside NPR stations across the US and seeking to persuade NPR's supporters to withhold funds.
  9. ^ "Welcome to CAMERA". Camera.org. Retrieved April 6, 2017.
  10. ^ Cite error: The named reference JCPA was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  11. ^ Cite error: The named reference Corr was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  12. ^ a b Ian Lustick, 'The Trump Administration is Using Accusations of Anti-Semitism to Silence Critics,' The Forward 29 November 2019.
  13. ^ Yves Engler, 'US student, Israel lobby groups behind McGill lawsuit,'Mondoweiss 9 August 2022.
  14. ^ Uri Blau, 'Times of Israel Cofounder Gave $1.5 Million to Right-wing Media Watchdog That Routinely Goes After News Outlets,' Haaretz 5 September 2016