Middle East Media Research Institute
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Not to be confused with the Middle East Institute
The Middle East Media Research Institute is an Israeli propaganda outfit based in the United States.
Former head of the CIA's counterintelligence unit, Vincent Cannistraro, said that MEMRI "are selective and act as propagandists for their political point of view, which is the extreme-right of Likud. They simply don't present the whole picture."[1]
Contents
Origins
The organisation was founded in 1998 by Meyrav Wurmser and Colonel Yigal Carmon, formerly of Israeli military intelligence. Both are right-wing zionists and opposers of the Oslo peace accords. Wurmser's position has been replaced by Steven Stalinsky following her departure in 2002. Oliver Revell also contributes to the board of directors.
According to Jim Lobe, MEMRI specializes in translating and distributing 'particularly virulent anti-U.S. and anti-Israel articles appearing in the Arab press to key U.S. media and policymakers' [2].
Working methods
Critics describe MEMRI as a strongly pro-Israel advocacy group that, in spite of describing itself as being "independent" and "non-partisan" in nature,[3]Fathi, Schirin (2010). Memri.org – A Tool of Enlightenment or Incitement?. In Graf, Arndt; Fathi, Schirin; Paul, Ludwig (eds.). Orientalism and Conspiracy: Politics and Conspiracy Theory in the Islamic World. I.B.Tauris. page 202: "But what about using MEMRI, what about the various accusations? There is no monolithic answer. As a translation service it is of great value. As a research tool the evaluation is more complex as it demands good background information in order to contextualize the information obtained, due to the organization's lack of transparency and attempt to pose as something different than what they are. The problem is that many of the journalists, politicians and lay persons who use MEMRI cannot and will not do this. And this is where the main objection to MEMRI comes into play. It presents itself as an independent research institute, but it acts as a tool geared toward shaping opinion by "producing an orient"—in the true sense of Edward Said's usage—and through this it has an increasing influence in shaping perceptions of the Middle East. MEMRI has understood that politics today is waged in the media and it fulfills its role as a public relations, lobbying and policy-making instrument with the highest professional standard."</ref> aims to portray the Arab world and the Muslim world in a negative light by producing and disseminating incomplete or inaccurate translations of the original versions of the media reports that it re-publishes.[4][5] It has also been accused of selectively focusing on the views of Islamic extremists while de-emphasizing or ignoring mainstream opinions.[6]
Having begun as one office in Washington, MEMRI has now expanded with branches in Berlin, London, Tokyo and Jerusalem.
Funding
Although MEMRI in 2006 claimed to have funds under $2 million, Professor Juan Cole insists that the organisation recieves in the region of $60 million per annum for its operations. *[7]
it has been reported that many of the funds recieved by MEMRI are either not accounted for or only the American profits are disclosed. MEMRI is of course a multinational organisation with office across the world. It is these offices which Juan Cole maintains the estimate of $60 million is acculmulated. [8]
MEMRI maintains that all of it's funding comes directly from around 250 private donations and that it does not receive any government funding. Lynde & Harry Bradley Foundation, a right wing organisation, donated $100,000 between '92 and 2000. Ronald & Mary Ann Lachman Foundation is another of the private donors.
MEMRI recognized US$6,292,683 of revenue and incurred US$6,247,476 of expenses during the twelve months ended June 30, 2018.[9]
Criticism
MEMRI has faced numerous allegations of bias and unprofesionalism with regard to its presentation of the Middle East news. Critcs of the organisation have said that MEMRI is selective in the content it translates and that in doing so, it portrays an anti-Arab view.
MEMRI has altered it's homepage on the internet following the terrorist attacks on September 11 2001. Prior to the attacks, the 'About us' section had clearly stated the following quote as part of their mission statement: 'In its research, the institute puts emphasis on the continuing relevance of Zionism to the Jewish people and to the state of Israel.' Furthermore, the profiles of MEMRI staff were also deleted along with any information of funding.
The following is a list of critics and their personal views on MEMRI:
Dr. Juan Cole: accused the organisation of selectivity in their translation process in that they "cherry-pick" the press for particularly extreme cases rather than providing an overview. *[3][4], cited 23rd April 2006.
Brian Whitaker: Maintains that MEMRI articles follow a distinct pattern of 'reflecting badly on the character of Arabs or they in some way further the political agenda of Israel.' *[5][6], cited 23rd April 2006.
Ibrahim Hooper: In an interview with the Washington Post claimed; 'Memri's intent is to find the worst possible quotes from the Muslim world and disseminate them as widely as possible.' *[7][8], cited 23rd April 2006.
Marc Lynch: also in agreament that MEMRI offers a biased source of Middle East publications and says that MEMRI 'routinely selects articles which show the worst of Arab discource.'
William Rugh: states that MEMRI portrays Arabs as hating Jews and refusing any peaceful settlement of Palestine issues.
Former head of the CIA's counterintelligence unit, Vincent Cannistraro, said that MEMRI "are selective and act as propagandists for their political point of view, which is the extreme-right of Likud. They simply don't present the whole picture."[10]
MEMRI's Response
In light of the article 'Osama Threatening Red States?' by Juan Cole,*[9][10] MEMRI's co-founder, Yigal Carmon, wrote a response to Dr. Cole. the email can be accessed through this link *[11][12] and it clearly identifies some threat of legal action aginst Dr. Cole on accounts of libel and slander. MEMRI claim to be offering translations of current affairs and topical issues on the Middle Easter and international agendas form a non-partisan, non-profit view point. However, MEMRI fail to provide any contact details through their website which would allow the general public to assess the situation for themselves.
Some users of MEMRI materials
- Jonathan Freedland, The Guardian columnist, writes:
- "On the other hand, few challenge the accuracy of Memri's translations: unpalatable though they are, the texts Memri finds are all too real."[13]
- Thomas Friedman – New York Times columnist.
- "The role that MEMRI is playing in bringing the voices of the Arab and Muslim Reform – from Arabic into English, to the world – has been absolutely invaluable for everyone who cares about this process and wants to follow it."
- Thomas Friedman, May 6, 2003 [14]
- "The role that MEMRI is playing in bringing the voices of the Arab and Muslim Reform – from Arabic into English, to the world – has been absolutely invaluable for everyone who cares about this process and wants to follow it."
- Kevin Myers – writes for the Irish Times and The Telegraph. He writes:
- "I receive an invaluable service from the Middle East Media Research Institute, which translates material from the region. What is impossible to appreciate without such translations is the sheer scale of genocidal anti-Semitism which infuses Palestinian Authority propaganda.[15]
- "In the kingdom of Saudi Arabia, where the ultraextreme sect of Wahhabism is the state religion, various sermons and other declamations were heard, alleging that Allah punished the Hindus, Christians, Buddhists, and non-Wahhabi Muslims of the South Asian countries for their failure to accept Islam, above all in its Saudi form (as recorded and translated by the Middle East Media Research Institute).[16]
- United States Commission on International Religious Freedom 2003 Report on Saudi Arabia (pdf) Eight endnotes credit material to MEMRI or Stalinski.
- "Numerous articles and commentary in the Saudi press are openly anti-Jewish, offensive, and discriminatory: the "Zionist movement" is labeled as evil; blood libel accusations are made; hatred toward Jews is encouraged; Jews are said to be trying to take over the world; and the existence of the Holocaust is denied.[60]
- [60]See multiple translated articles with anti-Semitic and discriminatory language from the Saudi press at the Middle East Media Research Institute ( MEMRI ) Web site: [followed by four links]
- Elie Wiesel – Professional Holocaust survivor (as Uri Avnery refers to him), member of the Irgun Zvei Leumi [17], and professional moralist.
- "I hope you receive MEMRI's publications. I do. I find its material – translations and analyses of poisonous articles, hate-filled statements and slanderous accusations – vitally needed for the fight against antisemitism in the Arab world. Policy makers, legislators, teachers, and news commentators greatly benefit from its efforts to use truth in the service of peace."
- Elie Wiesel, May 22, 2003[18]
- "I hope you receive MEMRI's publications. I do. I find its material – translations and analyses of poisonous articles, hate-filled statements and slanderous accusations – vitally needed for the fight against antisemitism in the Arab world. Policy makers, legislators, teachers, and news commentators greatly benefit from its efforts to use truth in the service of peace."
- James Woolsey – former CIA director
- "… the excellent Middle East Media Research Institute"
-Former CIA director James Woolsey, June 10, 2002 [19]
- "… the excellent Middle East Media Research Institute"
People
Board of Advisors 2006[11] and 2024, plus Congressional Board of Advisors and Board of Directors 2024.[12] The website is set up so it can't be archived properly.
Initially there were only six members of staff working for MEMRI, however as a result of expansion, that number is now in the region of 30-40.
Several of MEMRI's agents change names — while wearing a MEMRI hat some have a German or English name, but later reappear with their Israeli names elsewhere.[13]
Resources
- David Tell, "The Baby Face of Hate — MEMRI releases an astonishing example of the "true Muslim" faith", The Daily Standard, June 12, 2002.
- Brian Whitaker , Selective Memri, Guardian Unlimited, August 12, 2002. "Investigates whether the 'independent' media institute that translates the Arabic newspapers is quite what it seems."
- Brian Whitaker and Yigal Carmon, "Email debate: Yigal Carmon and Brian Whitaker", Guardian, Jan 23 2004.
- "The truth about MEMRI" from Palestine Media Watch, August 13, 2002.
- Sarah Maserati, "Terror TV / MEMRI brings English-speakers the world of Arab hate", National Review Online, November 14, 2002.
- Craig Cox, "Making a MEMRI", Utne Web Watch, Archives.
- Leah Harris, "A Note on MEMRI & Translations", CounterPunch, 15 January 2003.
- Ori Nir, "Arab Envoys Planning Translation Service / Information Ministers Hope To Counter Success of Memri", Forward, 24 January 2003.
- Mohammed El Oifi, "Gained in translation: Why the Middle East Media Research Institute (MEMRI) is a source of English versions of Arabic texts that are designed to mislead and disinform", Le Monde Diplomatique, October 2005.
- CounterPunch News Service, Fake Saddam Interview Put Out By Israel Lobby Catspaw…, CounterPunch, 29 March 2006.
- Brian Whitaker, Arabic under fire, The Guardian, 16 May 2007.
Known members
38 of the 116 of the members already have pages here:
| Member | Description |
|---|---|
| Keith B. Alexander | Chief of the NSA, now infamous for his mendacious denials regarding the illegal mass surveillance of US citizens. |
| John Ashcroft | US Attorney General on 9/11 |
| José María Aznar | Prime Minister of Spain 1996-2004, "If Israel goes down, we all go down", various deep state connections |
| Ehud Barak | Israeli spook who was Prime Minister of Israel from May 1999 to March 2001. Pal of Jeffrey Epstein. |
| John Bolton | Neocon US deep state operative who was Trump's National Security Advisor until September 2019 |
| Paul Bremer | Executive of Marsh & McLennan, a company whose offices were hit by a plane on 9/11, "Coordinator for Counterterrorism", Administrator of the Coalition Provisional Authority of Iraq ... |
| Edgar Bronfman | US businessman President of the World Jewish Congress 1979-2997 |
| Irwin Cotler | Canada's Minister of Justice and Attorney General of Canada 2003-2006. "Totally unabashed defender and supporter of Israel". Member of numerous spooky think-tanks. |
| Christopher DeMuth | President of the American Enterprise Institute. |
| Alan Dershowitz | A supporter of torture and legal defender of Jeffrey Epstein |
| Lincoln Díaz-Balart | Plays a prominent role in the Cuban-American lobby. Son of Rafael Díaz-Balart. |
| Stuart Eizenstat | US lawyer/diplomat and possible deep state operative |
| Douglas Feith | Undersecretary of Defense for Policy at the US pentagon on 9-11 |
| Jeffrey Gedmin | US spooky/hawkish neoconservative academic |
| Rohan Gunaratna | |
| Jane Harman | Ranking Democrat on the House Intelligence Committee and caught her coordinating with an Israeli agent. |
| Michael Hayden | US Spook, NSA Director 1999-2005, CIA Director 2006-2009, News Guard advisory board |
| Peter Hoekstra | |
| Richard Holbrooke | Bilderberg/Steering committee, deep state operative |
| Josef Joffe | Publisher-editor of Die Zeit |
| Max Kampelman | Neocon US arms negotiator with decades-long support for hardline "pro-Israel" advocacy groups |
| Jack Kemp | Closely associated with the hawkish wing of the Republican Party. |
| Jeane Kirkpatrick | Neocon "terror expert", US Ambassador to the UN, Washington Conference on International Terrorism... |
| Irving Kristol | "The Godfather of Neoconservatism" |
| Bernard Lewis | Spooky academic who attended the 1979 and 2002 Bilderbergs, as well as the Washington Conference on International Terrorism. |
| Michael Mukasey | A lawyer and former judge who was Attorney General of the US from 2007 to 2009. He was judge in the Larry Silverstein -v- Insurance companies post 9-11 litigation. |
| Norman Podhoretz | One of the founding fathers of the neoconservative movement |
| John Poindexter | US deep state operative involved in Iran Contra |
| Ileana Ros-Lehtinen | Exile-Cuban US politician |
| Dennis Ross | US diplomat, author, US Director of Policy Planning under GHWB |
| Natan Sharansky | Former dissident of the Soviet Union, neocon, Bilderberg, Le Cercle |
| Lamar Smith | Conservative Republican Congressman |
| Anne Speckhard | |
| George Weidenfeld | Bilderberger Member of the House of Lords whose name appeared in Jeffrey Epstein's Black book. Suspected UK deep state operative. |
| Elie Wiesel | "Chief Witness to The Holocaust" |
| James Q. Wilson | Provided guidance on how best to coordinate the national "war on drugs". |
| James Woolsey | Ex CIA director still (per 2020) very active in deep state networks. |
| Mort Zuckerman | Canadian billionaire media magnate |
Sponsors
| Event | Description |
|---|---|
| John M. Olin Foundation | Former (closed in 2005) "right-wing" grant-maker. CIA cut-out to select projects. |
| Lynde and Harry Bradley Foundation |
A document sourced from Middle East Media Research Institute
| Title | Type | Subject(s) | Publication date | Author(s) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Document:Iran - This Is How We'll Close The Strait of Hormuz | webpage | Strait of Hormuz | 28 December 2011 | MEMRI editorial staff |
References
- ↑ https://web.archive.org/web/20011206222409/http://www.forward.com/issues/2001/01.12.07/news7.html
- ↑ Profile of Meyrav Wurmser Right Web , cited 19 April 2006
- ↑ https://www.theguardian.com/world/2002/aug/12/worlddispatch.brianwhitaker
- ↑ https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2007/may/15/arabicunderfire
- ↑ https://www.jstor.org/stable/pdf/resrep31106.5.pdf quote="The group has an established reputation for distributing highly selective, distorted, and inaccurate translations of Arabic and Persian media"
- ↑ Fathi, Schirin (2010). Memri.org – A Tool of Enlightenment or Incitement? https://doi.org/10.5040%2F9780755610969 page 188-190
- ↑ [1], cited 20th April 2006
- ↑ [2], cited 21st April 2006
- ↑ https://apps.irs.gov/pub/epostcard/cor/522068483_201806_990_2019081616576820.pdf
- ↑ https://web.archive.org/web/20011206222409/http://www.forward.com/issues/2001/01.12.07/news7.html
- ↑ from Powerbase https://powerbase.info/index.php/Middle_East_Media_Research_Institute#Board_of_Directors
- ↑ https://www.memri.org/about
- ↑ Profile of Meyrav Wurmser Right Web , cited 19 April 2006
