Pakistan bashing by Mr. Gibson & Guests on FoxNews goes on
Date:
Fri, 5 Oct 2001 18:12:PM
Dear Mr. Gibson
I am dismayed by the continuing Pakistan bashing on your show. We are facing a war on terrorism in which a past US ally, Pakistan, is going to be a central figure. This past DEDICATED ally has been used, abused and dumped in the past by the US (in the 50's, 60's, 70's, 80's and 90's - do you see a pattern here?) so one would assume you would want your viewers (the American public whose lives have been put at risk when the reaction to foolish or unjust policies has struck inside the homeland) to understand the truth and the reality. Yet that does not seem to be of interest to your program.
Once again FoxNews is airing the "views" of a certain Haron Amir, representing the Northern Alliance of Afghanistan. This was a gang of internal-strife driven tribes, who have support of the ex-Soviet states, the same people whom the US spent $6 BILLION (and used Pakistan) to defeat. For SIX YEARS after the Soviet defeat they continue to oversee a flourishing HEROIN trade (something even the Taliban do not do), they continued to destroy their own cities and kill their own citizens. Afghan women were repressed, and did not suddenly become illiterate in five years of Taliban rule....they were repressed and victimized as part of the civil war from before the Taliban even came on the scene.
Now, Haron Amir, and you, would have the public believe that Pakistan (that was used by the US to fight its proxy war and train the freedom fighters vs. the Soviets) is the root of all the problems and the Norther Alliance are the saviours of the land they did more to destroy than even the Soviets could.
I have made several personal efforts to convey to you the availability of objective recognized media analysts, like myself, who have been on CNN and other media outlets, and published in the Wall Street Journal, etc. to help your audience understand what the ground realities are.
A semblance of objective and balanced journalism could be maintained even by having someone from the Pakistan Embassy in Washington respond to the mindless, baseless and groundless accusations of a representative of a coterie of armed gangs calling itself the Northern Alliance and the "saviour" of the very Afghan people it destroyed for years before the Taliban ever came on the scene.
In the face of this unabashed Pakistan-bashing by the likes of Mr. Haron Amir, or others who have not been within 1000 miles of Pakistan or Afghanistan, the Pakistani, Muslim and others in your audience will simply have to assume that there is no interest on your part to provide balanced, much less accurate, perspectives to your readers that Fox News claims in its advertising. At the very least perhaps you can put up an "explicit lyrics" type warning stating "Objectivity Advisory: Pakistan bashing ahead."
If there is anything I can do to still help you provide reality-based, objective, perspective on what combined religious/political challenges will be faced, and possibly avoid an escalating or explosive situation worsened by misunderstandings or myths produced and perpetuated by the media, please feel free to call me at any time, at (phone number provided).
PS. You will surely forgive me for making this letter open to the public so that the world knows how seriously we tried to get Fox News, and especially your show, to exercise objective journalism.
No response ever received, please take it upon yourself to contact the FoxNews Editors to fight this Pakistan bashing.