Top Stories on Gaza
Last week, we teamed up with Link TV to focus on the war in Gaza, as fighting raged between Israeli and Palestinian forces. Our community set out to find original perspectives on this crisis from a variety of sources. With many journalists unable to cross the border into Gaza, even major media outlets had difficulty getting firsthand information, and many of the stories we reviewed were news analyses and opinions, rather than straight news reports.
Analysis
Our top stories came from a sampling of American and international, mainstream and independent sources. For news, several stories examined the divergent goals of Hamas and Israel -- and likely outcomes of this tragic conflict. The highest rated news stories came from the Christian Science Monitor and the Washington Post. Others looked at individual and group reactions to the fighting, like the LA Times' 'Israel's Gaza offensive stokes anger among Jordan elite' and Newsweek's 'Israeli, Palestinian blog jointly from Gaza border'.
Our partners at Link TV ran three news analyses on Gaza, all of which received high ratings from our members. The most recent Mosaic Intelligence Report, 'Gaza, Qaddafi, And Starbucks,' by Middle East program director Jamal Dajani, showcased the global protests against Israel's offensive. 'Gaza Media War' compared how international news networks had covered the conflict and how both sides featured propaganda in their reporting. And in 'Gaza: 14 days of horror,' Dajani, who reported from Israel, captured the devastation the conflict had inflicted on Palestinian civilians. On behalf of our community, thanks to Link TV for providing us with such superb, independent coverage.
Our most trusted opinion pieces on the war in Gaza were generally more supportive of Palestine and critical of Israel. Six of our top ten opinions denounced Israel's assault on Gaza, while one advocated it. We found three to be neutral, finding fault with both Israel and Hamas and recommending that each side make an effort to end the fighting.
In the one piece among our top rated opinions that favored Israel, 'Why Israel can't make peace with Hamas,' author Jeffrey Goldberg argued that neither war nor diplomacy with Hamas will lead to a solution; rather, international cooperation and support for Fatah is the only feasible path to peace. Pro-Palestinian stories tended to focus on the civilian casualties and destruction in Gaza, criticizing Israel for responding "disproportionately" and demanding an immediate troop withdrawal (see 'Eyeless in Gaza' and 'Tom Friedman offers a perfect definition of terrorism'). Some of the neutral stories we reviewed called for the United States to reconsider its current relations with Israel and for the Jewish community to be more understanding of Palestinian viewpoints (see 'Obama must get tough with Israel to achieve peace,' 'British Jews and Israel: a new relationship?,' and 'Humanitarian crisis deepens in Gaza').
Top Stories on Gaza
Here's a list of our top rated news and opinion on the war in Gaza:
News
American Media
Independent Sources
Gaza Media War
Global Pulse, Link TV
Gaza, Qaddafi, and Starbucks
Link TV
Gaza: 14 days of horror
Link TV
Palestinian Astrophysicist in US recounts how his 11-year-old son died when Israeli warplanes bombed his family's house
Democracy Now
Imagine a war in Los Angeles with armor, jets, artillery
Informed Comment: Global Affairs
Mainstream Sources
In Gaza, weighing crimes and ethics in urban warfare
New York Times
Israel's Gaza offensive stokes anger among Jordan elite
Los Angeles Times
Israeli, Palestinian blog jointly from Gaza border
Newsweek
What's the endgame for Israel and Hamas in Gaza?
Christian Science Monitor
Offensive unlikely to put end to Hamas, Israel says
Washington Post
International Media
Israel pushes further into Gaza
Aljazeera
Welcome to Hell: Gaza's unending misery
The Independent
Fresh evidence of Israeli phosphorus use in Gaza emerges
The Guardian
Opinion
Pro-Palestinian Views
Eyeless in Gaza
New York Review of Books
Israel should stop the war and let US enjoy the inauguration
Informed Comment
It's time for the U.N. to impose tough sanctions on Israel
McClatchy
Tom Friedman offers a perfect definition of "terrorism"
Salon
Go your own way
Haaretz
Palestine: Israeli troops enter residential areas of Gaza city
Global Voices
Neutral Views
Obama must get tough with Israel to achieve peace
Newsweek
British Jews and Israel: a new relationship?
The Guardian
Humanitarian crisis deepens in Gaza
Radio Free Europe
Pro-Israeli Views
Why Israel can't make peace with Hamas
New York Times
Top rated stories on the War in Gaza (full list)
Top stories from the War in Gaza News Hunt (full list)
Thanks to our partners and hosts
We're very grateful to our partners at Link TV for inviting their viewers to participate in this News Hunt on the war in Gaza, and wish to give special thanks to Kim Spencer, Jamal Dajani, Evelyn Messinger, Hannah Eaves, Heidi Blobaum and David Michaelis for taking the time to support this partnership, despite their busy schedules. It was a pleasure working with the Link TV team to extend their outstanding coverage of this crisis with more quality journalism on the Middle East. Many thanks as well to the team at Yahoo News for featuring our news feed on their Mideast Crisis page, which brought in more than 13,000 visits this month. We are delighted to welcome so many new reviewers to our site, and look forward to working with you all to find more quality journalism together in the coming year.
Thanks as well to our wonderful hosts, Marsha Iverson and Mike LaBonte, for leading the way and looking below the radar to find quality news and opinion on this important and challenging topic. Your work is an inspiration to all of us.
This week: The Obama Administration
This week, our featured topic is the Obama Administration. As the world celebrates Obama's inauguration, how are news media covering the new administration? Can his agenda for change restore global confidence in the United States? Does his administration have what it takes to solve the serious challenges facing the nation and the world? We're seeking voices from inside and outside Washington, and viewpoints from all parts of the political spectrum. Help us review original news and opinion about this historic development on our Obama Administration topic page.
-- By Derek Hawkins, with Fabrice Florin and Kaizar Campwala
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