69 million page views

clearly prejudiced

Reader comment on item: Fox Broadcasting Semi-Caves to CAIR
in response to reader comment: ISLAM

Submitted by frank tamborello (United States), Feb 14, 2007 at 18:04

Do you know any Muslim families? Since many Americans don't, do you not think that shows like 24 could potentially incite violence against Muslim families? Or do you, too, believe that all Muslim families are terrorists?

This country has a history of stereotyping groups and they then become victims of violence. Do you believe in shouting "fire" in a crowded theater? I'm not saying events such as portrayed in "24" couldn't happen. But you obviously don't understand that TV is not real life: that what TV does is take a particular portrayal, pull it out of context from the real world, and then package it in such a way that audiences will react to it without considering the entire possible surrounding real world context (e.g., the fact that there could actually be Muslims who are not terrorists.)

Since you don't understand this, you will think of yourself as a hero who "tells it like it is". Maybe you don't realize that all the story isn't being told. If you are a white American, do you believe there should be a show about your ancestors who took part in lynchings? Would you be proud of that, and would you approve of a TV show that regularly portrayed whites only as lynch mobs, without any portrayal of whites in any other context? Unless one belongs to a group that has been demonized----Muslims, gays, immigrants, Jews----one doesn't understand the feelings created by portrayals like this. So, my guess is that you are not part of any of those groups and are living in a self-satisfied bubble: nay, you are living in a world where your freedom to demonize others is threatened by their insistence on defending themselves.

Submitting....

Note: Opinions expressed in comments are those of the authors alone and not necessarily those of Daniel Pipes. Original writing only, please. Comments are screened and in some cases edited before posting. Reasoned disagreement is welcome but not comments that are scurrilous, off-topic, commercial, disparaging religions, or otherwise inappropriate. For complete regulations, see the "Guidelines for Reader Comments".

<< Previous Comment      Next Comment >>

Reader comments (5) on this item

Title Commenter Date Thread
Consider me behind the game plan here... [327 words]Robert HantsonApr 2, 2009 16:47153212
So which is it? [77 words]Whitey McWhiteWhiteFeb 20, 2007 01:2177996
24 shows Muslim family for what they are: terrorists [95 words]Joanna BoldonJan 17, 2007 17:2073368
ISLAM [36 words]MICHAEL L. FOGARTYJul 25, 2006 13:5050812
clearly prejudiced [284 words]frank tamborelloFeb 14, 2007 18:0450812

Follow Daniel Pipes

Facebook   Twitter   RSS   Join Mailing List

All materials by Daniel Pipes on this site: © 1968-2024 Daniel Pipes. daniel.pipes@gmail.com and @DanielPipes

Support Daniel Pipes' work with a tax-deductible donation to the Middle East Forum.Daniel J. Pipes

(The MEF is a publicly supported, nonprofit organization under section 501(c)3 of the Internal Revenue Code.

Contributions are tax deductible to the full extent allowed by law. Tax-ID 23-774-9796, approved Apr. 27, 1998.

For more information, view our IRS letter of determination.)