NPR, Gaza & Israel

NCPR station manager Ellen Rocco just forwarded to me an essay written by NPR’s Ombudsman, Alicia Shepard, wrestling with coverage of the Israel-Palestine conflict.

I’ve had only one call about this — a listener convinced that NCPR shares a pro-Palestinian bias — but I thought the column offered some interesting insight into how we try to cover these enduring conflicts.

NPR reporters do not have an agenda or take sides other than to report the facts on the ground, said Loren Jenkins, NPR’s foreign editor. He added that NPR also tries to report the broader context of any conflict as well as the interests of other nations, beginning with the U.S.

“You strive to be balanced, saying the Israelis say this and people in Gaza say this,” said Jenkins. “But because each side in a conflict puts their own spin on it, good reporting demands a certain amount of skepticism which is best expressed in believing what you can personally see and learn rather than what you are told.

What do you think? Is NPR finding a good, accurate balance? Read the full column here.