Executive Summary
The following conclusions were drawn from three roundtables of prominent Israeli, Palestinian and Italian journalists held in Jerusalem under the auspices of the PalestineIsrael Journal (PIJ) and the Veneto Region, in the context of the Peace Education through Media (PET-Med, www.pet-medproject.eu) project held with the support of the EU’s “Partnership for Peace Project.” During periods of war and violent conflict, the function of the print and electronic med dia to narrate and disseminate information to the public is all the more crucial. The escalation or diminishing of violence, the very outcome of war and policy decisions, and the trends in public opinion, can be greatly influenced by the manner in which journalists report and present sides of the conflict. The outcome of the Israel-
Palestine conflict is especially dependent on media shaping, because a majority of those with a stake in the conflict, both in the region and the world, depend on the media in order to understand, create policy, and react to what happens in this region. Issues that arise concerning media conduct and coverage in conflict situations include the media’s role as a reflection of reality and public opinion, the degree to which media is a conduit for government policy, the degree to which commercial considerations may influence coverage, media function within the context of Israeli or Palestinian narratives and, amid prevalent biases within each society, the possible degree to which media may exacerbate tendencies toward violence, and the extent to which the Internet and digital media tools have changed the rules of the game.
Download Link: PIJ Peace Education Through Media Guidelines for Media Professionals Covering the Israeli-Palestinian Conflict, January 2012