I am writing about the news article written by Dmitry Shapiro (“Bill Clinton caught criticizing Netanyahu,” WJW, Sept. 25). The word “caught” in the headline says a great deal about what Washington Jewish Week calls news, as opposed to opinion. The concept of “caught” suggests that our former national leader was doing something wrong when he and an unknown man had a conversation that was recorded on video in which former President Clinton expresses the view, held by many in the U.S. and around the world, that Benjamin Netanyahu is not a reliable partner in the quest for peace with the Palestinians. It is noteworthy that Shapiro did not ask Hillary Clinton about her views but, using innuendo, painted her as an unreliable ally of Israel. Hmmm. I recall a man named Senator Joseph McCarthy who used similar techniques.
Shapiro’s “news” article cites Jennifer Rubin as a source without identifying her as a Republican blogger and ends by noting the gaffe of Joe Biden at a Legal Services Conference. It is difficult to escape the impression that Shapiro is a partisan Republican.
When a journalist has a bias, the appropriate place for the opinion piece is on a page clearly identified as such.
SUZAN WYNNE
Silver Spring
