Wednesday, February 18, 2009 at 4:53PM | in Religion An anatomy of sloppy journalism
Evidently, it is not only CNN that requires a more exacting standard of journalism... the Washington Post just published this appalling article today. It is riddled with errors and misrepresentation that I couldn't help but dissect, paragraph by paragraph (the quotations are my commentary).
Iran Accuses 7 Jailed Leaders of Bahai Faith of Espionage
By Thomas Erdbrink
Washington Post Foreign Service
Wednesday, February 18, 2009; Page A09
TEHRAN, Feb. 17 -- Seven leaders of the Bahai faith who have been detained for more than eight months in Iran have been officially accused of espionage, a spokesman for the Iranian judiciary said Tuesday.
The charges also included 'insulting religious sanctities' and 'propaganda against the Islamic republic'.
"Next week, an indictment will be issued and will be discussed in court," judiciary spokesman Alireza Jamshidi told reporters, according to the state-run Islamic Republic News Agency. The seven leaders were arrested in May, prompting international criticism of Iran for its treatment of Bahai followers.
Six of the seven were arrested in May. The seventh was arrested earlier, on 5 March 2008.
On Friday, in response to initial reports that the seven leaders would be charged with spying, U.S. State Department spokesman Robert Wood issued a statement condemning the leveling of "baseless charges" against the Bahai leaders. "The accusations reported in Iranian and international media are part of the ongoing persecution of Bahai in Iran," Wood said.
Bahai officials also said the Iranian detainees were innocent of the charges.
That is not, in fact, what the Baha'is said. Diane Ala'i, the spokeswoman for the Baha'i International Community, actually said: "The accusations are false, and the government knows this." The distinction is subtle, but important.
Saying the Baha'is are 'innocent' validates the act of charging the Baha'is, and is a gross understatement of the context in which these charges are made - namely, that the government has a policy oriented towards the suffocation of the Baha'i community and a pattern of action indicating that the policy is still in place.
Followers of the Bahai faith, an offshoot of Islam that originated in 19th-century Persia, say the Bahai founder is the final prophet, a distinction that Muslim scholars say should be reserved for the prophet Muhammad. Iranian officials do not recognize the Bahai faith as a religion, referring to it as an "organization."
The Baha'i Faith is not an offshoot of Islam - it is an independent world religion.
Baha'u'llah does not claim to be the final prophet - an essential tenet of Baha'i belief is that divine revelation will continue into the future.
There is no indication of which "Muslim scholars" are being referred to here. Although Muslims believe that Muhammad is the "seal of the prophets," there is also the expectation among Shia Muslims in Iran that the Hidden Imam will return with Jesus to herald a new age of peace and justice on earth.
Bahais claim 300,000 followers in Iran, but there are no independent statistics on the denomination's size in the country. The Islamic republic allows Christians, Jews and Zoroastrians, who are regarded as members of monotheistic religions, to hold religious gatherings.
Wednesday, February 18, 2009 at 4:53PM | in Religion 
Reader Comments (11)
Geoff, I just saw the link you posted to FB for this article, and after reading it, I just wanted to commend you on writing it, and defending Truth with your pen. There are many who now know the Baha'i Cause and its plight in Iran, but there are also some who do not know much about the Faith, and don't verify the info they get from wherever, and we have to be gentle with them, and patient, like a parent is with a child!!
Good analysis.
I would also add that the line "The Bahai headquarters is in Haifa, Israel, but the denomination says it has adherents in virtually every country" makes the Baha'is sound like a company which sets up bogus offices around the world for tax evasion. Why not just state the verifiable fact that there are established Baha'i communities in almost every country?
Could probably go on all day like this!
Thanks Ramin and Mike.
And Mike, of course I remember meeting you. Hope your health has improved!
Brilliantly submitted. I’ve said before you’d be a good journalist.
This is extremely shoddy journalism. Very disappointing. Where on earth did the writer get his facts from? He clearly hasn't bothered consulting a single Baha'i source or website, but even the encyclopaedias are more accurate than this!!! "Offshoot of Islam"??? No credible observer has used this belittling phrase for a long time. Having said that, the Channel 4 news excerpt yesterday opened with that very line - perhaps they sourced their information from the CNN article!
Sorry, I meant to say "Washington Post" article, not "CNN".
I know the journalist personally and know he is sympathetic to the baha'is. I pointed a few errors out to him and he gracefully acknowledged them. Some other points may be explained by him trying a bit too hard to be 'impartial'. I nevertheless thanked him for the publicity. Regardless what we may think of this particular piece, he is a sincere journalist and a highly important source on Iran for the Netherlands.
Thank you, Mr. Cameron. I was just sick when I read this errors in this article and couldn't believe it came from the Washington Post. In seeking some comfort, I found your response! I can only pray that the errors become the silver lining, can bring even more attention and some good through your efforts, and that of other truth seekers, and with the appropriate response from the Washington Post, to bring the truth to an ever brighter light. The Washington Post must realize the innocent lives they put in further danger when the evildoers start quoting from recognized American press sources! In addition to praying for these oppressed, I also pray for freedom of the press to become so responsible with their words that the oppressed will not feel left alone in the darkness, and the oppressors have nowhere to hide.
Thanks for all of your comments.
I should clarify that this post wasn't intended as a personal attack on the journalist. I'm sure his intentions are sincere.
What concerns me is the kind of pseudo-objectivity that some journalists seem to feel obliged to convey in their reporting. It is a 'show both sides' approach taken to an extreme, where the truth is irrelevant and the news is only a series of 'viewpoints'.
Journalists will never be objective. The best that they can do is try to overcome their own biases in their presentation of world events -- after all, isn't that the real purpose of the news? Overcoming bias involves meticulous research and an attempt to write about events with a discerning pen. Every word published by a journalist serves the purpose of conveying -- in whatever limited way -- the truth of events. If a statement is inaccurate, obscures the truth, or fails to illuminate the full context of the news, then it serves little purpose.
In the case of the Baha'is in Iran, the third-party documentation (in addition to the very reliable sources produced by the Baha'i community) is exhaustive and very very easy to access. The same can be said about the Baha'i religion itself. Despite all sympathies a journalist may have, I think s/he has an obligation -- first and foremost -- to conduct careful research, assess the matter with a searching eye, and then to guide the reader (who is most often less informed) into an accurate portrayal of the news.
To do otherwise is simply irresponsible.
Dear Geoff,
When I read the WP article the first time, I thought, OK here is a western journalist based in Washington, trying his best to write a piece (obviously to a deadline) on the persecution of a little-known religious minority in one of the axis of evil countries which has suppressed freedom of expression. In spite of the many inaccuracies, of which even I was aware and which you so eloquently pointed out, I thought the piece was rather sympathetic to the plight of the Baha'is in Iran. The article sounded not much different than many others I have read about the persecution of other minorities around the world (e.g. Kurds in Turkey, Ahmadis in Pakistan, etc.). After reading your masterful blog, however and the way you laid it out, I can now see a whole new standard of journalistic responsibility emerging and I also see how what passes for news can in some unexpected ways reinforce stereotypes and dampen zeal for change and justice. Now where do I turn for my news reading?
Thanks for your reflections, Michael.
I'm as big a fan of traditional newspapers as anyone, and I still get a lot of my news from the New York Times (website) and other reliable sources. However, this case illustrates that mainstream media can't take its public authority for granted.
The web opens new vistas for finding accurate reporting on many issues. If newspapers don't avail themselves of the enhanced research potential offered by the internet, they will simply be elbowed out by more specialized blogs and generic news aggregators.
The future for newspapers may be similar to the fate already suffered by many travel agents. As people can increasingly find the cheapest fares through a few hours of searching online, they find less and less use for travel agents. The only people using agents these days are large companies... and mainstream media may only survive in the future by providing contracted analysis for companies that need it.
If you want to know about the situation of the Baha'is in Iran, just go to the best sources:
www.iranpresswatch.com
www.bahairights.com
iran.bahai.us
news.bahai.org/human-rights/iran/iran-update/