CBS and NBC have refused to air a provocative ad from the confrontational, well-funded National Republican Trust PAC that calls on Americans to oppose the building of a mosque two blocks from the World Trade Center site. The ad — which has about 100,000 views on YouTube — intersperses some of the most horrifying images from the Sept. 11 attacks with the sounds of Muslim prayer and images of Muslim militants. It focuses on what’s become a divisive — and partisan — issue in New York state, the erection of a Muslim cultural center on Park Place, in the neighborhood near the fallen towers.
Smith also includes a statement from NBC Universal advertising standards manager Jennifer Riley:
“An ad questioning the wisdom of building a mosque at ground zero would meet our issues of public controversy advertising criteria. However, this ad which ambiguously defines ‘they’ as referenced in the spot makes it unclear as to whether the reference is to terrorists or to the Islamic religious organization that is sponsoring the building of the mosque. Consequently, the ad is not acceptable under our guidelines for broadcast.”
NBC is saying it’s unfair to conflate those who are building the ground zero mosque with Islamic extremists. But is it? The Imam behind the Ground Zero Islamic center and mosque, Feisal Abdul Rauf, once said about the 9/11 terror attacks, “the United States policies were an accessory to the crime that happened.” Sounds like he’s holding the United States partially responsible for 9/11. Furthermore, the New York Post reported last month that Imam Rauf was tied to last month’s flotilla that tried to break Israel’s blockade of Hamas-run Gaza (for those of you who remember pre-Obama America, Israel is historically one of our closest allies).
So maybe ambiguously conflating Islamic extremists with those behind the Ground Zero mosque is precisely the right way to handle it. But the supine MSM, incapable of a deep thought when it comes to radical Islam, cowed, and if this mosque goes up desecrating sacred ground, they’ll be an “accessory to the crime.”
COMMENTS
Please let us know if you're having issues with commenting.