New mainstream media tactic: ignore responses from counter-jihadists, then claim they didn't respond

From Jihad Watch / Posted by Robert Spencer

Over the years at Jihad Watch I've exposed many "journalists" who are in the tank for Islamic supremacists, including Niraj Warikoo, Michael Kruse, Kari Huus, and many, many others -- but this latest tactic to abet the defamation of counter jihadists is something new. "SI Advance Lies to Readers to Advance Hamas: Maura Grunlund Was Unavailable for Comment," by Pamela Geller at Atlas Shrugs, September 22:

It has become a pattern in the mainstream media: if they don't like what I say, if it makes too much sense for them or they can't spin it in a negative enough light, they pretend I didn't say it at all. Edith Honan of Reuters did the same thing recently. 

Yesterday Maura Grunlund of the Staten Island Advance sent me this email:

Dear Pamela: Will the “savage” ads be appearing on Staten Island? Is it true that you opposed the proposed MAS center in Midland Beach on Staten Island? What response do you have to the following comments by Hesham El-Meligy of Staten Island?

This is the same fascist group that sabotaged the Midland Beach Mosque process. 

The 2 partners/founders of that fascist hate group are Pamela Geller and Robert Spencer who on June 6, 201 organized a rally at Ground Zero against the Park 51 Community Center that was attended by all text book nut cases.  Two extremist Egyptian Christians attended to support and film the rally, but were almost killed by the crowd thinking they are Muslims because of the way they looked and spoke.  Three days later, they bussed in large numbers to attend and sabotage the Midland Beach Civic Association Meeting that was designed to allow the community to meet the people of MAS and get to know them.  Long before the meeting, this fascist group bombarded the area with flyers and emails containing all kinds of islamophobic material, such as the last thing the terrorist said before striking the twin towers was Allah Akbar.  That flyer had an image of the burning twin towers.  They had established relations with some of the most hateful from the area who were manning the microphone that night and allowed 

Robert Spencer to be the first one to ask questions and he took 10 full minutes.  

Robert Spencer does not in New York State, let alone NYC.  I saw him with Pamela Geller and Frank Santarpia (the head of the Staten Island Tea Party) after the meeting was ended as if they were cheering each other on a job well done.

I sent her back this answer yesterday:

Dear Pamela: Will the “savage” ads be appearing on Staten Island?
We plan to roll them out everywhere we can.

Is it true that you opposed the proposed MAS center in Midland Beach on Staten Island?

Yes. The MAS is a Muslim Brotherhood entity. The Brotherhood is dedicated in its own words, according to a captured internal document, to "eliminating and destroying Western civilization from within and sabotaging its miserable house."

What response do you have to the following comments by Hesham El-Meligy of Staten Island?

Smears and defamation. It's "fascist" now to stand against the murders of innocent civilians, and to defend the freedom of speech, the freedom of conscience, and the equality of rights of all people before the law?

But in the story below, Maura Grunlund writes: "Ms. Geller, who didn't respond to a request for comment..."

So I sent this to her a short while ago:

"Ms. Geller, who didn't respond to a request for comment,"

Below is the my email responded to your request for comment 9/21/12.

You lied. Does your editor know you are deceiving your readers? Why wouldn't you publish my response? You should lose your press credentials. 

Your answer will be published.

Maura Grunlund's email is mauragrunlund@siadvance.com. The paper's contact link is http://www.statenislandadvance.com/index.html. Write to both and let them know what you think of their style of "journalism": ignoring responses from people they don't like and advancing Hamas' agenda.

Staten Island spokespersons respond to 'Savage' anti-Muslim ads scheduled to appear in subway stations Maura Grunlund, Staten Island Advance, September 22

STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. -- "Savage" anti-Jihad ads are bringing the politics of religion in the Middle East and North Africa speeding into New York City faster than the subway trains on which they'll be seen, starting Monday.

The ads are sponsored by Pamela Geller, an anti-Muslim blogger (Atlasshrugs2000.typepad.com) who opposed the Muslim American Society (MAS) in its unsuccessful attempt to open a center in Midland Beach -- although the MAS ultimately established its current location in Dongan Hills.

Note again the savage defamation of the term "anti-Muslim." This is tantamount to painting a target on my back, and Maura Grunlund knows it. My work is not anti- any group of people, and to portray it as such is to serve the Islamic supremacist propaganda agenda of portraying it as "racist." What race is jihad terror against innocent civilians? My work is in defense of freedom of speech, freedom of conscience and equality of rights for all against a violent and repressive ideology that denies all three. Muslims as well as non-Muslims would benefit if free societies prevail over the Islamic supremacist imperative to impose Sharia.

Ms. Geller also was one of the people who protested passionately against the Park51 Community Center and Muslim prayer space now located near the 9/11 World Trade Center site in Manhattan.

The protest was never against a "Muslim prayer space" being "located near the 9/11 World Trade Center site." The protest was against a multistory triumphal mosque being built at Ground Zero. And we stopped it; it has not been built. If the Islamic supremacists start to build it, we will be there.

Meanwhile, Ms. Geller's infamous "savage" ads that are headed to New York City have sparked widespread controversy for their use on public transit in San Francisco, Calif. Ms. Geller also has filed suit to post the ads in the public transit system in Washington, D.C.

The Metropolitan Transportation Authority initially refused to run Geller's ad but has no choice because U.S. District Court Judge Paul Engelmayer ruled that is protected speech under the First Amendment, according to the Associated Press.

As a result, Ms. Geller reportedly plans to post ads with the following statements in 10 New York City subway stations: "In any war between the civilized man and the savage, support the civilized man. Support Israel. Defeat Jihad."

"We recognize the freedom of speech, and her right to be a bigot and racist, but we also recognize the responsibility of New Yorkers to denounce that bigotry," said Awad, referring to the ads.

Ms. Geller, who didn't respond to a request for comment, alleges on her blog that CAIR is connected to HAMAS and the Muslim Brotherhood. She points to CAIR's status as an unindicted co-conspirator in a U.S. Department of Justice prosecution of the Holy Land Foundation for Relief and Development where five former foundation leaders were convicted in 2008 of funneling millions of dollars to HAMAS.

Awad described Ms. Geller's comments about CAIR as "arguably one of the most poorly thought-out conspiracy theories of the year.

"Geller has invested her time and energy into resuscitating attention on CAIR as an unindicted co-conspirator, an issue that has already been settled by the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals and the Department of Justice in CAIR's favor."

Awad is lying. Actually, the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals did not remove the unindicted co-conspirator designation. It just said that it shouldn't have been made public. This has been public knowledge for almost two years; why couldn't Maura Grunlund find it? And why doesn't she mention any of this? According to Robert Spencer, "CAIR operatives have repeatedly refused to denounce Hamas and Hizballah as terrorist groups....Several former CAIR officials have been convicted of various crimes related to jihad terror, and...CAIR’s cofounder and longtime Board chairman (Omar Ahmad), as well as its chief spokesman (Ibrahim Hooper), have made Islamic supremacist statements....CAIR’s California chapter distributed posters telling Muslims not to talk to the FBI."