Obsession DVD: Who Put Hate in My Sunday Paper?

http://www.theamericanmuslim.org/

Obsession DVD: Who Put Hate in My Sunday Paper?

by Omid Safi

Uncovering the Israeli-Republican-Evangelical Networks behind the “Obsession” DVD

Something strange has been showing up inside the Sunday newspapers of millions of Americans the past few weeks. The material being included alongside comics, coupons, and advertisement for local stores is a controversial DVD called “Obsession: Radical Islam’s War Against the West.” Some 28 million copies of this DVD have been distributed for free so far in this fashion. In some ways the scale of this campaign, and its ideological venom, are unprecedented: many newspapers state that they had never previously distributed free DVDs as inserts, certainly nothing with such a charged content. The copies were distributed not randomly across the country, but in the “swing states” (Florida, Pennsylvania, Ohio, Michigan, Wisconsin, Iowa, Colorado, etc.) that are seen as a toss-up in the November Presidential elections between McCain and Obama. Obviously, someone is trying to influence the American electorate by playing on fear-mongering and hate-mongering themes. But who? Who is behind this massive, multi-million dollar campaign?

Answering that question proved harder than one might think, as the groups behind this DVD have worked hard to hide their tracks. The connections, which are partially concealed in the DVD and the distribution campaign, take one from groups in Israel, to pro-Israel lobby organizations in the United States, to Christian evangelical groups, and to Neoconservative think-tanks.

The “facts” presented by Obsession have already been refuted in several detailed presentations. For example, see the work of Obsessionwithhate.com and that of Sheila Musaji, as well as Altmuslim.com. Therefore, I am not going to make a point by point refutation of the contents of the DVD. My intention is to explore the networks that are behind the production and distribution of this DVD, with their clear goal of influencing the 2008 Presidential elections towards John McCain.

***

All politics is local, as well as global. That is particularly the case here. The distribution of the DVD affected me and my family at an intimate local level: up to 160,000 copies of this propaganda piece were distributed through our local community in North Carolina. The newspaper of the nearby city of Charlotte, distributed another 200,000 copies.

Upon contacting the local newspaper, the Raleigh-based News and Observer, and asking why such a hateful piece of propaganda was being distributed for free to all the subscribers, the response of the paper was less than impressive. Jim McClure, vice president of display advertising for The News and Observer, said: “Obviously, we have distributed other product samples, whether it’s cereal or toothpaste.”

Really? Is this where we are? That a DVD which includes 77 minutes of propaganda footage slicing together videos of violent Muslims with those of Nazis, suggesting that Muslims are out to destroy Western civilization, is comparable to cereal and toothpaste? Puhleeze…

The claims of the DVD, which claims to be an educational product and part of a non-profit production, are as follows:

*That the world stands today as it did in 1938. Radical Islam is as great, if not greater, of a threat than the Nazis presented to the world. And action [not specified] must be taken.

*That the attacks in Iraq, Palestine, Chechnya, and Iran present a global Muslim conspiracy against Israel and “The West.”

*A distinctive feature of the DVD is in fact the linking together of threat of radical Islam with passionate defense of Israel. Most of the figures who are paraded in the DVD, whether they are Jewish, Christian, or Muslim, are all passionate pro-Israel speakers who have a long legacy of speaking against Palestinians, Arabs, and Muslims in general.

The list includes such luminaries as:

• “Former PLO Terrorist Who Speaks Out For Israel”, Walid Shoebat, who claims to have been a “former Islamic terrorist” turned Christian Evangelical Zionist. Never mind that the Jerusalem Post has already dismissed the factuality of his claims.

• Nonie Darwish, with the tell-all website: http://www.arabsforisrael.com/ “Arabs for Israel”? Darwish also neglects to mention that she is another ex-Muslim turned both Christian and ardent supporter of Israel. In a world when virtually all Arabs and most Muslims view the Palestinian/Israeli tragedy as the burning political and moral issue of our time, how many Arabs in the world can be claimed as being passionate supporters of Israel?

• Carline Glick, a member of Israel On Campus Coalition.

• Daniel Pipes. If the Pro-Israel/Neo-conservative unholy alliance had a poster-child, Pipes would be it. Pipes is the most noted Islamophobe operating in the US. Pipes is also the Director of a Pro-Israel entity called “The Middle East Forum.” As for his one-sided commitment to Israel credentials, suffice it to say that he is the 2006 recipient of the “Guardian of Zion” award.

One could go on and on, but the above should give some indication that contrary to what the Clarion Fund claims on its website, the “experts” paraded on TV are not impartial and objective. They have a definite point of view, a passionate defense of Israel at all cost, even if that cost happens to be truth and facts.

Who Made this DVD?

Let’s come back to the claim of the local newspaper, that the distribution of this product is qualitatively no different than putting a free sample of toothpaste in the Sunday paper. For the sake of argument, let us take that analogy and go with it. How many of us would receive an unmarked package of toothpaste, and brush our teeth with it if it carries no label, no description of who has made it, and no account of whether any agency has vouched for its safety? If we do not take unmarked material to our teeth, why would we take a product like Obsession which refuses to disclose the network behind it into our hearts, into our schools, synagogues, mosques, churches, and civic institutions?

The Obsession DVD states that it is made by “Clarion Fund”. What does the Clarion Fund stand for? And who exactly are they? Their intentions are made a bit clearer through the use of their registered website: http://www.radicalislam.org. What exactly does “radical Islam” constitute? Who stands for it, and who opposes it? We are not told, aside from this: “Radical Islam poses a significant threat to the Western way of life. The Islamists’ ultimate aim is conversion and domination of the West, which they see as the root of all evil that must be eradicated.” This type of labeling without defining is as unhelpful as accusations of “Communist” in the 1950’s, or “unpatriotic” and “un-American” more recently. It is a catch-all, bogey man argument that is masquerading as analysis.

Who has produced the Obsession DVD? On the Obsession The Movie website, the producer is identified as Raphael Shore, who “is a documentary producer and founder of Clarion Fund, Inc., a new non-profit organization dedicated to educating the public about national security threats.” Very well. So Raphael Shore is the founder of Clarion Fund, and the producer of Obsession. But who is Raphael Shore? This required a good bit of background research:

Raphael Shore and Aish HaTorah

Raphael Shore is part of a missionary Israeli “Jewish penitent” (baal teshuva) group, called Aish HaTorah (“Fire of the Torah”, whose mission has been to call “assimilated” Jews back to Judaism. They have been given 40% of the land in front of the “Western Wall” in Jerusalem by the Israeli government. In other words, they are very good terms with the Israeli regime, which is responsible for the demolishing of homes, non-issuing of building permits, and occupation in Palestine. Their founder, Rabbi Noah Weinberg has received recognition from the mayor of Jerusalem.

When we dig a bit deeper, it turns out that Raphael Shore, a Canadian rabbi, is also the director of the International wing of Aish HaTorah. His business card is available as a PDF on line:

Rabbi Raphael Shore

Director, Aish HaTorah International
Outreach Programs

One Western Wall Plaza
Old City, Jerusalem
Israel, 97500

So does this Obsession DVD fall within the purview of Aish HaTorah’s “outreach”? Given the intertwined nature of the political and the religious in Israel, it seems that Aish HaTorah has gone from evangelizing to Jews to waging a global propaganda campaign against Islam and Muslims, while also working hard to cover its tracks, as we shall see.

The connections between Aish HaTorah and Clarion Fund go even deeper. According to the paperwork filed with the Delaware state authorities, Clarion uses the same address as Aish HaTorah in New York. In 2006, the two directors of the Clarion Fund were Rabbi Shore and Jacob Fetman, who was also Aish HaTorah’s Chief Financial Officer. In 2007, it had three directors: Rabbi Shore, Rabbi Harris (who is the educational director for Aish HaTorah), and Rebecca Kabat, another Aish HaTorah employee.

The Israeli paper Haaretz noted that the Obsession DVD “has a largely Jewish and pro-Israel distribution network, though Shore is trying to expand the film’s appeal.” As we shall see, this he accomplished by reaching out to Neoconservatives and Christian Zionists, but first some more on the film’s Pro-Israel distribution network.

Hasbara Fellowship and Honestreporting.com

Raphael Shore is also the director of Hasbara Fellowships, a group with the transparent website: http://www.israelactivism.com/ Here there is another connection to Aish HaTorah, as Hasbara is part of the Aish HaTorah network. And their activism on behalf of Israel is worn like a badge of honor.

The pattern is beginning to become clearer: how is it that a group with the stated goal of “Israel activism” is placing 28 million copies of a DVD warning Americans about the danger of “radical Islam”? In many of the screenings of this DVD, the audience was required to sign up for receiving material from the israelactivism.com website. How come 70 US newspapers accepted this DVD without doing the basic research to uncover the source (and prejudice) of this propaganda?

Hasbara Fellowship’s own websites includes the following pieces of information about their genealogy and mission. All of the following are direct quotes:
• “Hasbara Fellowships, a program spearheaded by Aish International, educates and trains university students to be effective pro-Israel activists on their campuses.”

>In other words, they freely acknowledge the link to Aish HoTorah International.

• “Started in 2001 in conjunction with Israel’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Hasbara Fellowships brings hundreds of students to Israel every summer and winter.”

>This is perhaps the most intriguing connection and startling confession, that Hasbara has a direct connection to the Israeli regime’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs, which acts as the official and national propaganda center for the Israeli state. To recapitulate, there is a direct link between the Obsession DVD and the Israeli state through Hasbara Fellowship.

• ”So far, Hasbara Fellowships has trained over 1,400 students on over 250 campuses, providing its participants with the information, tools, resources, and confidence to return to their campuses as leaders in the fight for Israel’s image.”

>This points to the acknowledgement that the struggle over Palestine/Israel is going to be fought—rhetorically, one hopes—on college campuses. In fact, college campuses formed the primary site of the distribution of the Obsession DVD before the newspaper campaign. The primary audience on college campuses have been Jewish organizations (like Hillel) and College Republicans. We will come back to this connection between Jewish groups and Republicans later. Shore himself has stated that: “The evangelical Christians and the Jews tend to be the softest market…”.

Raphael Shore has previously written at length about his passionate advocacy on behalf of Israel on the pages of Aish HaTorah’s newsletter. His earlier works had been produced alongside an entity called “Honestreporting.com”, with a self-description as follows: “Israel is in the midst of a battle for public opinion – waged primarily via the media. To ensure Israel is represented fairly and accurately ‘HonestReporting’ monitors the media, exposes cases of bias, promotes balance, and effects change through education and action.” In other words, http://www.honestreporting.com sees itself as a media advocacy organization on behalf of Israel, with the requisite “Fair and Balanced” claims. Honestreporting.com has worked with Clarion Fund and Aish HaTorah in producing more pro-Israel material. And it is a family affair: the founder of Honestreporting is Rabbi Raphael Shore’s twin brother, Ephraim Shore. [Ironically, Raphael was so concerned that his brother had become involved with Aish HaTorah that in 1992 he went to Israel to “rescue” his brother from he seems to have regarded as a “big hoax”, and a cult-like milieu. Instead, Raphael too became part of Aish HaTorah!]

Haaretz reported that “Obsession” is described as “Honest Reporting’s newest documentary film.” Honestreporting.com’s own website confirms this: “HonestReporting is proud to have been a former marketing partner during the initial production of this award-winning documentary.”

Shore, recognizing that the credibility of his propaganda would be undermined if its correction to Israeli-spin organizations were revealed, told Haaretz (in an unusually frank slip) that they “have told Honest Reporting to take it off their site ‘a dozen times.’” The connections between Obsession and Israeli groups like Aish HaTorah and Jewish advocacy groups on behalf of Israel like Hasbara Fellowship and Honestyreporting.com is beyond dispute. The producers of the documentary just don’t want you to know about it.

One of the other elements that the producers of the Obsession DVD may not want you to know about is their political agenda. The article read: “McCain’s policies seek to confront radical Islamic extremism and terrorism and roll it back while [Barack] Obama’s, although intending to do the same, could in fact make the situation facing the West even worse.”

The spokesperson for the Clarion Fund, Gregory Ross, did not deny that this article had appeared on their site, he was only upset that they had been caught with it! The Clarion Fund has been established as a 501(c)3 non-profit organization. These types of non-profit organizations are not to endorse one political candidate over another, precisely what Clarion seems to have done, and is now busy hiding its track records. NPR reported on this, and the possibility of a forthcoming FEC probe.

Who is paying for the “Obsession Project”?

We do not know for sure, and the Clarion Fund people are not saying. They admit that the names they give for the funders on their material are bogus aliases. Shore states that 80% of the funding for the Obsession DVD has come from one source, a “Peter Mier”. Yet he goes on to say that these are just aliases! In other words, it is hard to know for sure who is paying for the production and even more importantly the distribution of what the Endowment for Middle East Truth (EMET), the main distributor for Obsession, refers to as the “Obsession Project.”

Given that EMET estimates that this project cost tens of millions of dollars, the signs seem to point to none other than Sheldon Adelson, the Jewish Republican billionaire, discussed below.

Who Distributes the DVD?

According the New York Times, when Shore and Co. could not find any traditional distributor for their propaganda, they formulated a strategy of working with Neo-Conservative organizations like Heritage, College Republicans, and above all, Jewish organizations.

NPR has reported that an organization called Endowment for Middle East Truth (EMET), is also responsible for distribution of the Obsession DVD. Like Honestreporting.com, the “Middle East Truth” being bandied about here is yet another self-described Zionist/pro-Israel understanding of the reality whose policies are in line with Likud militant expansionism, with the stated mission of support for Israel, and opposing any “concessions” from Israel as part of a peace agreement with Palestinians, even the withdrawal from the occupied territory of Gaza. The positions of EMET are the positions of Likud party in Israel, and that of the illegal Settler movement. It was EMET that on March 25th, 2008 sponsored a showing of Obsession on Capitol Hill.

Endowment for Middle East Truth (EMET),http://www.emetonline.org/ - ,
the distributor for Obsession, also has an open connection to the Republican Party, which they flaunt on their website: “EMET was also requested to help the Republican Policy Committee with a Sense of the Congress resolution talking about Israel’s inherent right to defend itself…” In other words, Clarion Fund claims to be non-political, but uses a pro-Israel ally of Republicans to distribute its product.

Leading the work of this Endowment has been Sarah Stern, who formerly worked as the National Policy Coordinator for the Zionist Organization of America and later on served as the Director of the Office of Legislative and Governmental Affairs of the AJC (American Jewish Congress). http://www.ajcongress.org/ -

In short, the distributors of the Obsession DVD are the most ardent and fanatical supporters of Israeli Likud militant expansionism, a fact that the Obsession DVD conveniently omits, and the newspapers who spread the 28 million copies of this DVD like a virus never looked into. EMET also has a cozy relationship with the right-wing Jewish billionaire Sheldon G. Adelson, who has a proven track record of using his wealth to push both Israeli Likud-type and Republican agendas. Adelson has a long-standing and public relationship with the arch-Likud Netanyahu that Haaretz has reported on previously. A recent investigative piece in the New Yorker proved many details of Adelson’s political agenda in both the United States and Israel. Adelson, who owns many casinos in Las Vegas, has been a longtime contributor to the Zionist Organization of America,http://www.zoa.org/, Sarah Stern’s former employer. Now that Stern is at EMET, she has sponsored lecture series and seminars on Capital Hill in name of Adelson, to extend his influence into the Congress.

Adelson is usually listed as by Forbes as the third richest American, and the sixth richest person in the world. His personal wealth is estimated as exceeding $20 billion. The Washington Post reports that he has already given over 200 million dollars to Jewish and Israeli causes, including the Birthright program, to which he makes a $25 million annual contribution.

To place Adelson on the political spectrum, it is good to recall that he has described himself as a critic of AIPAC—from the far right! In other words, he feels that AIPAC (American Israel Public Affairs Committee) has been too soft on Palestinians. (!) Adelson has been a longtime contributor to Jewish and Republican causes, including the campaigns of George W. Bush. Initially, he had designs of spending $250 million dollars to set up an organization called Freedom Watch to keep Obama out of the White House. Freedom Watch, conceived of as the Right’s answer to http://www.moveon.org, has been a meeting ground between Jewish Republicans and former officials of the George W. Bush administration. Such is the agenda of Adelson, the person whose influence is behind the EMET folks distributing the Obsession DVD.

Who else serves on the board of EMET (Endowment for Middle East), the Pro-Israeli lobby group? A who’s who of Israeli officials and ultra-Zionists in the United States:

• Ambassador Yossi Ben-Aharon: Formerly, the Chief of Staff for Yitzak Shamir, and Deputy Director General of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

• Ambassador Yoram Ettinger. “Minister for Congressional Affairs at Israel’s Embassy in Washington (with a rank of an ambassador), Israel’s Consul General in Houston and Director of Israel’s Government Press Office.”

• Lenny Ben-David: “Israel’s Deputy Chief of Mission (number two diplomat) in Washington after being appointed by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu”, who in addition has “held senior posts in the American Israel Public Affairs Committee for 25 years, in both Washington and Israel.”

In addition to Israeli officials, the EMET Board also includes:
• Neo-Conservatives such as R. James Woolsey, Frank Gaffney (another Neo-Con who has received awards from the Zionist Organization of America), Ariel Cohen (from the Neo-Conservative bastion Heritage), David Dalin (from the Neo-Con Hoover Institute and also Heritage).

• Ardent pro-Israel lobbyists such as: Daniel Pipes, Caroline Glick (deputy managing editor of Jerusalem Post), Meyrav Wurmser (the former director of the highly biased MEMRI, a propaganda organization founded by members of the Israeli Defense Force), Also serving on the Board of EMET are many of the “talking heads” would-be experts of Obsession, such as Walid Shoebat.

• Christian Zionists: EMET also reaches out to Christians—or one should specify, Christian Zionists—by featuring Rev. James. M. Hutchens, who founded an organization called The Jerusalem Connection International. http://www.tjci.org/.

There are many more connections to pro-Israel organizations responsible for the distribution of Obsession:

• The producer, Raphael Shore, used Karyn Leffel from Hasbara Fellowship to establish links on college campuses. Yes, the same Hasbara of Pro-Israel media advocacy.
• The producers of Obsession also worked with the most lunatic fringes of the Christian evangelical movement to distribute their propaganda. This included above all else Christians United For Israel (CUFI), who mailed out many copies of the DVD from their mailing center. And the Founder and National Director of Christians United For Israel? None other than the same pastor John Hagee that McCain had initially sought an endorsement from. The same John Hagee who routinely describes Islam as evil, and sees the restoration of Israel as a necessary step towards the return of Christ. Hagee is one of the leading Christian Zionists in America today, and those who know about the tortured history of this variety of Zionism know how easily it has veered towards anti-Semitism, even justifying Hitler as being God’s hunters to drive Jews out of Europe to Israel, so that the Israeli state could be established (thus anticipating Christ’s return).

• Clarion Fund http://clarionfund.org/ has also worked with other Republican groups to distribute their propaganda. NPR reported that a political consultant named Joe Wierzbicki was screening the film on 9/11 in Dearborn, MI. Who is paying for the screening and hiring Wierzbicki? Interestingly enough, Wierzbicki is the PAC coordinator for an organization called “Our Country Deserves Better”, http://www.sourcewatch.org/index.php?title=Our_Country_Deserves_Better with one specific goal: to defeat Barack Obama. Their website states: “Our Country Deserves Better than Barack Obama - and with your help we can ensure that Barack Obama is defeated on November 4th.”

The lines of connection between the makers of the allegedly impartial and non-profit Obsession and politically partial Republican groups and pro-Israeli expansionist Jewish organizations continues to grow…

• The last of the verified connections so far is between the producers of Obsession and the Republican Jewish Coalition (RJC). The RJC worked hand in hand with Christians United For Israel to mail out copies of a book titled Standing With Israel to a large number of American Rabbis and leaders of the Jewish community. The package also included a copy of the Obsession DVD, and an approving letter from a former Israeli ambassador to Jews, encouraging them to strengthen connections with Christian Zionists.

The Republican Jewish Coalition is yet another group that the Clarion Fund and the Endowment for Middle Eastern Truth has worked which has taken a partial political position for the forthcoming election. On their website, the Republican Jewish Coalition states that Barack Obama and Joe Biden and their supporters “have handed Ahmadenijad [sic] a big win.”

***

Islam or Radical Islam?

Perhaps a word should be added here about the distinction between Islam and Radical Islam. In the last few years, we have indeed seen a number of terrorist acts around the world which have resulted in the death of thousands. While the bulk of these have not emanated from Islamic organizations, many have. (Of course the majority of the victims of acts of terrorism even in these latter cases have been other Muslims.) No doubt, a critical look at the ideology of terrorist groups is more than called for in today’s political climate. What many would object to, however, is painting all Muslims and all of Islam with the same brush.

The Obsession DVD opens by making a sharp distinction between Islam and Radical Islam. The producers of the documentary state, adamantly, that they are not anti-islam or anti-Muslim, but that they are only against “Radical Islam.” Leaving aside for a moment the debates over what constitutes “radical Islam”, and how pervasive it actually is, there is an uncomfortable disconnect between this claim on their website and the claims made inside the DVD: the people paraded as would-be experts do not in fact share this neat dichotomy between Islam and “Radical Islam.” The many speakers paraded here have a documented history of making blanket statements against Islam—all of Islam—and all of Muslims.

Let’s take one example, the very first speaker shown on camera: Walid Shoebat.

Shoebat’s claim to fame is that he claims to be an ex-“Islamic terrorist”, turned Christian and lover of Zion. If he claims to have produced bombs to kill citizens, why is he not in prison? Muslims are routinely jailed for much less and indirect accusations. Nevertheless, let us examine Shoebat’s track record regarding some of his more audacious claims about Islam (not just “radical Islam”:

• That Obama is a Muslim. Yes, that old myth again. Sadly, some 13% of American citizens believe this to the case, in spite of the fact that Obama is a committed Christian. Who knows how many more people are moved against Obama due to this rumor, which both Hillary and the Republicans have spread against him.

• “The Arabic speaking communities in America, however, do indeed support Osama bin Ladin and Hamas.” [For some reason, Afghans and Iranians do not, he states.] Shoebat goes on to say: “The less they know about Islam the more peaceful they are.” In other words, the Islamophobic assertions that peaceful Muslims are not peaceful because of Islam, but in spite of Islam; where as “radical Muslims” are precisely radical and violent because of Islam. Something about that logic seems flawed, since it deprives human beings of the agency to actually interpret their own tradition in both beautiful and hideous ways.

• He has been even more forceful in asserting that Islam is evil. His exact words: “Islam is not the religion of God—Islam is the devil.” Let us be explicit here: The Obsession DVD claims that it is not targeting Islam, it is targeting “Radical Islam.” The first person featured in the DVD sings a different tune, literally demonizing all of Islam.

• Shoebat’s solution to Palestine/Israel, as told to the right-wing “Religious Zionist” Israel National News (the voice of the illegal Settler movement in West Bank and Gaza) is as follows: tear down the Dome of the Rock, and reestablish the Solomon’s Temple on the Temple Mount. The Settler radio embraced him as “the former terrorist turned lover of Zion.” The question is whether this is the kind of person that one should take impartial advice from. It makes as much sense as taking advice about Judaism or African-American history from David Duke.

For one other example, we could look at another of the talking heads in the documentary, the Lebanese Christian Brigitte Gabriel, who appeared before the Christians United For Israel conference on July 27th 2007 (sponsored by Pastor Hagee) and opined:

The difference, my dear Christian friends, between Israel and the Arab world is quite simply the difference between civilization and barbarism. It’s the difference between good and evil and this is what we’re witnessing in the Arabic and Islamic world. I am angry. They have no SOUL! They are dead set on killing and destruction. And in the name of something they call “Allah,” which is very different from the God we believe in, because our God is the God of love.

No fair-minded person would take Gabriel’s hateful words as authoritative teachings of the Christian tradition, or as exemplifying Christian love. And yet the producers of Obsession want the viewers to take Gabriel as an authoritative expert on Islam and Muslims. Somehow when Gabriel describes the whole “Islamic world” as having “no soul”, I suspect that we are no longer in the realm of “we are not talking about Islam, we are talking about Islamic radicals” position that the producers of Obsession hide behind. No wonder that the NY Times described her as a “radical Islamophobe.”

Christ reminded us that by their fruits (and words) you shall know them. And the words of these hate-filled so-called experts speak for themselves.

Conclusion

The massive scale of the Obsession campaign raises a number of disturbing questions: it does point to the ease with which foreign groups from Israel have established non-profit organizations in the United States to sway US elections by working with fringe from the pro-Israel lobby, Republican, and Evangelical community. While their ideology is marginal, their wealth and influence is anything but marginal. Non-profit organizations seeking to exert a political influence is not illegal, but non-profits seeking to endorse political candidates and swaying elections is, and this is precisely what the network behind the Obsession DVD seeks to do.

The “Obsession Project” also does point to the eroding standards of journalism. Why has mainstream American journalism been so slow to pick up on these networks, all of which are publicly available, with some investigation?

The Obsession Project also points to the ever-increasingly poisonous political climate in our country, where demonizing an entire ethnic or religious community seems to be becoming more and more commonplace. We have seen African-Americans, Hispanic, Muslims, Gays and Lesbians, and others characterized in such a fashion. Perhaps no community in the West has been the victims of millennia-long persecution and “Other-ing” campaigns as has the Jewish community. That makes it all the more devastating, and disappointing, that centrally-situated and powerful Jewish organizations from both Israel and the United States are now deploying the same Other-ing strategies against other minority groups, with hardly a voice of dissent being heard from other Jewish organizations. Indeed, Obsession is already tearing down bridges of dialogue between Muslim and Jewish groups across the country that had taken years to establish.

It is readily admitted that Israel remains both a rallying cry and a source of tension for many American Jewish organizations and American Jews. There are important fissures in the American Jewish community over all issues, including that of Israel. No one group speaks for all American Jews, who have often had an exemplary legacy of peace and justice activism. Indeed, one can point to many American Jews who have taken the lead in criticism of Israeli human rights violations against Palestinians. One important question that has yet to be answered is whether propaganda like Obsession will be met with silence by the Jewish community, or if it will be spoken against by all (Muslims, Jews, Christians, etc.) who are committed to peace and social justice.

Lastly, we do note from historical experience that campaigns like this tend to increasingly lower the bar of what is acceptable speech as opposed to “hate speech.” Make no mistake about it: there will be follow up projects. The Clarion Fund has already declared that its next project is a documentary titled The Third Jihad. The synopsis is as follows: “How is radical Islam operating inside the West? Is a subversive ‘cultural jihad’ underway? How does radical Islam plan to bring America to its knees? What is the endgame?” This documentary is set for an October 2008 release date. In other words, if Obsession was about the danger of Radical Islam “over there”, Third Jihad will make the case that this same threat exists “over here.” One shudders at the thought of the hate these pieces of propaganda are producing against members of the American Muslim community.

We can either keep going down this slippery slope of accusations and blanket generalizations, or we can bond together and rise up to say Enough! The point is not only that Muslims are being targeted, it is the very poisoning of our cultural discourse, and our hopes for a pluralistic American society that can welcome and embrace pluralism. To quote Martin Luther King, “Returning hate for hate multiplies hate, adding deeper darkness to a night already devoid of stars.” What we need now is less of the hateful heat of Obsession (and its networks), and more light from all of us who are committed to a just and pluralistic future for all of us.

Towards that day, starting today….

Omid Safi
Professor of Religious Studies
University of North Carolina

---

Who is behind Relentless, Obsession and The Third Jihad? - Updated

by Sheila Musaji

10/11/08

OTHER RESOURCES: Resources for Responding to “Obsession: Radical Islam’s War With the West” DVD Mass Distribution to 28 million Americans. Who is behind Relentless, Obsession and The Third Jihad? for a background on those responsible for the production, mass distribution, and promotion of the film. In-Depth Summary & Analysis of “Obsession: Radical Islam’s War on the West” for a point by point discussion of the film. What You Can Do to respond to Obsession.

The venom created by the films “Relentless”, and “Obsession: Radical Islam’s War With the West” has been slowly working its way into the hearts and minds of people across the country for a couple of years. Now the same group that brought us these atrocities is coming out with another film “The Third Jihad”. These films are only part of what Bob Crane has called a Tsunami of Islamophobia that seems to be rushing in ever higher waves towards the Muslim community in America. These films are verbal and visual terrorism.

28 million copies of a DVD of the film “Obsession: Radical Islam’s War Against the West” have been distributed free of cost in newspapers across the country. The film was first released a few years ago and has been shown around the country. I wrote about my impressions and concerns when I viewed the film in 2007 and again in early 2008 when “Fitna” another such film was released. Except for David Horowitz’ use of the film as the centerpiece of his Islamo Fascism Awareness weeks for the last couple of years it has mostly been shown by local community venues and on campuses and sponsored primarily by Republican and Jewish groups. It is also sold on the internet.

Now, a DVD of this film has been bundled inside more than 70 newspapers and magazines and delivered nationwide to subscribers. Surprisingly even The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, and The World Jewish Digest accepted this “advertizing” insert. “There is no greater threat than radical Islam,” said Gregory Ross, spokesman for the Clarion Fund, a New-York based nonprofit organization that is paying newspapers to distribute the DVD. “It needs to be pushed to the forefront of the political discussion.” (Controversial film on Islam delivered nationwide, Yonat Shimron) The newspapers accepted this insert as paid advertizing but it was not labeled as such. I am certain that many people receiving the DVD think that this is the view of the paper delivering it to their doorstep.

Copies of the DVD were distributed free at the DNC, and at the RNC by the recently formed group watch obsession.org headed by Tom Trento. Earlier this year, the Florida Attorney General required employees to watch this video. The Republican Jewish Coalition has also distributed free copies of the film in promotional mailings to U.S. rabbis and other Jewish mailing lists. The stars of the film have lectured at U.S. Military colleges, and the U.S. Navy uses the film.

I know from personal experience over many years of being involved with interfaith dialogue that the views that this film promotes are not the views of all Jewish people, but I also know that those who have been responsible for making this film and for promoting it widely have been primarily Jewish. It truly saddens me that members of a community who should know better and who have experienced a holocaust that resulted at least partially from widespread stereotyping and demonization of Jewish people. I believe that this marginal group within the Jewish community is so blinded by their need to defend the State of Israel at any cost that they do not see the cost of their propoganda to another community. They are a marginal group, but they are making a lot of noise. In fact, they are making so much noise that they are drowning out the voices of those in the mainstream Jewish community who have worked so hard with mainstream Muslims and Christians to build bridges of dialogue and work towards peace and justice in this world.

As Robert Salaam has pointed out ”Tragically today, it appears that the very groups who had taken up the shout of “Never Again!”, seem to have edited the shout to, “Well...maybe just this one more time...”

The film “Obsession: Radical Islam’s War With the West” has been written and produced by Jewish people, and most of the local showings of the film around the country the last couple of years have been sponsored by Jewish groups, although recently Christian groups such as CUFI have also become involved in the promotion of this film. This appears to be part of a concerted effort to marginalize the Muslim community. An ad published by the American Jewish Committee in the New York Times last year called “Israel’s Neighbors Speak” used many of the same questionable quotes and techniques. Obsession has become so much a part of the American Jewish community that it was shown at the Berkshire Jewish film festival in 2007.

And, at a 2006 showing of Obsession in Philadelphia, a Jewish Exponent article said: “In a show of unity in the face of mounting international Arab extremism, as well as anti-Israel sentiment on America’s college campuses, some 800 people turned out for last weekend’s sold-out screening of “Obsession: Radical Islam’s War Against the West” at the University of Pennsylvania in Philadelphia. Welcoming those to the March 26 event - organized by Aish Philadelphia, the Jewish Community Centers, the Jewish Federation of Greater Philadelphia, Hillel of Greater Philadelphia and Akiba Hebrew Academy - Michael Wachs, one of the evening’s sponsors, said that “the true blessing of this event is Jews standing united as one. ‘Obsession’ is a wake-up call.” How does a film supposedly about Radical Islam and terrorism and Jews standing united as one relate? As part of his introduction of the guest speaker, Gary Erlbaum - co-chair of Federation’s Center for Israel and Overseas - noted that “Judaism allows us to make choices.” “Where do we go from here?” he then asked. “The humanitarian gesture is to stand up for ourselves and the people of Israel,” offered Erlbaum. “Tell everyone you can that the world is a dangerous place.” This explains everything, the film has something to do with standing up for Israel.

An early review of Obsession posted on the Jewish Virtual Library site includes the statement: ”A film like this would have been difficult to make a few years ago when it was rare to hear Muslims speaking in their own language.” Exactly what language is the Muslim language? I only speak English and am an American Muslim. The same article also said: ”Jimmy Carter and the Iraq Study Group members should be required to watch the film so they will be disabused of their delusion that Israeli policy is the obstacle to peace. Obsession makes clear the real obstacles are the Islamists’ refusal to recognize Israel, the outright hatred of the Jews by many Muslims and the unwillingness to accept a Jewish state on “Islamic land” or Jewish rule over Muslims.” Once again making clear the connection in the minds of these individuals that demonizing Muslims has something to do with supporting Israel.

This film is most likely seen by these individuals as a way to marginalize Islam and Muslims and put all of the focus strictly on Muslims as the source of all of the problems in the world, particularly as the source of opposition to some Christian and Jewish fundamentalists ideas about the State of Israel and its relation to end times prophecy. An extremist religious belief that should not be the source of policy, and that is at least as dangerous as the confused religious beliefs of extremist Muslims. The fact that the film Obsession and these folks in general do not see any possibility that actual historical events and political policies could have anything at all to do with the motivation of any worldwide disputes involving Muslims in any way is odd. The fact that many in other countries do see such possibilities doesn’t influence their close minded views. For example, a 2006 ICH poll of British citizens shows that 72% believe that foreign policy is feeding terrorism.

What happens when such propoganda is spread through society with no alternative voice? We have seen what happens in the not so distant past in places like Rwanda and Bosnia, and in the last generation in the German attempt at genocide of the Jews, Gypsies, and other peoples deemed to be inferior and/or dangerous.

If the people who are promoting this believe that it is only the Muslims who will be affected, and that is a price they are willing to pay in order to achieve their goals, I believe that they are mistaken, and they are playing with fire, and adding fuel to that fire by bringing religion into the political mix. There are a whole lot more folks out there who believe that America is a Christian nation (including John McCain who said “...the Constitution established the United States of America as a Christian nation.” ) than there are Muslims and Jews combined. They are a fringe group of Christianity worldwide, but may represent as many as 40% of American Christians. That these fringe Christians who believe that they can help bring Armageddon along earlier by helping their interpretation of Biblical prophecy happen would support films like this is not surprising. They don’t care about any possible results to all of those who in their view will be “left behind” to suffer the consequences of a terrible war because they believe that they will be “raptured” to heaven before all hell breaks loose here on earth. For them anyone who doesn’t believe in their particular view of Christianity is uninportant and doomed to eternal damnation. That includes not only Buddhists, Hindus, Mormons, and Catholics, but also Muslims and Jews. Why any of us who are in this fring Christian world view going to be “left behind” would join hands with these folks to promote their agenda is truly a mystery.

That there is a line to be crossed between legitimate discussion of political issues and anti-Semitism is clear even to Robert Wistrich (one of the talking heads in the Obsession film), or at least it is clear when it comes to anti-Semitism. In an article on Qantara.de he said: “Does he or she rely on classic anti-Semitic stereotypes in so doing: for example, by dredging up the alleged Jewish/Zionist “conspiracy” to dominate the world, or by evoking Jewish/Israeli “warmongers” who supposedly run American foreign policy; or through referring to an all-powerful “Jewish Lobby” that prevents justice in the Middle East. If the “anti-Zionist” critic holds Jews to be responsible for the chaos and troubles that currently afflict the world, he is surely an antisemite. If he criminalizes Israeli behaviour, by gratuitously branding it as “Nazi” or intrinsically “racist”, then we are talking anti-Semitism.” What if he or she relies on classic anti-Muslim or anti-Arab stereotypes, or dredging up an alleged Muslim conspiracy to rule the world, or by evoking Muslim “warmongers” (no matter how marginal), or through referring to some all powerful terrorist organization that has the ability to destroy western civilization, or gratuitously branding political groups as Nazi, or attaching the name of the religion with terms like nazi, fascist, and terrorist - would that make the person an Islamophobe, and equally desicable?

Once the demons of religious, racial, or ethnic stereotyping are released, they are impossible to control. What has been the result of the barrage of anti-Muslim propoganda over the last few years? The real fascists are rearing their ugly heads again in Germany where their last incarnation was so devastating to the Jews. Negative feelings towards Muslims, and to a lesser extent Jews, are on the rise in Canada. Anti-Semitism and Islamophobia are surging in Europe. The latest Pew Research Center survey of global attitudes on religion is out and the news is not good for Jews – or Muslims. Once you have convinced people that one form of prejudice is “acceptable” then it is difficult to stop that prejudice from being switched to other “out groups”.

Those behind the production of the Obsession film and those behind the recent distribution of the DVD in newspapers and by mail are attempting to be very secretive about exactly who they are, and who is financing this endeavor.

The Obsession website lists only the filmmakers, Wayne Kopping and Raphael Shore. However, the dvd packaging included with the Times lists the producers as Peter Mier and Raphael Shore, and states that the project was “conceived by” Peter Mier. and the production manager is listed as Brett Halperin. However, an article by Richard Silverstein of Tikun Olam attempting to get to the bottom of this notes that Raphael Shore says that Mier and Halperin are just aliases and that also according to Shore, about 80 percent of the film’s $400,000 budget was provided by Mier (whoever Mier might be).

In an interview on Fox News Raphael Shore said: “At the recommendation of a number of experts we worked with in making the film, many of the individuals and organizations who helped make this film possible requested anonymity. Tragically, we’ve seen numerous times the response of the radicals to those who openly expose or disagree with them.” But of course, they are afraid they will be killed by fanatical Muslims. If that is so, why aren’t Raphael Shore or any of the other folks involved in this afraid.

I think that he Kassandra Project blog asks a very good question about this: “Why all the aliases and secrecy I wonder. Maybe it has something to do with that pesky federal U.S. 501(c)(3) law prohibiting foreign political institutions or foreign organizations from contributing to the Clarion Fund’s operations. Given that both the producer and the director are foreigners (with an anti-Muslim agenda), and the financial backers are anonymous, it all looks very suspicious.” This is a much more likely motivation for all the secrecy.

Jews on First adds even more credence to this interpretation. “Because it was established only recently, the Clarion Fund has not yet filed its first required disclosure (Form 990) with the IRS. It is not disclosing its officers. The address Clarion used to satisfy the New York Times’ requirement that political or opinion advertisements include the advertiser’s contact information—255 West 36th St., Suite 800, in Manhattan—turns out to be Grace Corporate Park Executive Suites, an office-space rental operation which also rents “virtual office identity packages” for as little as $75 a month.” This is just about as shady as it is possible to be.

Erik Ose in an article on The Huffington Post raises an even more pertinent issue: “However, one detail in this report seems mistaken, that “because it was established only recently, the Clarion Fund has not yet filed its first required disclosure (Form 990) with the IRS.” According to the New York Secretary of State’s website, the Clarion Fund was incorporated nearly two years ago, on December 28, 2006. So where are their Form 990’s? Hello, IRS?)”

I have done what I could to collect as much information as possible about the organizations and individuals involved in the production of Obsession and in the promotion and distribution of the film. As I am able to find out more I will update this. If you have any additional information please let me know. I find it very interesting that these groups and individuals are so intertwined. The dubious credentials of most of the “experts” are also interesting. What is most interesting is that an organization that has not filed proper paperwork with the IRS, doesn’t have a legitimate address, and lists aliases on the cover of its “advertising” insert was still accepted as legitimate by so many newspapers (and of course, that doesn’t even touch on the matter of the content of the Obsession insert).

9/23 update: CAIR has issued a press release saying that they are asking the Federal Election Commission (FEC) to Probe Anti-Muslim DVDs Sent to Swing States

ORGANIZATIONS INVOLVED IN THE PRODUCTION OR PROMOTION OF OBSESSION

AISH HATORAH

When the Israeli Foreign Ministry sought to combat anti-Israel ideas on college campuses, it called on Aish HaTorah to develop the HASBARA FELLOWSHIPS. This program has flown hundreds of student leaders to Israel for intensive training in pro-Israel activism training. In North America, Hasbara Fellowships guides and funds pro-Israel activities on 80 college campuses.

Aish also founded HONEST REPORTING, a web-based operation that monitors the media for ‘anti-Israel bias’. Honest Reporting has claimed to be independent from Aish for several years, but its UK branch, launched earlier this year, boasts an Aish-registered website domain name and contact address. The Aish International site main page says: “Campuses everywhere are deluged with anti-Israel propaganda. Mass media is often strongly biased against Israel. Our efforts through affiliate HonestReporting Campus and Hasbara Fellowships are defending Israel everywhere.” According to Truth Dig: “Clarion’s corporate filings in Delaware list the same address as Aish HaTorah New York. Clarion’s two directors in 2006 were Rabbi Raphael Shore and Jacob Fetman, who served as Aish’s CFO. In 2007, the organization listed its directors as Shore, Henry Harris and Rebecca Kabat. Rabbi Harris is educational director at Aish HaTorah NY and Kabat has also worked for Aish. ... Aish’s Ephraim Shore has also been president of the organization HonestReporting.com, which, according to Aish’s Web site, helped to produce and promote Raphael Shore’s film.”

CLARION FUND

This is a shadowy group who organized and paid for the distribution of the Obsession DVD to 28 million Americans by newspaper inserts and direct mailing. Clarion was founded by Raphael Shore. Their site does not list any officers, board members, nothing. According to Tampa Bay.com Clarion’s address, according to Manhattan directory assistance, is the same address as Aish HaTorah International, a fundraising arm of Aish HaTorah. The Clarion Fund and Aish HaTorah International are also connected to a group called HonestReporting, which produced Obsession. Honest­Reporting’s 2006 tax return uses the same address. Richard Silverstein has some interesting new information (10-12-08) about the 501c form for Clarion fund and whether or not the answers to some of the questions on the form were answered accurately Clarions supplemental IRS filing and Clarion’s application for 501c status provide a great deal more information 10/12/08

CHRISTIANS UNITED FOR ISRAEL

This group headed by Pastor John Hagee helped pay for a mass mailing of the Obsession video some months ago. According to an article on Israel eNews: “At the July 16-18, 2007 Christians United For Israel (CUFI) yearly conference in Washington D.C., Senator Lieberman lavished praise on Christians United For Israel’s founder, Texas megachurch evangelist Pastor John Hagee, likening Hagee to Moses, calling Hagee a “man of God”, and stating that, like Moses, Hagee was the leader of a ‘mighty multitude’. But on July 18, 2007, at the nonprofit 501(c)(3) group’s “A Night To Honor Israel” capstone event of it’s three-day conference, CUFI Regional Director Billye Brim suggested that “God has a plan” for the Dome of The Rock, Islam’s 3rd holiest site on Earth and the spot from which Muslims believe Moses ascended into Heaven. In the eschatolgical, or “End-Time” belief system held by most Christians United For Israel members, The Dome Of The Rock must be removed or destroyed to make way for the construction of a 3rd Jewish temple.” According to that article Brim went on to say:
“Upon that hill, there is a rock. Upon that rock there is a dome. God has a plan for that hill.” Bruce Wilson, the author of the article adds that “Billye Brim did not directly call, on July 18th that night, for the destruction of The Dome of The Rock, but the message was clear--the Dome had to go--and in an undated audio recording I have discovered, from Billye Brim addressing a moderate sized and nearly orgiastic religious gathering, Brim makes the point more directly, stating that while she was with a group of evangelical Christians who were covertly praying around and on Jerusalem’s Temple Mount Brim received a message directly from God which told her “that dome’s coming down” and Billye Brim suggested that she knew the very date on which The Dome Of The Rock would be destroyed. “That dome’s coming down,” exulted Brim to her audience, and then she emitted what could be called nothing other than a triumphant ululation of victory.” This is the sort of inflammatory rhetoric that could easily be used in a documentary showing the danger that this version of Christianity poses to all of civilization.

ENDOWMENT FOR MIDDLE EAST TRUTH

On 9/23 The Detroit Free Press reported that: Endowment for Middle East Truth, is a partner with the Clarion Fund in “The Obsession Project,” which will also include research publications and issue forums. “While the initial press reports about the mass distribution focused on the Clarion Fund’s financing role, it was EMET that organised and oversaw the distribution, EMET’s spokesman, Ari Morgenstern, told IPS. Morgenstern, a former press officer for the Israeli embassy here, said he contacted IPS at the Clarion Fund’s request.” ... “Morgenstern told IPS that EMET was ‘partnered with the Clarion Fund’ on what he called the ‘Obsession Project’ which he identified as ‘an initiative of EMET’. He declined to name the Project’s donors. A spokesman for the Clarion Fund, Gregory Ross, has also refused to name the Fund’s donors, whose identity remains a mystery.” (9/28/08) http://ipsnorthamerica.net/news.php?idnews=1705 EMET sponsored a seminar series on Capitol Hill named for the controversial multi-billionaire casino and hotel magnate Sheldon Adelson, a major donor to right-wing Zionist organisations in the U.S.; the far-right lobby group, Freedom’s Watch; and the Republican Jewish Coalition (RJC), http://www.ipsnews.net/news.asp?idnews=43983 Leading the Endowment is Sarah Stern, a former lobbyist for the Zionist Organization of America. http://www.npr.org/blogs/secretmoney/2008/09/new_details_emerge_about_radic.html EMET’s website about page says the following: “EMET has made it their business to distribute the movie, “Obsession: Radical Islam’s War against the West”, to every single congressional office.” 9/29/08 There is a report on the JTA site that EMET has pulled out of involvement with the Obsession Project. According to this report: “EMET founder and president Sarah Stern initially told JTA on Friday that she had been taken advantage of by the group and had never spoken with Ari Morgenstern, who was quoted in press reports as speaking for EMET and the Obsession Project. But the communications strategists for the project, Baron Communications LLC and 30 Point Strategies, shared e-mails and phone records that showed Stern had at least four telephone conversations earlier in the week with Morgenstern. In addition, they produced an e-mail from Sept. 22 which showed Stern approving of a press release and other materials announcing EMET’s participation. Another e-mail a day later from Stern included a lengthy note backing the project’s mission and the sign-off “Soldier On!” Stern now does acknowledge having spoken to Morgenstern and approving involvement with the project, but now says she “made a mistake” in not getting approval from EMET’s board before agreeing to became a partner. She said she still supports efforts to encourage Americans to watch “Obsession.” This is also being reported on other sites including an article Obsession Campaign Imploding.

FRONT LINE STRATEGIES has been hired by Clarion to market the new film “The Third Jihad” - they are a Republican PR firm. According to a Florida paper article about a showing of Third Jihad in Arizona, “Brent Lowder, a partner in Frontline Strategies LLC, represented the nonprofit Clarion Fund, which produced the film.” Brent Lowder ran Rudy Giuliani’s California Presidential campaign. ‘Third Jihad’ rolls out into private showings in eight states, marketed by Rudy Guiliani operative 10/12/08

HONEST REPORTING

HonestReporting.com was founded by AISH HATORAH, and now exists as an independent organization. An article on the Israel on Campus Coalition site says that both HONEST REPORTING and HASBARA FELLOWSHIPS are projects of AISH. “HonestReporting.com (HR.com) and Hasbara Fellowships have teamed up to create HonestReporting.com for Campus.” The Honest Reporting site on its history page says: “In early 2001, those first volunteers turned to the Jerusalem Fund of Aish HaTorah to help build a website, develop materials and grow the subscriber base even further. Later that year, the project, having grown to become a major organization in its own right, was established as a US non-profit organization (501c3) with an Independent Board of Directors.” Honest reporting has had some difficulties with honesty. They called the Qana ambulance attack by Israel a hoax, a false rumor which spread all over the internet on far right sites, even though Human Rights Watch debunked their claim.

Honest Reporting bills itself as a watchdog organization that monitors the media for bias against Israel. According to Wikipedia (where the article may not be up for long) the Management of Honest Reporting includes: Rabbi Ephraim Shore(president) took over HonestReporting in 2000 after it was founded by a group of students in England. In late 2001, he organized an independent USA board of directors and established HonestReporting as a registered non-profit (501 (c) 3) organization. He is also a co-director of Hasbara Fellowships. Both HonestReporting and Hasbara Fellowships were launched by, or with the assistance of, Aish HaTorah.[1] Joe Hyams (CEO) is a former strategic planner for London’s oldest advertising agency, Saatchi & Saatchi Advertising (Tel Aviv). Simon Plosker (managing editor) has worked for a variety of non-profit organizations, including the Board of Deputies of British Jews, BICOM, and NGO Monitor. Yarden Frankl (senior editor) worked for ten years as a senior aide to Congresswoman Nita Lowey of New York and as the Strategic Affairs Lobbyist for the American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC). Pesach Benson (blog editor) is a former reporter for the Baltimore Jewish Times. Gary Kenzer (USA director) was formerly involved on the national level of grassroots organizations like American Friends of Magen David Adom[2] and Mothers Against Drunk Driving. He is the contact person for speaking engagements, fund-raisers and other US activities.[3] (Note: Rabbi Ephraim Shore is the brother of Rabbi Rafael Shore.)

Honest Reporting, in addition to media watch activities, produced a documentary discussing the Jewish-Muslim conflict in association with The CLARION FUND. This film was entitled “Relentless: The Struggle for Peace in the Middle East”. Interest in the video exceeded expectations and the documentary is now marketed independently of HonestReporting. Recently, the same team produced a film titled Obsession: Radical Islam’s War Against the West.

According to Omid Safi’s research: “Haaretz reported that “Obsession” is described as “Honest Reporting’s newest documentary film.” Honestreporting.com’s own website confirms this: “HonestReporting is proud to have been a former marketing partner during the initial production of this award-winning documentary.” Shore, recognizing that the credibility of his propaganda would be undermined if its correction to Israeli-spin organizations were revealed, told Haaretz (in an unusually frank slip) that they “have told Honest Reporting to take it off their site ‘a dozen times.’” The connections between Obsession and Israeli groups like Aish HaTorah and Jewish advocacy groups on behalf of Israel like Hasbara Fellowship and Honestyreporting.com is beyond dispute. The producers of the documentary just don’t want you to know about it.”

MAMIYE FOUNDATION

IPS has uncovered one donor to the Clarion Fund, the Mamiye Foundation, which gave it 25,000 dollars in August of 2007, according to tax filings. Four Mamiyes, Charles M., Charles D., Hyman and Abraham, are listed as trustees on the forms.

MEMRI

The translations in the film Obsession were provided by Middle East Media Research Institute (MEMRI) which, according to Source Watch, is connected to Israeli intelligence organizations and Christian evangelicals and is funded in part by the right wing OLIN FOUNDATION. Obsessions production credits include the Middle East Media Research Institute. According to an article in Common Dreams: MEMRI is a translation service founded in 1998 by Col. Yigal Carmon, who spent more than 20 years in Israeli intelligence and later advised two Israeli prime ministers; and the PALESTINIAN MEDIA WATCH, an Israeli group founded by Itimar Marcus, that monitors Palestinian news organizations for alleged anti-Zionist and anti-Semitic propaganda. According to the Jewish Daily Forward: “MEMRI was co-founded by Meyrav Wurmser and Colonel Yigal Carmon, formerly of Israeli military intelligence, “both of whom were early critics of the Oslo accords.”

According to Source Watch “MEMRI’s stance is that it is opposed to Islamic fundamentalism, not Islam itself, although the integrity of this position may be questioned because of links on MEMRI’s website to certain evangelical Christian organizations who take a harder line on Islam. Yigal Carmon, MEMRI’s founder, is a former advisor on terrorism to the Israeli Prime Ministers, Yitzhak Shamir and Yitzhak Rabin, so he actually worked for both Labor and Likud governments. Praise for MEMRI should be taken with a grain of salt since it is almost always motivated by politics, not the quantity or quality of MEMRI’s work.”

The quality of their translations has been challenged over the years, including their famous Mickey Mouse look-alike translation, their translations of the articles of Prof. Halim Barakat of Georgetown University, and their most famous “wiped off the map” mistranslation of what Ahmadinejad actually said.

NEWSPAPERS - 70 papers carried the DVD as an advertising insert, but 5 papers refused - the Greensboro News & Record in North Carolina. The Saint Louis Post Dispatch The Star-Banner in Ocala, Florida. The Detroit Free Press. The Cincinnati Enquirer. 10/6 update: Elizabeth Brenner, the publisher of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, told reporters at the Milwaukee Press Club that based on complaints from its readers, the paper likely would not carry it again if faced with the same decision.

RADICAL ISLAM.ORG http://www.radicalislam.info/ a site copyrighted by the CLARION FUND.

REPUBLICAN JEWISH COALITION Richard Silverstein on Tikkun Olam has raised the question of whether or not the Republican Jewish Coalition had something to do with this mailing, and he notes in another article that The Republican Jewish Coalition has distributed free copies of the film in promotional mailings to U.S. rabbis and other Jewish mailing lists. This mailing was also documented by Jews on First who added that the Obsession DVD was inserted in a book called “Standing With Israel” by CHRISTIANS UNITED FOR ISRAEL’S (CUFI) executive director David Brog which was then sent out to Rabbis. RJC sponsors screening of Third Jihad in Florida 10/12/08

TERRORISM AWARENESS PROJECT promotes the film and says on its site: Terrorism Awareness Project is a program of the DAVID HOROWITZ FREEDOM CENTER.

U.S. NAVAL WAR COLLEGE As part of CLARION’s supplemental IRS filing page 13 is a letter from Jeffrey Norwitz, Professor, National Security Studies, U.S.l Naval War College, Department of the Navy (and it is on official Dept. of the Navy letterhead) that calls Obsession “...the finest teaching tool yet in educating students ...”, and in the letter he says: “Toward that end, I use the full-length Obsession movie to begin a strategic conversation and generate spirited dialogue.” And, in addition to using this film at the U.S. Naval War College, he says: “Moreover, I frequently lecture at academic institutions across the United States and to foreign military audiences. I often use the 12-minute version of Obsession with similar positive results.” This would appear to be proof that this film is being used at the Naval College. 10/12/08

INDIVIDUALS INVOLVED IN THE MAKING AND PROMOTING OF OBSESSION

Sheldon Adelson The press has already reported that Sheldon Adelson personally distributes copies of Obsession to participants in the Taglit-Birthright Israel indoctrination tours he funds. This article makes an educated guess that he is the financier behind this DVD distribution

Nonie Darwish identified in Obsession as the daughter of a Fedayeen terrorist. She is the founder of a group called ARABS FOR ISRAEL.

Alan M. Dershowitz The honesty of his attacks on Prof. Finkelstein of De Paul University has been questioned. At the time of Robert Kennedy’s assassination, Dershowitz said: “It was in some ways the beginning of Islamic terrorism in America. It was the first shot. A lot of us didn’t recognize it at the time.” Obviously he doesn’t know the difference between a Muslim and a Christian, since Sirhan Sirhan is a Palestinian Christian, not a Muslim.

Steven Emerson, Executive Director, THE INVESTIGATIVE PROJECT, produced the critically acclaimed PBS documentary “Jihad in America”. Emerson’s relationship to the truth may also be questionable. Emerson told a reporter shortly after the 1995 Oklahoma City bombing that he believed the perpetrators were likely Islamic terrorists. He has made other unsubstantiated claims including the “fact” that a hit team of Islamic Fundamentalists had been dispatched to kill him. Emerson filed a lawsuit against the journalist who raised doubts about his claims, but a court ruled against him in the lawsuit. Emerson has made claims against CAIR, against MPAC, and against ISNA. Paul Kendall has raised the issue of whether or not he conspired with a foreign government (Israel) to violate the Constitutional rights of American Muslims.

Brigitte Gabriel heads ACT FOR AMERICA. In a recent interview with the New York Times about her anti-Muslim book "They Must Be Stopped" she said: “The moderate Muslims at this point are truly irrelevant.” As noted in another Times article which called Gabriel a “radical Islamophobe” she has made a number of statements which show that she has a problem with all Muslims. Statements including: “Every practicing Muslim is a radical Muslim.” The author of this article notes: Gabriel believes that Muslims cannot serve loyally in the U.S. military, that interfaith dialogue is “nonsense,” and that the difference between the Arab world and Israel is “barbarism versus civilization.” She was one of the speakers at John Hagee’s CITIZENS UNITED FOR ISRAEL convention where she said: “The difference, my dear Christian friends, between Israel and the Arab world is quite simply the difference between civilization and barbarism. It’s the difference between good and evil and this is what we’re witnessing in the Arabic and Islamic world. I am angry. They have no SOUL! They are dead set on killing and destruction. And in the name of something they call “Allah,” which is very different from the God we believe in, because our God is the God of love.” Well, since we poor Arabs and/or Muslims have no soul, it is no wonder that we cannot comprehend this form of love. The Australian Jewish News Agency has also reported on her anti-Muslim statements.

Sir Martin Gilbert is Winston Churchill’s official biographer, a historian, and the author of Holocaust: The Jewish Tragedy (published in the United States as The Holocaust: A History of the Jews of Europe During the Second World War). Israeli historian Benny Morris described him as a “propagandist” while another historian Tom Segev criticized him for the notable and inexplicable “absence of figures from Arab sources” in his book “The Story of Israel.”

Caroline Glick is a Senior Fellow for Middle Eastern Affairs at the CENTER FOR SECURITY POLICY, and deputy managing editor of the Jerusalem Post. A former officer in the Israel Defense Forces, she was a core member of Israel’s negotiating team with the Palestinians in the Oslo Negotiations under former Prime Minister Rabin, and later served as an assistant policy advisor to the prime minister. She is also on the advisory board of the ENDOWMENT FOR MIDDLE EAST TRUTH. In a recent article she advocates overthrowing the Iranian government and bombing Iran.

Howard Gordon who is the executive producer of Fox’s drama “24” has withdrawn his support for the film and released a statement in which he said: “After being contacted by a number of people whose opinions I respect and after reviewing Obsession with their criticisms and concerns in mind, I have asked the film makers to remove my endorsement from the Obsession website and from any future promotional materials. While I remain committed to the film’s essential message—that the hate-mongering promoted by radical Islamism presents a real threat to western values of tolerance and pluralism—I also appreciate that the goal of co-existence and tolerance is not being served by films like Obsession.” 10/5

Rev. John Hagee leader of CHRISTIANS UNITED FOR ISRAEL, author of Jerusalem Countdown. He preaches an extremist Christian message that “… Muslims—that’s all Muslims—have a “scriptural mandate” to kill Christians and Jews. But don’t worry. America, according to Hagee, is on top of this coming showdown with Islam. He predicts, and seems to pine for, an all-out nuclear war with Iran, as the beginning of a new global war. Writing for the evangelical Pentecostal magazine Charisma, Hagee argues that “The coming nuclear showdown with Iran is a certainty.” In his 2006 book, Jerusalem Countdown, he expanded the first theater of operations for his coming world war to include Russia. This nuclear war, according to Hagee, would eventually end with the second coming of Christ and the whisking away of true believers to the heavens.” He has also been identified as one of John McCain’s religious advisors. According to Douglas Todd, he has also “denounced Catholicism as “The Great Whore,” called for the destruction of Islam, demonizes homosexuals, thinks global warming is a hoax and constantly insists the U.S. should attack Iran because it will help usher in the Second Coming.”

Brett Halperin, alias for unknown individual.

Alfons Heck identified as a Former Hitler Youth Officer. Actually, that is all the information that I need to ignore anything he says.

David Horowitz
Discover the Network Site [2] (Kurt Nimmo), attack on Professor Nadia Abu El-Haj, Barnard College professor in tenure dispute [3] (Larry Cohler-Esses) - 2nd annual Islamo Fascism Awareness Week [4] (Sheila Musaji)

Glenn Jenvey is identified on the Obsession site as a former spy for several unnamed countries and freelance terrorism investigator - not much else on him anywhere. Even Wikipedia has no more information than to reprint just about word for word what is published on the Obsession site. The Obsession With Hate site has come up with some more interesting information about Jenvey.

Wayne Kopping the director and co-writer - also produced “Relentless”

John Loftus, President of The Intelligence Summit and of the Florida Holocaust Museum. According to Wikipedia “John J. Loftus is the author and co-author of several controversial books on Nazis, espionage, and similar topics including The Belarus Secret (1982), Unholy Trinity: How the Vatican’s Nazi Networks Betrayed Western Intelligence to the Soviets (1992), The Secret War Against the Jews: How Western Espionage Betrayed the Jewish People (1994), Unholy Trinity: The Vatican, the Nazis, and the Swiss Banks (1998). Most historians see his books as non-scientific political pamphlets.” In 2005 In what Fox News officials concede was a mistake, “John Loftus, a former U.S. prosecutor, gave out the address Aug. 7, saying it was the home of a Middle Eastern man, Iyad K. Hilal, who was the leader of a terrorist group with ties to those responsible for the July 7 bombings in London. Hilal, whom Loftus identified by name during the broadcast, had moved out of the house about three years previously. But the consequences were immediate for the Voricks. (the current residents)” An article in a local newspaper pointed out that: ..."statements made by John Loftus, a commentator for Fox News, describing grocery store owner Iyad K. Hilal as a terrorist. Although the article accurately quoted Loftus’ expression of his opinion, The Times wants to make clear that Hilal has not been charged with any illegal activity and The Times is not aware of any law enforcement agency or official that has identified Hilal as a terrorist.” I’m not certain that I would put too much faith in this fellows statements.

Itamar Marcus is director of PALESTINIAN MEDIA WATCH based in Israel. According to Wikipedia he is an an Israeli settler from the religious Zionist settlement of Efrat in the West Bank. In an article entitled “Aspiration not Desperation: The Islamic Blood Cult” he characterizes Palestinian society and its Islamic roots as equivalent to the descriptions of ancient Biblical pagan blood cults.

Peter Mier, alias for unknown individual. Raphael Shore described “the real Mier as a Canadian Jewish businessman who wanted to do something significant, but asked to remain anonymous for fear of his safety. According to Shore, about 80 percent of the film’s $400,000 budget was provided by Mier.” Mier is listed as the Executive Producer on the DVD inserts.

Khaleel Mohammed one of the Muslims interviewed in the film has released a statement saying in part: “Sadly, it would seem that I have allowed myself to be used. I gave an interview to the makers of “obsession” wherein I explained the meaning of Jihad, and its misuse by extremists. I understood that the film would be used objectively, focusing on fanatics who seek to spread violence. I am aware that there is a disclaimer at the beginning of the film that says it is not about Islam in general, but only about extremist interpretations. ... I cannot stand by silently and allow my participation in such satanic demonization of innocents. I apologize to my fellow Muslims for appearing in such a film. I apologize to my Jewish teachers and friends-- who have warned me time and again about falling into such a situation—for not heeding their counsel.” 9/28

Ari Morgenstern - While the initial press reports about the mass distribution focused on the Clarion Fund’s financing role, it was EMET that organised and oversaw the distribution, EMET’s spokesman, Ari Morgenstern, told IPS. Morgenstern is a former press officer for the Israeli embassy.

Daniel Pipes. This is a fellow that has had so much to say about Islam, Muslims, and Muslim organizations in the U.S. (all of it negative) that there is no point in doing more than pointing out a few of the responses that have listed in the past to his claims. ... Daniel Pipes article attacking Khaled Abou El Fadl [1], “Identifying Muslim Moderates” [2], and [3] (Sheila Musaji) and 4 (Louay Safi), and response to Daniel Pipes attack on The American Muslim logo [5] (Sheila Musaji) and [6] (Jeremy Henzell-Thomas), and collection of articles on religion building [7], on Pipes’ position on Palestinian right of return [8] (Habib Siddiqui), on Campus Watch [9] (Valerie Saturen), nomination to USIP by President Bush [10], Pipes and the Mujahedeen-e Khalq (MEK) [11], Pipes history [[12]], interview with Andrew Potter [13] (Sheila Musaji). He is on the advisory board for the ENDOWMENT FOR MIDDLE EAST TRUTH.

Gregory Ross the communications director of the New York based CLARION non-profit group.

Walid Shoebat identified in Obsession as a Former PLO Terrorist. He paints a one sided picture. Claims about his former terrorist background have been disputed by more than one source. I’ve even written about his claims previously. Although he is a born again Christian he has written a book “Why We Want to Kill You”. He is on the advisory board of THE ENDOWMENT FOR MIDDLE EAST TRUTH.

Rabbi Raphael Shore who is the producer/co-writer of the film and founder of the CLARION FUND. He is a Canadian-Israeli living in Jerusalem. He also made the film “Relentless” which he developed from a power point presentation he had created. He was the director of both Aish HaTorah International and the Hasbara Fellowships, a pro-Israel advocacy group. Elliot Mathias, director of the Hasbara Fellowships program which aims to train students to be effective pro-Israel activists on their campuses said: “ ‘Obsession’ is so important because it shows what’s happening in Israel is not happening in a vacuum ... and that it affects all American students on campuses, not just Jewish students.”

Sarah Stern, who is on the Board of EMET worked as the National Policy Coordinator for the Zionist Organization of America and later on served as the Director of the Office of Legislative and Governmental Affairs of the AJC (American Jewish Congress).

Tom Trento, who heads http://www.watchobsession.org, the group that distributed the movie at the Democratic and Republican parties’ nominating conventions. Trento also heads something called the FLORIDA SECURITY COUNCIL http://www.floridasecuritycouncil.org/

Khaled Abu Toameh is an Israeli Arab journalist who works for the right-wing Jerusalem Post and has also been a frequent contributor to the Middle East Quarterly; a journal that is part of the publication of the Middle East Forum created by arch Islamophobe Daniel Pipes and Michael Rubin. He is also a speaker with the Hasbara Fellowship Speakers Bureau, which seeks to educate and train “university students to be effective pro-Israel activists on their campuses.”

Eric Werth the director of The Third Jihad, he’s a former Clinton Administration advisor for “homeland security issues” (though there was no such concept in the Clinton Administration) and news producer for NBC’s Dateline. In 1995 The Charlotte Observer reported that “A federal grand jury Tuesday indicted Erik Werth, 25, of Rosslyn, Va., a former policy adviser to the Treasury Department’s undersecretary for enforcement,...” for impersonating a Secret Service Agent in order to get an airline service charge dropped. 10/12/08

Robert Wistrich Chair, Sassoon Center for Anti-Semitism. A professor of European and Jewish studies at Hebrew University in Jerusalem, he believes that anti-Zionism is the same as anti-Semitism. As he stated in his article, “Anti-Zionism and Anti-Semitism” .

FURTHER READING:

American Muslim Resources - article collections http://theamericanmuslim.org/tam.php/features/articles/american_muslim_resources_collections_of_articles_and_references/
Exposing “Obsession”: Truth Over Fear, MPAC http://www.theamericanmuslim.org/tam.php/features/articles/expoing_obsession_truth_over_fear/0016721
Obsession: Radical Misinformation and the War Against Islam, Muhammad al-Darsani http://www.theamericanmuslim.org/tam.php/features/articles/obsession_radical_misinformation_and_the_war_against_islam/0016708
Resources for responding to Obsession DVD distribution, Sheila



© The American Muslim (TAM) 1989

---