Anyway he [Chris' IDF reservist email correspondent] told me that Haaretz is actually a fringe publication with only about 60,000 readers in Israel, mostly in Tel Aviv, and that it's actually primarily aimed at foreigners via the Internet (a la the Moscow Times). He also says it's 40% German-owned.
True? False? Both? Neither?
................
I don't know if Haaretz is a "fringe publication" or not. Someone with information about its circulation and influence would know better. Still, it's unsurprising a (probably) patriotic reservist would object to the criticisms of Tel Aviv policy published within the paper.
>From time to time, I speak with a US Marine who has
done too many tours in Iraq. He's a sensible enough
guy and full of disdain for the Bush administration.
Even so, he reacts predictably to critiques of the US
invasion of Iraq that go deeper than mere Bush bashing
(that is, critiques built upon investigations into
imperialism as a permanent fixture of US foreign
policy).
So, he describes any publication that goes "too far" as part of the "radical left". Which is "fringe" by another name.
Perhaps your reservist is a similar sort of bloke.
..
In any event, as Andy F points out, Wikipedia, our newest god, provides some background on Haaretz:
Haaretz (Hebrew: "The Land") is an Israeli newspaper, founded in 1919. It is published in Hebrew, with an abridged English edition published as an annex to the International Herald Tribune edition distributed in Israel. Hebrew and English editions also appear on the Internet.
In comparison to the other daily Hebrew newspapers, Maariv and Yedioth Ahronoth, Haaretz is relatively high brow, with longer articles, smaller print, fewer pictures and daily science and literature pages. Its views on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict tend to be left of center, particularly due to the reporting of Amira Hass and, to a lesser extent, Gideon Levy. Haaretz strongly supported the Oslo Accords with the PLO. The position of the newspaper in Israel's religious spectrum is decidedly secular. Although space is often given to issues of social justice (exemplified by Ruth Sinai's frequent columns on this topic), the paper's editorial line on economical issues is primarily classical-liberal in the spirit of The Economist. It supports privatization, free-trade, reduction in welfare, lower taxes and strict fiscal practices.
Management
The newspaper's editorial line was defined by Gershom Schocken, who was editor-in-chief between 1939 and 1990. Haaretz is owned by the Schocken family. The current editor and managing editor are (resp.) David Landau and Tami Litani, who replaced Hanoch Marmari and Yoel Esteron in April 2004.
As of august 2006 DuMont Schauberg has been the owner of 25 percent of shares of the Haaretz group. This German publisher, based in Cologne, controls 4 percent of the German market with 4 daily newspapers, a dozen of other publications and shares in the various radio stations. The deal was negotiated with the help of the former Israeli ambassador to Germany Avi Primor. According to the CEO of the Haaretz group Amos Shocken the proceeds from the sale will allow the company to augment its stake at Walla! which is one of the most popular Internet sites in Israel.
[...]
full
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Haaretz>
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.d.
I never liked you Rusty...you were always a smart alec, a sass mouth and a bit of a giggle puss.
Dr. Impossible
...................... http://monroelab.net/blog/