Media mogul Rupert Murdoch, in a pre-recorded statement played at a pro-Israel gathering, said freedoms around the world depend on a free Israel, as reported by the Algemeiner Journal. “You know as I do that as Israel goes, so goes … our morality and our very existence as freedom-loving citizens of the world.”
Murdoch praised Pastor John Hagee, founder of Christians United for Israel, who was honored that evening. Murdoch called Israel “the beleaguered nation” that was a “beacon of hope and justice, ” and called Israel’s enemies, “our enemies, glorifiers of death, seeking to impose their bloody doctrine through violence.”
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In Hagee’s speech, he discussed the challenges in organizing such an event, and Murdoch said of Hagee, “You recognize it (Israel) as the greatest ally of democracy, in a region beset with turmoil and radicalism.” Recorded tributes to Hagee from Elie Wiesel, Lindsey Graham and Benjamin Netanyahu were played that evening.
Murdoch had a high profile gaffe a couple of years ago on Twitter that praised Israel but through using an anti-semitic trope about “Jewish-dominated” media. Murdoch tweeted, “Why is Jewish-owned press so consistently anti-Israel in every crisis.”
Well, Murdoch isn’t Jewish and certainly dominates a lot of media, so he wasn’t talking about himself. This led to the Guardian’s Michael Wolf to ask, “Does being pro-Israel absolve you of your suspicion about Jews? Can you be an anti-semite and still support Israel.”
“Anti-Semite” may be a bit strong to characterize Murdoch, but Wolf does give some food for thought, even if it was “so last Gaza conflict” or “so two years ago.”
