Helen Thomas Retires in Wake of Anti-Israel Remarks

[Cees Binkhorst]

REPLY TO: D66 at nic.surfnet.nl

Ze kan vast wel een plekje vinden in het groepje journalisten met een
tegendraadse mening ;)
Maar ja, de manier waarop die behandeld worden, zal ze waarschijnlijk
zelf moeten beginnen.

Groet / Cees

June 7, 2010, 12:05 pm
Helen Thomas Retires in Wake of Anti-Israel Remarks
http://thecaucus.blogs.nytimes.com/2010/06/07/white-house-blasts-reporters-remarks/
By SHERYL GAY STOLBERG

Updated: Helen Thomas announced on Monday that she is retiring, moments
after the White House Correspondents Association said it was considering
stripping her of her front-row press room seat.

Tthe 89-year-old so-called “dean of the White House press corps” had
caused an uproar after making remarks in May suggesting that Israeli
Jews should “get the hell out of Palestine” and return to Germany and
Poland “or wherever they came from.”

Ms. Thomas, a columnist for Hearst Newspapers who has frequently been
critical of Israel, had apologized for the comments. She made them to a
rabbi who interviewed her on videotape outside the White House during a
celebration of Jewish heritage in May.

The decision to retire, effective immediately, was announced by Hearst
Newspapers, which syndicates her column. Ms. Thomas will turn 90 on
August 4.

The board of the correspondents association had just met to consider how
to respond to her contentious remarks, and had issued this statement:

     ”Helen Thomas’ comments were indefensible and the White House
Correspondents Association board firmly dissociates itself from them.
Many in our profession who have known Helen for years were saddened by
the comments, which were especially unfortunate in light of her role as
a trail blazer on the White House beat.

     While Helen has not been a member of the WHCA for many years, her
special status in the briefing room has helped solidify her as the dean
of the White House press corps so we feel the need to speak out strongly
on this matter.

     We want to emphasize that the role of the WHCA is to represent the
White House press corps in its dealings with the White House on
coverage-related issues. We do not police the speech of our members or
colleagues. We are not involved at all in issuing White House
credentials, that is the purview of the White House itself.

     But the incident does revive the issue of whether it is appropriate
for an opinion columnist to have a front row seat in the WH briefing
room. That is an issue under the jurisdiction of this board. We are
actively seeking input from our association members on this important
matter, and we have scheduled a special meeting of the WHCA board on
Thursday to decide on the seating issue.

Earlier on Monday, Robert Gibbs, the White House press secretary,
condemned the remarks made by Ms. Thomas.

Mr. Gibbs said he had not spoken directly with the president about it.
But, he added: “Those remarks were offensive and reprehensible. She
should and has apologized. Obviously those remarks do not reflect,
certainly, the opinion of I assume most of the people in here, and
certainly not of the administration.”

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