Links to other websites
October 1998
Generally, links in the diary appear in the text of the entries themselves and also the section index pages. Here is an overall link page, including:
Where to find Palestinian and Israeli websites:
- The definitive guide, and my real Palestinian links page. Be sure to check out the human rights section, always a barometer of any situation, and the Key Peace Process Links section. There are also sections on the media, and a list of Palestinian governmental sites on the Complete Guide, as well as a list of some key Israeli websites.
- For Israeli links, go and pay a visit to Ariga, run by Israeli writer Robert Rosenberg. Ariga publishes articles, letters, poetry and other material from Israelis that want peace, on a very attractive, magazine-style website. The antidote to the Jerusalem Post and the prevailing right-wing Israeli voice.
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Some Israeli-Palestinian conflict links
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Usenet discussion groups on Palestine
- soc.culture.palestine - I don't like these type of lists because they seem to exist as rant therapy forums for right-wing Jews. Apparently, useful discussions occassionally take place.
- talk.politics.mideast - ditto.
- Please also see the Palestinian Mailing Lists section of The Complete Guide to Palestine's Websites for a list of all known local organisations and individuals that maintain discussion and information lists on e-mail.
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Worldwide alternative media resources
- Ali Abunimah's Bitter Pill - This site offers - easily - the most lucid, sharp, and constructive writing to the media about its Middle East coverage that I have seen. It really is that good.
- altmedia.about.com - about.com's alternative media section.
- zdnet.com - excellent source for alternative commentary
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Some recommended resources on journalism
- Newsies.com "Consider yourself lucky", advises journalist Tom Mangan, "if you can claim a single original idea in your lifetime. Newsies on the Web is mine. In October 1996 I started a homepage but felt it inadequate because I had no "theme." On a lark I started scanning the Web to see if any other journalists had been similarly bitten by the Internet bug. Time and again I kept noticing that a lot of news folks had notably cool Web sites -- worthwhile combinations of words and pictures. Well, that's what we do. Words, pictures. Sound if on TV or radio, but it all starts with words and the mental images they convey. Anyway, I decided to start a page with links to other journalists' homepages. Before long I had more than a hundred, and in 18 months I had upwards of 350." I guarantee that this site will provide you with many fascinating hours of browsing, and a new view of of the inhabitants of a profession that is so much a part of life that we forget to consider who inhabits it. My seven question interview, post house demolition and when I was chilling out in Minneapolis, can be found here. Although this website still exists, it was unfortunately frozen in time. What remains, a considerable amount of material, is excellent.
- "Waiting for the Cameras: Journalism and Humanitarian Crises" by By Dr. Bob Arnot - Reporting of major humanitarian crises in the mainstream media has informed millions of people throughout the world of current humanitarian needs. Dr. Bob Arnot, medical correspondent for CBS News, argues that a new brand of journalist, one who specializes in humanitarian affairs, is needed to build on the past successes of media reporting of humanitarian crises. A very intense, convicting and important article for journalism today.
- "The Color of Artists' Rights" by Joe Nickell, an article from Wired News of 11 August 1998 about the issue of intellectual property on the World Wide Web. Considering that A Personal Diary is non-profit and has actually cost me a significant amount of money to publish, imagine my surprise when an entire section of it was uploaded by a commercial business to enhance its own website. I found myself in a bizarre discussion with the manager of the website in which he was telling me that he was doing nothing wrong. "Information should be free," he said. I totally agreed with him and pointed out that it was free, at http://www.birzeit.edu/diary/. The situation was worsened by the fact that the section had been updated several times since he had uploaded it. Whatever, the Wired News article is about Grey Day, an artists' protest against such happenings.
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Photostories and interesting photojournalism links on the Web
- Redemption 2000 - Jerusalem-based Israeli photographer Ittai Bar-Joseph's photo project which mainly traces the Israeli zealot groups and individuals that populate the landscape of Israel/Palestine, as well as some of the more mainstream expressions of faith in the country. The Ramadan photos from Jerusalem's Old City show the incredible crowds that build up during this Muslim festival. Seeing flag-toting Israeli settlers walking through the very Arab backdrop of the Old City is one of the abiding images I have of Jerusalem. The Purim photo from Hebron (imagine Halloween in a warzone) with a Gorilla-suited settler walking down the road is just bizarre. Ongoing, so check it out every so often.
- Photojournalism from the Soul - An Essay by Nancy L. Ford, Photo Editor/ Observer-Dispatch, Utica, NY - "A great photo happens when a photographer sees a situation unfolding in front of them that evokes an emotion that the photographer feels deep down, in the middle of their chest. And in a split second, they then make a conscience choice of exposure, lens, depth of field, lighting, body language, composition, etc., and releases the shutter. The film is then processed, scanned, laid out on a page, printed on a press, driven across town to the newspaper carrier who throws it on some guy's porch, who then opens the newspaper and looks down at that photo ة and if that
guy gets the same feeling deep down in the middle of his chest that the photographer did when they viewed the situation in the first place, they
have made a great photo." A great essay.
- Dying to tell the story - Dying to Tell the Story documents the lives of photojournalists and journalists who put themselves at risk to capture the true story of conflict. This site and the documentary film also explore the life and death of Dan Eldon, a 22-year-old Reuters photographer who, along with three other journalists, was stoned to death in Somalia in 1993.
- John Decker's "The Photojournalist's Coffee House has links to a number of excellent photostories and other resources. Check out his links page in particular.
- Sarah Penman: Images of Native America - Sarah has been photographing Native Americans for over ten years now. This website hosts her "Mending the Sacred Hoop" photoessay and lists her not inconsiderable list of awards. If you're looking for a Web designer right now, note that I designed this website together with Thea Barros, a graphic designer.
- Iron Clad Images - Ken Harper is a friend of mine who I met in the West Bank and I like his photography. On his homepage here, you'll find photostories on AIDS and autistic children. He keeps moving this page so his link is often dead.
- Hiroshima, from Time magazine. Included not so much because it is a well-designed website (which it isn't), rather as an example of the significance of photojournalism as a window through which we view history.
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General photojournalism links
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"Thank you people" links
- Some of the people who have linked to me do not have political websites, which is interesting. I like to think that this is because the Diary reflects a human side, as suggested by John Blower's inclusion of me in the curious people section of his website. (Ed: does that adjective work with the people or the section?).
- Josh Friedman linked to one diary entry about licence plates because he collects license plates. Lame excuse I felt. Anyway, as the author of Platesmenistan he is convinced that, "License plates aren't just a piece of metal bolted to the back of a car, they provide a glimpse into folks' souls." In this country, I am tempted to agree with him.
- Let's not forget Deir Yassin Remembered or the USS Liberty homepage.
- MERIP has good articles about Palestine and a webmaster who helped us raise equipment funds when Birzeit's Web project was starting out. Thanks Dan.
- Mazen Abu Hejleh's The Country and Peoples of Arabia has an excellent selection of Palestinian links.
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"Thank you search engines" links
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Further link suggestions
- If anyone finds any similar sites to the Diary, please let me know. Also, if anyone wants to assist in publicising the Diary to the various Web award bodies, related sites, etc., to extend the readership, please feel free. If you have linked to the Diary, let me know and I will return the favour.
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