Copyright 2008 Campus Watch Fri, 16 May 2008 16:37:40 -0400 http://blogs.law.harvard.edu/tech/rss http://www.campus-watch.org/blog webmaster@campus-watch.org en-us Cinnamon Stillwell http://www.campus-watch.org/blog/2008/05/kvie-segment-features-campus-watch-prof-al.html http://www.campus-watch.org/blog/2008/05/kvie-segment-features-campus-watch-prof-al.html Fri, 16 May 2008 16:37:40 EST KVIE, a Sacramento public television affiliate, aired a segment this past week as part of its ViewFinder series titled, "Songs of Hope." The title refers to a Sacramento Philharmonic performance of the same name that featured three musicians of Egyptian/Muslim, Arab-Israeli/Christian, and Israeli/Jewish persuasion, respectively. In the process, the show's producers sought to answer the question: "How does someone outside the Muslim faith get an accurate glimpse of Islamic faith when those Cinnamon Stillwell http://www.campus-watch.org/blog/2008/05/middle-east-studies-in-fiction.html http://www.campus-watch.org/blog/2008/05/middle-east-studies-in-fiction.html Thu, 15 May 2008 12:54:58 EST My latest Campus Watch article - posted today at Frontpage Magazine - explores the intersection of fiction, academia, and terrorism. It begins like so: It isn't often that characters based on the field of Middle East studies show up in current fiction, but the novels of author Daniel Silva are an exception. The last three novels of his series featuring Israeli secret agent/art restorer Gabriel Allon explore the intersection of Middle East studies and international intrigue. The sixth novel in Winfield Myers http://www.campus-watch.org/blog/2008/05/columbias-catastrophic-nakba-conference.html http://www.campus-watch.org/blog/2008/05/columbias-catastrophic-nakba-conference.html Thu, 8 May 2008 15:20:44 EST Mary Madigan has written about last week's "Nabka" (Catastrophe) conference at Columbia University. She attended and provides a first-hand report on the pontifications of Columbia professors Joseph Massad, Lila Abu Lughod, Gil Anidjar, and others. Mary wrote last month about NYU's "Academic Freedom" conference. Here is the introduction of her essay, which was published today at FrontPage Magazine: As Israelis look towards the future in their celebration of the nation's 60th birthday, some Cinnamon Stillwell http://www.campus-watch.org/blog/2008/04/middle-east-studies-profs-still-peddling.html http://www.campus-watch.org/blog/2008/04/middle-east-studies-profs-still-peddling.html Mon, 28 Apr 2008 18:03:57 EST In his 2002 Commentary article, "Jihad and the Professors," Middle East Forum director Daniel Pipes makes a compelling case for "the nearly universal falsification of jihad on the part of American academic scholars." Rather than acknowledging the aggressively military nature of jihad (otherwise known as "holy war"), such academics would have us believe that it consists either of defensive warfare, a struggle for spiritual and personal improvement, or the promotion of social justice. Here are a Winfield Myers http://www.campus-watch.org/blog/2008/04/victims-on-parade-at-nyu-academic.html http://www.campus-watch.org/blog/2008/04/victims-on-parade-at-nyu-academic.html Thu, 10 Apr 2008 09:23:14 EST On April 3 and 4, Mary Madigan attended a conference at New York University called "Academic Freedom in an Age of Permanent Warfare." Her report on what she heard, commissioned by Campus Watch, was published today at FrontPage Magazine. Madigan's title captures the spirit of the conference: "Victims on Parade at NYU 'Academic Freedom' Conference." Here's a sample: The poster advertising New York University's "Academic Freedom in the Age of Permanent Warfare" conference featured a scolding Winfield Myers http://www.campus-watch.org/blog/2008/04/middle-east-quarterly-student-1.html http://www.campus-watch.org/blog/2008/04/middle-east-quarterly-student-1.html Tue, 8 Apr 2008 18:29:05 EST As we announced last fall, the Middle East Quarterly is holding a student writing contest. The May 31 deadline is approaching, so get your entries in. The original press release follows. ****************************** The Middle East Quarterly is pleased to announce the Albert J. Wood Student Writing Contest. It will award $1,000 for the best university student writing in Middle East studies in a given year, plus the opportunity to be published in the journal. The contest is named after Albert Winfield Myers http://www.campus-watch.org/blog/2008/03/profs-hammer-israel-fail-to.html http://www.campus-watch.org/blog/2008/03/profs-hammer-israel-fail-to.html Wed, 12 Mar 2008 00:00:00 EST In "Profs Hammer Israel, Fail to Predict Palestinian War," Campus Watch adjunct scholar Jonathan Schanzer asks why professors of Middle East studies failed to address internecine Palestinian war, even as many attacked Israel's defense policies. Writing in The American Thinker, Schanzer notes: From the Egyptian border breach to indiscriminate rocket fire at Israel, the Gaza Strip currently poses serious threats to regional security. The Hamas terrorist organization controls this territory Cinnamon Stillwell http://www.campus-watch.org/blog/2008/03/david-meir-levi-vs-hatem-bazian.html http://www.campus-watch.org/blog/2008/03/david-meir-levi-vs-hatem-bazian.html Mon, 10 Mar 2008 00:00:00 EST My latest Campus Watch article - posted today at Frontpage Magazine - reports on a debate between Middle East studies academics, David Meir-Levi and Hatem Bazian: A Santa Clara University course optimistically titled, "The Peaceful Settlement of International Disputes," was the setting for a February 26 academic debate on one of the world's most intractable disputes: The Arab/Israeli conflict. San Jose State University Middle East history lecturer, David Meir-Levi, represented the pro-Israeli Cinnamon Stillwell http://www.campus-watch.org/blog/2008/02/campus-watch-readers-weigh-in-on.html http://www.campus-watch.org/blog/2008/02/campus-watch-readers-weigh-in-on.html Wed, 27 Feb 2008 00:00:00 EST Readers have been weighing in on the Middle East studies professors featured in recent Campus Watch articles or blog posts (as well as a few new names) with some enlightening stories of their own. With their permission, we are reprinting several of them below: In response to "Joel Beinin To Head PSU's Middle East Studies Center?": Re: "In addition, Beinin, along with other Middle East studies academics, has been involved in contributing to the production of biased and inaccurate history Cinnamon Stillwell http://www.campus-watch.org/blog/2008/02/nyu-hosting-the-latest-academic.html http://www.campus-watch.org/blog/2008/02/nyu-hosting-the-latest-academic.html Fri, 22 Feb 2008 00:00:00 EST The proliferation of dubious conferences on "academic freedom" continues unabated. And, in each case, biased and politicized Middle East studies academics are a major component. In October, 2007, the University of Chicago hosted, "In Defense of Academic Freedom," an event whose unifying theme was "the notion that Jewish groups have degraded the quality and breadth of discussion in the media and in Washington." Hardly the stuff of self-described progressives, but such is the state of discourse Cinnamon Stillwell http://www.campus-watch.org/blog/2008/02/joel-beinin-to-head-portland-state.html http://www.campus-watch.org/blog/2008/02/joel-beinin-to-head-portland-state.html Fri, 15 Feb 2008 00:00:00 EST History professor and former president of the Middle East Studies Association, Joel Beinin, went on "extended leave" from Stanford in 2006 due to what he described as the university's "minimal institutional interest in the study and teaching of the modern Middle East." Since that time, Beinin has been serving as director of Middle East Studies at the American University in Cairo (AUC), Egypt. But was it scholarly concerns or mounting criticism that caused Beinin to leave Stanford for AUC? In a Cinnamon Stillwell http://www.campus-watch.org/blog/2008/02/esposito-at-stanford.html http://www.campus-watch.org/blog/2008/02/esposito-at-stanford.html Fri, 15 Feb 2008 00:00:00 EST Last week, I attended a lecture at Stanford University by Georgetown professor John Esposito and my Campus Watch article on the experience is up today at Frontpage Magazine. It begins like so: Georgetown professor John Esposito, director of the Saudi-financed Prince Alwaleed Bin Talal Center for Muslim-Christian Understanding has a reputation as an apologist for radical Islam. And it's one he lived up to with a Stanford University speech last week titled, "Dying for God? Suicide Terrorism and Cinnamon Stillwell http://www.campus-watch.org/blog/2008/02/campus-watch-on-the-savage-nation.html http://www.campus-watch.org/blog/2008/02/campus-watch-on-the-savage-nation.html Thu, 14 Feb 2008 00:00:00 EST I'll be a guest on "The Savage Nation" talk radio show this week. Host Michael Savage and I will discuss my recent Campus Watch article, "Promotion of Islam in Our Schools" on California State University-Sacramento professor Ayad Al-Qazzaz, as well as the larger subject of bias and inaccuracy in Middle East studies textbooks. The interview will air either today (2/14) or tomorrow (2/15), most likely in the third hour of the show. Check local listings for stations that carry "The Savage Nation" Winfield Myers http://www.campus-watch.org/blog/2008/02/coddling-islamists-at-the-state.html http://www.campus-watch.org/blog/2008/02/coddling-islamists-at-the-state.html Thu, 14 Feb 2008 00:00:00 EST In "Coddling Islamists: Prof Who Objected to Sharing Panel with IDF Veteran Gets $500k Grant to 'Initiate Dialogue,'" I examine the latest news about University of Delaware political scientist Muqtedar Khan, who is also a Pentagon consultant and fellow at the Brookings Institution. Khan received considerable attention in October when he objected to appearing on an academic panel with Campus Watch associate fellow Asaf Romirowsky because Romirowsky is a veteran of the Israeli Defense Forces. Cinnamon Stillwell http://www.campus-watch.org/blog/2008/02/friends-of-sabeel-cair-and-middle.html http://www.campus-watch.org/blog/2008/02/friends-of-sabeel-cair-and-middle.html Thu, 7 Feb 2008 00:00:00 EST Friends of Sabeel, the anti-Israel organization that disingenuously bills itself as the savior of Palestinian Christians, has once again reared its ugly head. Friends of Sabeel – North America (FOSNA) will be holding its regional conference, "From Occupation to Liberation: Voices We Need To Hear," in Pasadena, California on February 15-16 and, as usual, those voices include Middle East studies academics. As Campus Watch noted last year, FOSNA's 2007 regional conference featured the highly Cinnamon Stillwell http://www.campus-watch.org/blog/2008/02/cal-state-university-sacramento.html http://www.campus-watch.org/blog/2008/02/cal-state-university-sacramento.html Tue, 5 Feb 2008 00:00:00 EST My latest Campus Watch article, "Promotion of Islam in Our Schools," appears today at Frontpage Magazine. It focuses on Cal State-University Sacramento professor Ayad Al-Qazzaz and his involvement with a controversial textbook currently being used in California's public middle schools. Read on: Public school children in grades K-12 are being assigned textbooks that misrepresent and, in some cases, glorify Islamic beliefs and history – often at the expense of other religions and cultures. The Cinnamon Stillwell http://www.campus-watch.org/blog/2008/01/juan-cole-peddles-hamas-propaganda.html http://www.campus-watch.org/blog/2008/01/juan-cole-peddles-hamas-propaganda.html Tue, 22 Jan 2008 00:00:00 EST When it comes to off-the-wall commentary on the Middle East conflict, University of Michigan history professor Juan Cole is the gift that keeps on giving. If there's anti-Israel propaganda to be found, one can be sure Cole will be peddling it at his ironically named blog, Informed Comment. His labeling of Gaza in September, 2007 as "the worst outcome of Western colonialism anywhere in the world outside the Belgian Congo" is a case in point. As noted by Noah Pollack at Contentions, Cole's latest Winfield Myers http://www.campus-watch.org/blog/2008/01/seeking-true-diversity-in-middle.html http://www.campus-watch.org/blog/2008/01/seeking-true-diversity-in-middle.html Wed, 16 Jan 2008 00:00:00 EST Campus Watch commissioned Franck Salameh, an assistant professor of Near Eastern Studies and Coordinator of the Arabic Studies and Hebrew Program at Boston College, to write an essay examining why the founding of the new organization, the Association for the Study of the Middle East and Africa (ASMEA), can offer much-needed intellectual diversity to the field of Middle East studies. His essay, "Seeking True Diversity in Middle East Studies," appears today at FrontPage Magazine. It's an Cinnamon Stillwell http://www.campus-watch.org/blog/2008/01/juan-cole-and-cair-play-the.html http://www.campus-watch.org/blog/2008/01/juan-cole-and-cair-play-the.html Tue, 15 Jan 2008 00:00:00 EST As noted recently by Campus Watch, University of Michigan history professor Juan Cole will be speaking at a CAIR (Council on American Islamic Relations) fundraiser this March. In light of Cole's high-profile fundraising efforts for CAIR, one assumes he either shares the group's Islamist political agenda or serves as a useful idiot in its promotion. Strengthening that assumption, it turns out Cole will be the primary speaker at yet another upcoming CAIR event, this time on January 23 at the Winfield Myers http://www.campus-watch.org/blog/2008/01/juan-coles-crooked-tales-of-hormuz.html http://www.campus-watch.org/blog/2008/01/juan-coles-crooked-tales-of-hormuz.html Tue, 15 Jan 2008 00:00:00 EST My latest essay, which appears today at FrontPage Magazine, fisks University of Michigan historian Juan Cole. Without a shred of evidence, Cole proposed that the recent clash between the US Navy and Iranian speed boats in the Strait of Hormuz was a "GOP fabrication"; selectively quoted a New York Times blog comment to twist its meaning; and used the propagandistic Iranian media as a straight source. Fine action from a former president of the Middle East Studies Association (MESA). Writing in