Anti-Israel blogger Richard Silverstein has had had his few minutes of fame, being interviewed by Israel’s Channel 10 (hat tip: Walt).
Unfortunately for the Dickster, it did not exactly go according to plan. Instead of being painted as the fearless journalist he thinks of himself, he is pretty much mocked.
I have not gotten around to adding English subtitles (any volunteers?), but Silverstein himself appears from:
- 2:14 – 2:34 , where he admits posting false information once or twice after being taken in by “scams”
- 4:12 – 4:43, where he refers to himself as a journalist (as opposed to, say, unemployed blogger)
Other highlights:
- The journalist pointing out that while Silverstein refers to himself as the “Israeli Wikileaks”, he is not like Wikileaks, since he merely gathers things which are already known to a large group, but under censorship
- One of the hosts asking how Silverstein supports himself if all he does is blog (!)
- The journalist pointing out Silverstein is not a journalist, but a blogger (!)
The mockery has not gone past Silverstein himself, who had this to say on his newspaper column blog (http://ht.ly/4um60):
Channel 10?s Tzinor Layla program offered me my first interview on Israeli TV. The interviewer did a relatively good job. But there were two smart aleck program hosts, London and Kirschenbaum, who insisted on adding their brand of cynicism and levity to the proceedings. One asked how I supported myself and the blog (presumably searching for those Saudi petrodollars) and the other geezer suggested (only half in jest) that Ukraine or China might want to kidnap me, bring me to Israel, where I too could be tried right alongside Abusisi. I thought it was hilarious too. Just like you.
Did Silverstein just call someone else a geezer?
Priceless!
Update: It gets better. After some commenters suggest that Silverstein is not impartial, he goes off at them.
As to whether the Shabak is a golem run amok, we’ll have to agree to disagree. I note that you claim I engaged in guesses & speculation but refuse to offer any examples of when I’ve been proven wrong. There are a few examples, but in the overall scheme of all the stories I’ve written my record is one I’m proud of.
In other words “You can’t prove I have ever been wrong. But I admit I have been. And I am proud of the fact I have been wrong only a few times.” But if Silverstein ever wants to be considered credible, being wrong even a few times is a large black stain (incidentally, I wonder if he includes this as one of his times “being wrong”).
You merely state that the IDF, MOssad & Shabak are really decent guys despite a few flaws but offer no proof to back up your statement. That’s not a very credible statement as you’re articulated it.
You may not be what YOU call “right-wing,” but I wouldn’t go so far as to claim as you have that you’re not what I would call that. Anyone who finds laudable things to say about Shabak after all the reporting I’ve done on them isn’t exactly a flaming leftist to put it mildly.
In other words “If you don’t find my reporting to be credible, you must be right wing.”
I think I have plenty of knowledge & understanding to accurately judge these cases. And I think that Channel 10, if they agreed with you, wouldn’t have offered me an opportunity to be featured on Tzinor Layla.
Can you give me a single instance in which my reports on Abusisi have been based on “opinion & speculation” rather than “fact??”
Meanwhile, the guy who claims he has “plenty of knowledge & understanding to accurately judge these cases” can’t even get the name of the program host correct. As a commenter points out:
Minor correction – yesterday Yaron London didn’t host the show, instead it was Raviv Drooker (black hair) and Moti Kirshenbaum (gray hair).
Silverstein’s response:
Sorry, the heading atop the report on the Channel 10 web page said that the show was “Yaron and Kirschenbaum.” I assumed that’s who they were.
Investigative journalism at its finest!