Tel-Chai Nation

Joseph Farah reminds one and all about FOX News owner Rupert Murdoch's relations with Saudi prince Alwaleed bin Talal, the very millionaire whose donation offer of $10 million was rightfully turned down by former NYC mayor Rudy Giuliani after the prince attempted to tie it to blaming of America/the victim/Israel. And, he also notes how FOX has been giving a platform to CAIR:

It is with that expectation I carefully alert you to a major and disturbing concern I have about the Fox News Channel – one based on personal experience as well as facts that have been withheld from you if Rupert Murdoch's alternative to CNN is your primary source of news.

Fox News is still inviting spokesmen from the Council on American-Islamic Relations on its programs where they pose as reasonable and legitimate representatives of a Muslim "civil rights" organization, despite the fact that CAIR has been definitively exposed by the FBI and the U.S. Justice Department as a "co-conspirator" in the largest terrorism-financing trial in American history, as a front for the international Muslim Brotherhood – the notorious parent organization of Hamas and al-Qaida – and for being closely associated with a large number of convicted terrorists or felons in terrorism probes, as well as suspected terrorists and active targets of terrorism investigations.

Recently, after the "Christmas bomber" almost killed 288 people over Detroit, CAIR spokesman Ibrahim Hooper was given an entire segment on "The O'Reilly Factor" to argue that Muslims should never be profiled because being a follower of Islam doesn't make an airline passenger any more likely to be a terrorist than being a Swedish grandmother. The real danger, he explained, is that Muslims in America are going to be unfairly persecuted by bigoted Americans.

How could this happen, especially after the recent release of the devastating exposé of CAIR and its network of jihadi-supporting allies, "Muslim Mafia," which caused leaders of the bipartisan Congressional Anti-Terrorism Caucus to hold a Capitol Hill press conference demanding multiple federal investigations of CAIR?

More to the point, why has Fox News, among others in the media, blacked out any and all reporting on the blockbuster book, based in part on a daring and successful six-month-long, ACORN-style undercover operation to expose CAIR?

For some possible answers, let me introduce you to Saudi Prince al Waleed bin Talal, nephew of Saudi King Abdullah. You might remember Talal for his moment of infamy in the landscape of American political culture: In October 2001, right after the World Trade Center destruction at the hands of primarily Saudi terrorists, New York Mayor Rudy Giuliani famously turned down his offer of a $10 million donation for disaster relief after Talal suggested U.S. policies in the Middle East were actually to blame for the 9/11 terrorist attacks.

A few years ago, Talal, who then owned 5.5 percent of the Fox News Channel's parent company, News Corp., boasted of his influence on the network's principal owner, Rupert Murdoch, and explained how he persuaded him to alter on-air content about "Muslim riots" in France to make them more palatable to adherents of Islam.

More recently, Talal and Murdoch greatly expanded their business partnerships to give Murdoch a significant stake in Middle East television programming and advertising.

Meanwhile, CAIR, which claims falsely to receive "no support from any overseas group or government," was revealed in "Muslim Mafia" to have received a $500,000 gift from the very same Saudi Prince al Waleed bin Talal – not to mention gifts of $112,000 from Saudi Prince Abdullah bin Mosa'ad, at least $300,000 from the Saudi-based Organization of the Islamic Conference, $250,000 from the Islamic Development Bank and at least $17,000 from the American office of the Saudi-based International Islamic Relief Organization.

Do I begin to paint a picture of possible media compromise?

If Talal was able to influence content on the Fox News Channel back in 2005 as a minority shareholder in News Corp., is it not likely he and his Saudi friends would have a much more significant influence on Fox News today as major partners of the principal owner?

You know, this is why I profess considerable surprise that some conservatives spectacularly fail to make a note of this, presumably because they're afraid it could complicate their chances of making appearances on FOX. I'd already read about this 5 years ago, and it's clear that even today, Talal is still a problem. In fact, I seem to recall there's even a disgusting reporter for FOX named Phillip Keating who played the role of apologist. It's funny how even today, quite a few liberals dislike them.

I'm going to just say one more thing here, that if CAIR is hopefully indicted at last, FOX is going to be in an embarrassing position - perhaps deservedly - for continuing to provide them with a platform with no questions asked.

Labels: communications, House of Saud, islam, United States