CNN Bemoans Americans' Hostility to Islam, Obama Needs to 'Educate'

CNN Bemoans Americans' Hostility to Islam, Obama Needs to 'Educate'

By Matthew Balan (Bio | Archive)
April 7, 2009 - 17:13 ET

April 2009 CNN Poll Graphic | NewsBusters.org CNN latched onto two separate poll results on Monday that indicated that about half of Americans view the Islamic world negatively or don’t trust Muslim allies as much as other allies, and indicated that President Obama and others in authority need to be “educators” for the public about Islam. The network brought up the polls’ results on seven different occasions during their programming that day.

During the 8 am Eastern hour of American Morning, chief international correspondent Christiane Amanpour first brought up a recent ABC News/Washington Post poll which found that 55 percent of Americans “concede that they lack a good basic understanding of Islam” and that 48 percent “hold an unfavorable opinion of Islam.” After she read these results, substitute anchor Carol Costello responded, “I think the difference is that many Americans see Islam as an ideology instead of a religion, and maybe, President Obama has to kind of -- kind of put a definition on it from the American standpoint in Turkey.”

Later, near the end of the noon hour of the Newsroom program, Amanpour appeared again, this time with anchor Tony Harris. He asked the correspondent to “talk us through some recent polling in The Washington Post that suggests that the president is going to have to play the role of educator-in-chief when it comes to explaining Islam to many in America, even as he works for better relations with the Islamic world.” Amanpour first answered that President Obama was “trying to smooth...over and correct” the “terrible rupture” between the U.S. and the Islamic world over the past eight years.

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Tony Harris, CNN Anchor; & Christiane Amanpour, CNN Chief International Correspondent | NewsBusters.org After repeating the two poll results she read on the earlier program, she continued: “So there is an enormous amount of work to be done, and I don’t think actually it’s just the president. I think it’s really schools, it’s media, it’s the whole sort of public sphere of public debate. And to that end, we here at CNN have a two-hour documentary coming up. My next documentary is, in fact, on the next generation of Muslim youth.”

It should be noted that the last time that Amanpour had a multi-hour documentary on religion, she sympathized with Muslim “fundamentalists” in the U.S., while comparing Christian conservatives to the Taliban.

Over four hours later, at the bottom half of 5 pm Eastern hour of The Situation Room, senior political correspondent Candy Crowley introduced some of CNN’s own poll results on a related question, which asked “Americans if they think the U.S. should trust Muslim allies as much as other allies. The country’s split -- 51 percent said yes, 48 percent said no.” Anchor Wolf Blitzer would go on to ask The Weekly Standard’s Stephen Hayes about this result an hour later during a panel discussion.

During a segment on the No Bias, No Bull program nearly two hours later, anchor Roland Martin condescendingly asked the Reverend Al Mohler, the president of the Southern Baptist Seminary, about this specific poll number: “Al, this poll is pretty interesting -- 48 percent of the people not trusting our Muslim allies. Is this because we’re, frankly, fighting two wars in Muslim countries, or is it a matter of, frankly, Americans having no clue about Muslims and then just operating off of ignorance and their own views, and not facts?”

Anchor Anderson Cooper would bring up CNN’s poll number one more time. Twenty-five minutes into the 10 pm Eastern hour of his Anderson Cooper 360 program, he asked senior political analyst David Gergen for his take on it. Gergen sort of brushed it aside as the latest scare: “Well, we’ve heard so much anti-Muslim talk for so long since 9/11, it’s not -- that's not unnatural. You know, polls in the past showed a lot of anti-China sentiment. There was a time when there was a huge amount of anti-Soviet sentiment in this country. It -- I think, actually, the Muslim world is doing better than I would have expected in that -- in that poll.”

—Matthew Balan is a news analyst at the Media Research Center.

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"Amanpour first answered

April 7, 2009 - 17:25 ET by JustAl

"Amanpour first answered that President Obama was “trying to smooth...over and correct” the “terrible rupture” between the U.S. and the Islamic world over the past eight years."

At what point in history was the U.S. close to the Islamic world? Bush's detractors claim he "made a lot of enemies." Well, I may not be a big fan of Bush, but the way I see it he only treated existing enemies as enemies.

Great powers do not survive because other nations love or admire them. Great powers survived only because other nations fear and respect them. While the current resident of the White House vainly reaches for the former, he is dangerously sacrificing the later.

Does anyone else find it humorous that someone expects the man who is too ashamed of his college transcripts to make them public, the man who carried 78% of the high school drop out vote, the man who thought there were 57 states and that Austrian is a language, to educate others?

I don't trust muslims and I

April 7, 2009 - 17:27 ET by Radical1979

I don't trust muslims and I never will. They are in a phase of their religion during which they want to convert the world to their faith. Their faith endorses oppression of women, lack of respect for human life, and lack of respect for other religions.

I don't need Obama to educate me. I'm still smarter than he is or will ever be.

I'll trust muslims before I

April 7, 2009 - 17:32 ET by zhombre

I'll trust muslims before I trust these media elites who want to instruct us in how to behave ourselves and what views, beliefs and attitudes are appropriate. A turd in their collective cocktail shakers!

Look, I'm an American

April 7, 2009 - 20:12 ET by Camelopardalis

Look, I'm an American Muslim woman and I understand your fears given a lot of things that some Muslims have propagated. However, I will tell you these few things:

1) Despite what some Muslims say, it is never been the job of Muslims to convert others to Islam. Our responsibility is to simply tell others about the faith; if they don't convert then that's fine. I think you are thinking about a verse in the Qur'an that says "fight them until they become Muslim." The verse is talking about Muslims who are provoked into attack. Muslims are supposed to stop fighting when the other side either surrenders (mentioned in another verse) or decides to convert to Islam.

2) I am a Muslim woman, and I can tell you that the 'Islam' you see practiced in many countries is not what I read in the Qur'an nor what I have been taught. Muslim women have the "responsibility" to seek knowledge as Muslim men do, the right to work (as Muhammad's first wife Khadija did), and to seek divorce when they want to. In fact, moderate scholars using the Qur'an, have said that a woman that is abused has automatic right to divorce. I also wear the headscarf and it is not meant to demean or belittle woman; the Qur'an says that women should cover so "that they will be SEEN and NOT BOTHERED."

3) Regarding the respect for human life, the Qur'an says that "killing a human unjustly is like killing the entire of mankind and the saving of a human life is like the saving of the entire of mankind." Killing a human life unjustly does include acts such as suicide attacks and honor killings, as neither are mentioned anywhere in the Qur'an or Muhammad's sayings (Hadith).

4) Muslims are required to respect other religions. The laws of Sharia are not supposed to apply to Muslims (and are in fact much more loose than we have seen manifested), this is why Jews are allowed to buy alcohol in Iran and Muslims are not.

Like I said, I understand the feelings you have towards Islam; if i were an outsider looking in, I'd probably see things the same way too, especially considering the things some Muslims say and do. But I hope the above will help you a little bit in understanding Islam and one day we Muslims as a people will be a more understanding and tolerant.

Thanks camelopardalis

April 7, 2009 - 20:30 ET by Cool Arrow

Qur'an 9:5 "When the sacred forbidden months for fighting are past, fight and kill the disbelievers wherever you find them, take them captive, torture
them, and lie in wait and ambush them using every stratagem of war."

To me, it looks like a directive to torture and/or kill soldiers, women, children, babies. Am I wrong on this alleged quote?

LYDSEXICS UNTIE!

Sorry, but Muslims I know who've converted to Christianity...

April 7, 2009 - 21:05 ET by CKA in Red State USA

...fully disagree with everything you've said, based on what I've heard them say and based on references they've given me to the Koran.

The fact that you are a Muslim simply means you remain deceived, whether you know it or not or whether you believe it or not.

And, please: "Muslims are required to respect other religions."

At least you didn't call Islam a "religion of peace."

Truly, may the scales of deception be stripped from your heart and eyes.

Good reason not to trust. I know some who've converted . . .

April 7, 2009 - 21:02 ET by CKA in Red State USA

. . .to Christianity and they're very open about saying that Islam's goal is to destroy Christianity, forcibly or otherwise, and subjugate anything non-Muslim.

BTW: Did America elect a president or a Lecturer-in-Chief or Professor-in-Chief.

Truly, I don't think Obama has a clue about his, nor do his shills and shillettes in the ASS -- advocacy/slobbering/socialist -- media.

For sure, he's pushing now at a vessel whose limita are about to be reached, if not already.

He'd be wise to confine himself to trying to learn how to govern, and give up his megalomaniacal pedantic and didactic behavior.

But, then, given the intellectually inbred circles in which he was rasied, educated and traveled, he really does think that Americans are stupid.

After all, being the world-class b***s*** artist he was and is, he must've thought that America is full of ignoranta and stupid people if they elected him.

So his election just confirmed what he suspected.

So he believes he has the right -- no, the manifest destiny -- to educate the ignorant masses.

CNN and all their ilk can

April 7, 2009 - 17:33 ET by bigtimer

CNN and all their ilk can stick it where the sun doesn't shine.

Doubling down on stupid is not a particularly good idea. ~Andrew Breitbart

I have nothing against

April 7, 2009 - 17:47 ET by SRPwrd

I have nothing against Muslims, because I know that those who murder use Islam as a cover for being blood-thirsty idiots. I think of them as the KKK or Nation of Islam, who use being white or black as a reason to subjugate and hurt others.But, this doesn't mean that we have to be constantly reminded and scolded about what a select few think.

"I believe in American Exceptionalism, just like Brits believe in British Exceptionalism and Greeks believe in Greek Exceptionalism." - PreBO, 4/4/09

So I guess

April 7, 2009 - 18:05 ET by sdan

they are throwing out that seperation of church and state thing. Islam is a religion. We have been told for years we can't pray in school, we can't bring the politics to the pulpits and all the other garbage that the left has been spouting but now Obama and others in athority have to "educate" us about Islam? Do they realize what hypocrites they are?

sdan...

April 7, 2009 - 20:36 ET by dborschjr68

You betcha they realize this. They are banking on the ignorant masses who hate the Judeo-Christian God, and who venerate Bill Maher, to not realize this.

And wouldn't it stand to reason that if liberals really wanted the whole "separation of church and state" to be complete, that they would make it so no elected official has ANY religious beliefs whatsoever? In other words, to be a government leader, you must be completely devoid of any religious thoughts or practices, period.

As a Christian, I can no sooner seperate myself from my Jesus and His teachings than I could seperate myself from my skin color. That's why I'll never be President.

The last eight years???

April 7, 2009 - 18:12 ET by Jack Herman

What was that little thing that happened in the late 70's when some of our countrymen were held hostage for well over a year by some lunatic religious fanatics?

Jack Herman...Oh, right... But...

April 7, 2009 - 18:53 ET by PrairieSky

we imperialist Americans brought that on ourselves, dontcha' know??? At least that's according to the insane liberal, America-hating rantings of the left...

"...peace is the highest aspiration of the American People. We will negotiate for it, sacrifice for it, we will never surrender for it, now or ever." President Ronald Reagan~ January 20, 1981

Jack...

April 7, 2009 - 20:31 ET by dborschjr68

...so glad someone brought that up.

Wasn't it, let me see, IRAN that held our folks because of the Ayatollah Khomeni? (Pardon if I spelled that incorrectly. Anglicizing Arabic isn't my strong suit.)

And let me see, wasn't that under Jimmy Carter, our President from 1976-1980? Oh, and lest I forget, Carter was a wussy Democrat, too.

But remember what happened when Reagan won the election? Miraculously, the hostages were released. (Or were they released shortly after Reagan took office? Sorry, I do not remember.)

Anyhoos, these extremists were crapping in their black market American Levi's when they realized a Republican badass was coming into power who wouldn't take any of their Islamic foolishness.

Obama says America isn't at war with Islam. He's lying. I'm an American, and I am surely at war with Islam. I have a God, a King of Kings, and He has nothing to do with the false god of Islam.

Christiane Amanpour...

April 7, 2009 - 18:23 ET by PrairieSky

“...So there is an enormous amount of work to be done, and I don’t think actually it’s just the president. I think it’s really schools, it’s media, it’s the whole sort of public sphere of public debate. And to that end, we here at CNN have a two-hour documentary coming up. My next documentary is, in fact, on the next generation of Muslim youth.”

I can't stand Christiane Amanpour...I have never had any use for her or her smug, ideologically slanted reporting...When Ms. Amanpour says "...there is an enormous amount of work to be done..." what she really means is there is an enormous amount of indoctrination to be done about Islam and Muslims. She is an America-hater and Islamo-fascist sympathizer of the first order...make no mistake about that. And let's not forget this little bit of factual info...Ms. Amanpour just happens to be half-Iranian...Anyone think that factoid has any bearing on her ideologies? I'm willing to bet that it does...

"...peace is the highest aspiration of the American People. We will negotiate for it, sacrifice for it, we will never surrender for it, now or ever." President Ronald Reagan~ January 20, 1981

Sky... You covered it

April 7, 2009 - 18:28 ET by bigtimer

Sky...

You covered it all...

I see her...I click the channel...I have detested her forever...just her voice creeps me out...plus lets add in who she is married to also...Madeline-Not-So-Bright's Number Two snibbling guy...Jamie Rubin...from the Clintoon Crew.

Doubling down on stupid is not a particularly good idea. ~Andrew Breitbart

bt...Right back at cha'...Good call...

April 7, 2009 - 18:41 ET by PrairieSky

I forgot to mention Amanpour's sniveling, looney liberal apologist hubby, Rubin...I loathed him when he was a Clintoon, and when I heard who he was married to, my first thought was that they were made for each other.

"...peace is the highest aspiration of the American People. We will negotiate for it, sacrifice for it, we will never surrender for it, now or ever." President Ronald Reagan~ January 20, 1981

So tired of this...

April 7, 2009 - 19:13 ET by adam

Why is it always conveyed as US being mean or "hostile" to THEM?? I'd just like to point out the article by Reuters that says "Gaddafi, who took power in 1969 in a military coup in his oil- and
gas-rich North African state, was shunned for decades by the West,
which accused him of supporting terrorism." (http://www.reuters.c...) Was it mearly an accusation or did Gaddafi admit to supporting terrorism in the past? Damn us! Why must we be so hostile to peace-loving, sane, non-tyrannical examples of humanitarian leaders?? Maybe the nightclub bombings in Berlin and the bombing of Pan Am flight 103 in Lockerbie Scotland hinted at what a terrorist-supporting tyrant Gaddafi is. Sorry Muammar, we didn't mean to be so mean to you....dammit I hate Reuters.

adam...

April 7, 2009 - 20:39 ET by dborschjr68

If memory serves me correctly, it was Khaddafi, while controlling Libya, who got his ass bombed by Reagan in 1985 or 1986 for being uppity.

Good lord, but I miss Reagan sometimes.

I'm a Muslim and I'm going

April 7, 2009 - 20:16 ET by Camelopardalis

I'm a Muslim and I'm going to disagree Amanpour. I think she means well, but the truth is that there are many Muslim countries that have foul and oppressive practices that cannot be justified by discriminatory foreign policy. Before people start seeing us in a positive light, us 'moderate' Muslims need to band together and try to cure the ills of the Muslim world.

Camelopardalis...I am so glad...

April 7, 2009 - 20:32 ET by PrairieSky

that you said this...

"...Before people start seeing us in a positive light, us 'moderate' Muslims need to band together and try to cure the ills of the Muslim world."

I agree with you whole-heartedly, and I have a question for you...As a Muslim, why do you think it is that more 'moderate' Muslims around the world, and in the US in particular, have not been more vocal in denouncing the radical actions of those in your faith that are espousing jihad? I know if there was a radical group from my faith (Catholic) that were running around the world creating such havoc, I'd be furious and would be speaking out against it every chance I got.

"...peace is the highest aspiration of the American People. We will negotiate for it, sacrifice for it, we will never surrender for it, now or ever." President Ronald Reagan~ January 20, 1981

Islam has a strong

April 7, 2009 - 21:35 ET by Camelopardalis

Islam has a strong tradition of brotherhood and even when Muslims do wrong, some find it difficult to speak out against 'brethren.'

Additionally, many Muslims do not agree with terrorist attacks, but sympathize for the reasons that they are done. They believe that the US a has discriminatory foreign policy towards the Muslim world.

I believe that many terrorists are young men who are frustrated at high employment rates and lack of opportunities and decide to blame it on the US rather than on their own leaders.

I believe that many

April 7, 2009 - 21:52 ET by bigtimer

I believe that many terrorists are young men who are frustrated at high employment rates and lack of opportunities and decide to blame it on the US rather than on their own leaders.

Maybe the should read the help want ads and take whatever they can do, even if it is working (boo-hoo-hoo) a job they don't want to take...the help want ads are still full of them...

Or exit this country...and find their opportunities from there.

I have no pity for this scenario.

Doubling down on stupid is not a particularly good idea. ~Andrew Breitbart

Camelopardalis...Unfortunately, those are all...

April 7, 2009 - 22:04 ET by PrairieSky

the same old reasons/excuses we have all heard a hundred times before, especially since 9/11.

Christians also consider each other brothers and sisters in faith, but are not engaged in such activities, and if there were a group of radical Christians doing such despicable things, I firmly believe that there would be an enormous outcry condemning their actions...brothers in faith, or not.

As far as many Muslims not agreeing with terrorist attacks, but they "sympathize" with the reasons behind them...What's the difference here? If you "sympathize" with something, on some level, you ARE agreeing with it, so I don't buy that rationale. And contrary to what apparently many Muslims believe, the US does not and has never had an official discriminatory policy towards the Muslim world. The US does have policies addressing the violence emanating from the radicals in the Muslim world who are engaging in jihad. There is a huge difference between the Muslim world and the select group of Muslim fanatics waging jihad against the West.

And finally, as for those young Muslim men who turn to terrorism because of frustration about unemployment and a lack of opportunities, that doesn't hold water either. The majority of the 9/11 hijackers were educated men, some of them highly educated, and were from middle to upper class families in their home countries. Also...Why is it that these disaffected young Muslim men blame the US for their problems and turn to violence when many millions of others in the same situation around the world from other countries do not behave the same way?

These are the questions that I would like to see addressed and responded to by the Muslim community.

"...peace is the highest aspiration of the American People. We will negotiate for it, sacrifice for it, we will never surrender for it, now or ever." President Ronald Reagan~ January 20, 1981

The Muslim Brotherhood along with CAIR, our press...

April 7, 2009 - 20:26 ET by Thalpy

The Muslim Brotherhood along with CAIR, our political class, MSM, and educational system have all seen to it that the American people cannot have a decent understanding of Islam. PrairieSky and bt have it right when they discuss Christiane's take on "educating" Americans on Islam. Treatment of the indigenous citizens of the EU by the non-assimilating members of the "religion of peace" is nauseating. These Muslims are well along in their transformation of what was Europe into Eurabia with its attendant Sharia law.

Christiane believes that "there is an enormous amount of work to be done...it's really schools, it's media, it's the whole sort of public sphere of public debate." Right. If we want to be transformed into the mess in which the the EU now finds itself! We should have none of it! Before the history of Islam is revised by the revisionist historians assigned to the task by the EU bureaucrats, any thinking person should simply read the true history of Islam and what its done to every civilization it has ever come in contact with. They are some of the greatest slavers and despots who have ever lived on the earth--and they are on the move again. What is it about them that we don't already know? What lies has Christiane failed to tell us about Islam?

Thalpy...when I really

April 7, 2009 - 21:57 ET by bigtimer

Thalpy...when I really started despising her was during the Kosovo War...her special(s) were despicable...horrendous in my opinion...let alone most of her regular daily reporting on CNN.

You don't know the absolute disgust I have for this creature...and I am being kind here with my words...or I would be kicked off....as I should.

Doubling down on stupid is not a particularly good idea. ~Andrew Breitbart

I do not acknowledge islam

April 7, 2009 - 20:30 ET by jed58

You can believe what you desire but as for me, I will never acknowledge in my life or home islam as being anything other than an evil religion that follows a child rapist moon god.

Now you tell me how islam will respond to me?

Islam, the Antichrist's cult

April 7, 2009 - 23:23 ET by Old Europe

Islam is nothing but a poor retread of the Holy Bible mixed with the pagan moon god Allah. Mohammed was a sociopathic murderer, rapist and child molester. And Islam's explicit purpose was to kill God's chosen people, i.e. the Jews. Of course any Christians are fair game, too. How can anybody tell us we don't understand Islam? We know very well that the Q'ran is Satan's bible and that Mohammed is Satan's prophet. The mere fact that Mohammed denied Jesus as the Savior proves that he's a false prophet. And nowadays Islam is the strongest Anti-Christian and Anti-Jewish force in the world. Satan rules over Islam and he does anything he can to destroy Israel because he thinks that if he can exterminate the Jews he can beat God. Islam is a satanic cult. Is it any surprise that it praises suicide bombings and that Islamic heaven looks more like a seedy knocking shop with 70 virgins? Wherever Islam rules, there is abject poverty, misery and enslavement. Why? Because Satan rules over these places. And I don't care what Amanpour and other satanically driven

people tell me about Islam. Actions speak louder than words. As long as there is not a single democratic Islam country, THEY have to prove to us that Islam is a religion of peace that we just don't get. What do we gain from bowing to Islam and granting them all the freedoms that they won't grant us in their own countries? We basically cave in to more and more of their demands and we get nothing in return! And yet our pussilanimous politicians bow to all their whims as if there were anything to gain from Islam apart from allowing a fascist cult to take over our freedoms. Problem is that the lefties don't believe in God but only in humanism, namely themselves. And if you don't believe in God, then all religions are the same "drivel." But I as a christian cannot simply accept a cult that is basically the denial of Jesus as just another religion. Why should we try to get on with these people? Does Chris Mathews get on with Rush Limbaugh for the sake of "understanding the other side"? Why is it okay to foment hatred against the right but not against Islam? Why is it okay to bash Christians but not Muslims? Why doesn't CNN try to understand christianity?

Thumb on the scale again?

April 8, 2009 - 01:56 ET by RR GOP

I can't believe it's even that close.

What, did they interview Libtards in greater numbers than Conservatives and Independents again?

I suppose they'll have a poll tomorrow saying that only 20% of Americans think the French are arrogant and obnoxious, down from 50% since Dear Leader's visit.

One of the 34% who thinks George W. Bush was a great President. One of the 61% who wants to bring back the stock and pillory (yep...approval for Congress now at 39%...do you believe that!?).

Do you want to know when I,

April 8, 2009 - 02:46 ET by ConservativeRex

Do you want to know when I, and presumably the rest of the world realized just how lunatic muslims could be? Muchen 1972, that's when. Slaughtering unarmed Israeli atheletes. I was only 16, but even then I knew we would be dealing with these crazy buggers in the years ahead. And so we are.

Did the United States think that all of this would just stay in their little corner of hell? We were nieve then, we can not afford to be now. The idiocracy elected the most inexperienced man as president in our lifetime. He does not have America's best interest at heart. Nothing these obamaniacs say will change it.

We'll have the weather the nest two years, and vote most of these buggers out and then hope for the best, becuase it's not going to be easy. The dems are chock-a-block full of criminals, so election laws, or any oyher laws mean nothing to them. See how they act about tax cheats?