Organizers of the News and Documentary Emmy Awards are standing behind their decision to nominate a documentary by Palestinian journalist Bisan Owda, after a pro-Israel lobby group called for its removal.
The Creative Community for Peace (CCFP), an entertainment industry group that opposes cultural boycotts of Israel, published an open letter Monday asking the National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences (NATAS) to rescind the nomination of It’s Bisan from Gaza and I’m Still Alive.
The film, an eight-minute news report produced by Al Jazeera’s digital publisher AJ+, documents life in Gaza while Owda was living in a tent outside the Al-Shifa Hospital in Gaza City around the beginning of the Israel-Hamas war in late October. Among the interviewees was an 11-year-old boy, who said Israeli forces had bombed his house, killing his parents.
It won a Peabody award in May and an Edward R. Murrow award this month.
The industry group’s main complaint is an unproven allegation that Owda has ties to the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP), a Marxist-Leninist political group that Canada, the U.S. and several other countries have categorized as a terrorist entity.
More than 150 people in the entertainment industry — including actors Selma Blair and Debra Messing, and Fox Entertainment Global CEO Fernando Szew — signed the letter, which calls Owda’s nomination “deeply troubling, given the creator’s history of promoting dangerous falsehoods, spreading antisemitism and condoning violence.”
It states that Owda’s alleged involvement with PFLP “raises serious ethical concerns that cannot and should not be ignored” and claims the nomination violates the NATAS code of ethical conduct, which states it has “zero tolerance for discrimination, harassment, illegal, dishonest, unethical or otherwise harmful conduct.”
Emmys boss says no grounds to overturn nomination
The PFLP allegations stem from posts on X (formerly Twitter) made by a communications analyst that purport to show Owda, 25, speaking at PFLP-related events as a teenager between 2014 and 2018.
NATAS president and CEO Adam Sharp said in a statement published by Deadline that NATAS “has been unable to corroborate these reports, nor has it been able, to date, to surface any evidence of more contemporary or active involvement by Owda with the PFLP organization.”
Sharp wrote that entries are sometimes controversial and can give a platform to voices certain viewers “may find objectionable or even abhorrent,” but are all in service of “the journalistic mission to capture every facet of the story.” He said submissions are judged by experienced journalists from multiple organizations who serve in a independent volunteer capacity.
U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken has intensified efforts to secure a peace deal between Israel and Hamas, as an Israeli strike on a Gaza school killed at least 12 Palestinians, according to the Civil Defence authority.
“Most critically, the content … was consistent with competition rules and NATAS policies,” the statement says. “Accordingly, NATAS has found no grounds, to date, upon which to overturn the editorial judgment of the independent journalists who reviewed the material.”
Owda has denied any affiliation with the PFLP, according to Al Jazeera. The media outlet also issued a statement saying it stands with Owda, calling the allegations “baseless” and “an attempt to silence Bisan and present a real threat to her safety on the ground.”
The CCFP and NATAS did not respond to requests for comment Wednesday afternoon. CBC was also unable to reach Owda.
At least 115 journalists killed in Israel-Hamas war, new report says
The controversy comes as the number of journalists killed in Gaza continues to climb.
The war began Oct. 7, when a Hamas-led attack on Israel killed more than 1,200, according to Israeli tallies. Israel’s military has since killed at least 41,000 in Gaza, according to Gaza health officials..
And at least 115 journalists and media workers have been killed since then, according to a report released Wednesday by the Committee to Protect Journalists — marking the deadliest period for journalists since the organization began gathering data in 1992.
The committee is investigating almost 350 additional cases of “potential killings, arrests and injuries,” as well as assaults, threats, cyberattacks, censorship and killings of family members.
The Israel Defence Forces (IDF) has repeatedly said it does not deliberately target journalists in Gaza, but has also told media it cannot guarantee their safety. It has also said some of those killed were Hamas militants using the job title as cover.
UN experts said in February the Israel-Hamas war is the deadliest, most dangerous conflict for journalists in recent history, and accused the IDF of “blatantly disregarding international law” by killing, attacking, injuring and detaining journalists.
Israeli troops withdrew from Gaza’s Al-Shifa Hospital over the weekend, but left the critical facility in ruins. Israel is also being accused of escalating tensions with Iran after killing military officials with an airstrike in Syria.
While some Hollywood stars have spoken up in support of Israel, most have remained silent on the issue.
Director Jonathan Glazer sparked controversy by criticizing Israel in his March Oscars acceptance speech, which prompted some in the entertainment industry to either condemn or support Glazer, who is Jewish.
Muslim group calls demands ‘hypocritical’
Edward Ahmed Mitchell, national deputy director of the Council on American-Islamic Relations, called the signatories of Monday’s open letter hypocritical.
Mitchell told CBC the signatories would have had no problem with a filmmaker who hosted a fundraiser for the IDF or was photographed with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, for example. He said Palestinians are subjected to extra scrutiny that is not applied to other groups of people.
“For the past 10 months, the Israeli government supporters have essentially been telling Palestinians in Gaza to shut up and die, while telling Palestinians in America to shut up and watch,” he said.
“That pattern is untenable. Palestinians have the right to tell their story, and the value of their artwork really should not be dependent on opinions about the person behind the art.”
Source Agencies
