Backlash to social movements for justice and equality happen. Activists for justice and equality, as well as peace to prevent war, don't like to mention backlash because 'going negative' takes away 'moral high ground.' And the activists who were attacked don't want to remind people in the general public of their views in a negative context resulting from the backlash and attacks. That potentially compounds the economic damage of lost jobs from damaged reputations as a result of more internet search results on the names of the people harmed.
Eric Adler and Jack Langer did the guilt by association/attack/hit piece/gotcha/uncivil discourse disguised as journalism in Feb 2006.
The purpose of Eric Adler and Jack Langer, in what they wrote, was to single out, demonize in order to delegitimize Palestinian nonviolent demands for equal rights at a Georgetown University conference. A reply from a person in the GU communications office got an LtE (letter to the editor) printed here defending how the university handled granting a venue use request to the Palestine Solidarity Movement. The letter also clarified that Marriott, the operator of a hotel on University property not Georgetown University itself, denied the venue use request for a conference more to the liking of Eric Adler and Jack Langer.
In 2018 Andrew E. Harrod of jihad watch used backlash/'gotcha'/adversarial 'journalism' style to harm very skilled activists for Palestinian rights. Harrod's purpose was to stop the activism from 'winning hearts and minds' or be 'influencers' or be 'impactful' to motivate more people to persuade elected officials to change their policies based on information presented at real world events. The events have become zoom webinars to avoid people gathering, mostly indoors, spreading covid19 and variants. This requires activists to raise enough money for zoom subscriptions instead of paying room rental fees to libraries and churches. Events organized in bookstores are paid for in part with the promise of a food and product sales surge. At least the pre-pandemic event planning kept money in the local community longer than zoom subscriptions.
Andrew E. Harrod of jihadwatch.com used the 'go negative' attack style, disguised as 'journalism,' to single people out and demonize them to chill the exercise of their free speech rights to dissent against what Israel government supporters (zionists) call 'the special relationship' between Israel and the USA. The style can be summed up as 'if one can’t refute
a message then dispute the messenger to make them more known for controversy around their work
than the content of their work. The 'controversial' reputation can economically execute the people attacked (make paid job searches
difficult or impossible) by name search results.
Andrew
E. Harrod, Eric Adler and Jack Langer keep people they politically disagree with fighting to protect themselves to stop them from
building relationships that Jihad Watch, and other allied organizations in the Presidents Conference and JCPA 'pro Israel community,' donors built in support of inequality, injustice and apartheid in the Occupied Palestinian Territories and Israel.
