5. Footage from within Gaza dominates the screens News routines determine, what is on the screen: Devastation in Gaza has become an iconic element of reporting. But which journalist can check, if all the killed in Gaza have really been innocent civilians? Highlights, 26.12.2008-06.01.2009* Timeline: The Israeli Army and Hamas fighters on screen Basis: 15h of airtime in 20 news shows from 9 countries (* preliminary results)

6. The pattern of visual coverage remains static The other side of the conflict: Hamas fighters stay off the screen most of the time. How can journalists convey a fair story of the conflict, if they show primarily Israeli tanks in their reports? Highlights, 26.12.2008-06.01.2009* Timeline: The Israeli Army and Hamas fighters on screen Basis: 15h of airtime in 20 news shows from 9 countries (* preliminary results)

7. Israel gets blamed more often in the second week New statements often do not bring new insights: Despite new arguments simply lifted from the archives – e.g. the tunnels at the Egyptian – Israel remains the villain in the story. Highlights, 26.12.2008-06.01.2009* Who is responsible for the conflict? Basis: 1,350 news stories in 20 news shows from 9 countries (* preliminary results)

9. Gaza conflict hits the Arab screens The Palestine conflict is a defining element of Arab identity – Arab TV accordingly devotes half of its total coverage to the Gaza conflict. But awareness in Western outlets is rather strong as well. Structures of foreign coverage, 26.12.2008-02.01.2009* Focus on the Gaza conflict: Comparison of media countries of origin Basis: 3,773 news stories in 18 TV news shows (*ends on 31.12.)

10. Little variance in Arab outlets While there is some variance among Western stations, Arabic outlets display similar patterns. Al-Jazeera seems to have established itself as the champion of the Palestinians: It switched to non-stop reporting on January 3 rd. Structures of foreign coverage, 26.12.2008-02.01.2009* Focus on the Gaza conflict: Comparison of TV stations Basis: 3,773 news stories in 18 TV news shows (* ends on 31.12.)

11. High awareness in American foreign coverage Visual clues are probably more important than spoken words for the TV public. In Arab and US TV news nearly half of the foreign coverage related to the Palestinian territories – but one has to take into account, that US news is more introspective. Structures of foreign coverage, 26.12.2008-02.01.2009* Location of the reports: Comparison of media countries of origin Basis: 2,077 news stories in 18 TV news shows (* ends on 31.12.)

12. US devotes higher share to Gaza than Al Arabiya NBC , ABC and CBS news devoted a higher percentage of its foreign coverage to the Palestinian territories than Al-Arabiya . In absolute terms, of course, the Arab station reported much more intensively. Structures of foreign coverage, 26.12.2008-02.01.2009* Location of the reports: Comparison of TV stations Basis: 2,077 news stories in 18 TV news shows (* ends on 31.12.)

13. British and German news targets Israelis British and German news reports from a different angle than the other outlets: They focus on the decisions of the Israeli government, while Swiss and Spanish news looked at the fate of the people in Gaza. Structures of foreign coverage, 26.12.2008-02.01.2009* Protagonists in Gaza coverage: Comparison of media countries of origin Basis: 1,076 TV news shows focusing on the Gaza conflict in 18 TV news shows (* ends on 31.12.)

14. Al-Jazeera champions Palestinians Structures of foreign coverage, 26.12.2008-02.01.2009* Protagonists in Gaza coverage: Comparison of TV stations Basis: 1,076 TV news shows focusing on the Gaza conflict in 18 TV news shows (* ends on 31.12.) While the availability of TV footage determines what the public gets to see, the storyline can be shaped by the journalists: The three Arab channels treat the conflict parties rather differently.

15. No open support for Israel Negativism is a perennial quality of foreign news – as both sides are associated with the suffering in Gaza, both sides are portrayed rather critically. But there is as well little open support. Structures of foreign coverage, 26.12.2008-02.01.2009* Evaluation of Israeli / Palestinian protagonists: Comparison of overall and explicit tone Basis: 377 / 514 TV news shows focusing on the Gaza conflict in 18 TV news shows Overall tone Explicit tone

16. British news holds back from negativity In most countries the Palestinians have been portrayed more negatively, as the reports focused on the situation of the civilian population in Gaza. US coverage was extraordinary negative on Israel. Structures of foreign coverage, 26.12.2008-02.01.2009* Evaluation of Israeli / Palestinian protagonists Basis: 377 / 514 TV news shows focusing on the Gaza conflict in 18 TV news shows (* ends on 31.12.)

17. Fox less critical of Israel Ideological differences show most clearly in the US: Fox took a clearly less negative stance on Israel than the three other networks. But in German, there were differences too, for instance, Tagesthemen was more critical than heute journal . Structures of foreign coverage, 26.12.2008-02.01.2009* Evaluation of Israeli / Palestinian protagonists Basis: 377 / 514 TV news shows focusing on the Gaza conflict in 18 TV news shows (* ends on 31.12.)

18. Criticism of Israel mostly indirect Explicit criticism, using words like “killer” or “war criminal” played no crucial role in the evaluation of Israeli protagonists – but the events seemed to speak for themselves (cf. slide 15). Structures of foreign coverage, 26.12.2008-02.01.2009* Evaluation of Israeli / Palestinian protagonists: Explicit tone Basis: 377 / 514 TV news shows focusing on the Gaza conflict in 18 TV news shows (* ends on 31.12.)

19. US news takes sides against both parties While most European outlets refrained from direct criticism, US outlets took a clearly negative stance on both sides, criticizing the Palestinians even more severely than the Israelis. Structures of foreign coverage, 26.12.2008-02.01.2009* Evaluation of Israeli / Palestinian protagonists: Explicit tone Basis: 377 / 514 TV news shows focusing on the Gaza conflict in 18 TV news shows (* ends on 31.12.)

23. Lack of new images brings journalists on the screen British news took a different angle, showing Israeli protagonists relatively more often than all other stations. Journalists were most often on the screen in US, German and Swiss news. Visual coverage of the Gaza conflict, 26.12.2008-02.01.2009* Protagonists on screen: Comparison of media countries of origin Basis: 14h 21 m in 6,261 takes of TV coverage of the Gaza conflict (the breakdown relates to the protagonist visible on the screen / * ends on 31.12.)

24. British news tells a different story Arab and British news mark the two ends of a continuum. British news does not only show Israelis more often than the other programs, but displays a higher share for Hamas – fighters and leaders – as well. Visual coverage of the Gaza conflict, 26.12.2008-02.01.2009* The conflict parties on screen: Comparison of media countries of origin Basis: 2h 18m, 43m, 4h 21m of TV coverage of the Gaza conflict (* ends on 31.12.)

25. Arabic TV underrates Hamas violence The ready availability of footage of the Israeli Defence Forces is used without restraint by all outlets. The lack of images of Hamas fighters on the other hand leads to a one-sided visual perspective for the news stories. Visual coverage of the Gaza conflict, 26.12.2008-02.01.2009* The Israeli Army and Hamas fighters on screen: Comparison of media countries of origin Basis: 1h 4m, 17m of TV coverage of the Gaza conflict (* ends on 31.12.)

26. East-Western divide on Israeli victims Israeli victims play only a slight role on Arab screens, while German TV devotes the highest share to them. But at least ¾ of all images showing victims relate to Palestinians. Visual coverage of the Gaza conflict, 26.12.2008-02.01.2009* Victims on screen: Comparison of media countries of origin Basis: 19m, 2h 8m of TV coverage of the Gaza conflict (* ends on 31.12.)

27. Al-Arabiya and Al-Jazeera tell the same story Intra-national differences are rather insignificant again, as British or German news show the same protagonist structures. Fox on the other hand distinguishes itself from its competitors by using only limited visual material. Visual coverage of the Gaza conflict, 26.12.2008-02.01.2009* Protagonists on screen: Comparison of TV stations Basis: 14h 21 m in 6,261 takes of TV coverage of the Gaza conflict (the breakdown relates to the protagonist visible on the screen / * ends on 31.12.)

28. Intra-national variations are low – Fox breaks the ranks When only the opponents are taken into account, Fox takes a “British” view of the conflict, showing more often Israelis than Palestinians. Apart from Fox and the British programs, all other outlets focus more on the images of Palestinians. Visual coverage of the Gaza conflict, 26.12.2008-02.01.2009* The conflict parties on screen: Comparison of TV stations Basis: 2h 18m, 43m, 4h 21m of TV coverage of the Gaza conflict (* ends on 31.12.)

29. Al-Jazeera has a better connection to Hamas Hamas fighters are shown only rather infrequently by Al-Arabiya or LBC , while Al-Jazeera assigns them about ¼ of all the visual material focusing on armed groups or military. Visual coverage of the Gaza conflict, 26.12.2008-02.01.2009* The Israeli Army and Hamas fighters on screen: Comparison of TV stations Basis: 1h 4m, 17m of TV coverage of the Gaza conflict (* ends on 31.12.)

30. Fox shows Israeli victims prominently The salience of Israeli victims clearly seems to depend on a conscious editorial decision: Only Fox , ITV , ZDF heute journal , RTL and SF Tagesschau assign them more than10% of all visual material relating to war victims Visual coverage of the Gaza conflict, 26.12.2008-02.01.2009* Victims on screen: Comparison of TV stations Basis: 19m, 2h 8m of TV coverage of the Gaza conflict (* ends on 31.12.)

34. 1/4 of reports do not address responsibility As the force of the visual coverage exerts a strong influence on the perception of the conflict by the viewing public, it becomes more important for the journalists to give background to their viewers. The Gaza conflict: Arguments and evaluations Who is responsible for the conflict? Basis: 957 news stories in 18 TV news shows (* ends on 31.12.)

35. German and British news blames both sides As open hostility towards Israel is not politically correct in many countries, in most markets journalists chose to assign the blame for the latest to crisis in Gaza to both opponents. The Gaza conflict: Arguments and evaluations Who is responsible for the conflict: Focus on Israel and Hamas? Basis: 957 news stories in 18 TV news shows (* ends on 31.12.)

36. Fox blames the Palestinians Only the Arabic outlets and Fox take sides openly in the Gaza conflict. Hamas on the other hand evades the blame most of the time. On RTL and Fox , Hamas is more often held responsible than the Israeli side. The Gaza conflict: Arguments and evaluations Who is responsible for the conflict: Focus on Israel and Hamas? Basis: 957 news stories in 18 TV news shows (* ends on 31.12.)

37. Context I: UK news mentions end of ceasefire As most of the stations have difficulties staying abreast of the overall course of events, only British news mentions the end of the Hamas ceasefire as one decisive element of the Gaza crisis regularly in its reports. The Gaza conflict: Arguments and evaluations Is the end of the ceasefire by Hamas mentioned? Basis: 957 news stories in 18 TV news shows (* ends on 31.12.)

38. Context II: Gaza blockade of no interest for Arab news The same observation holds true for the blockade of the Gaza strip by the Israeli forces, who tried to subdue the ongoing missile attacks. This aspect played no significant role in the coverage of the Arab stations. The Gaza conflict: Arguments and evaluations Is the Israeli blockade of Gaza mentioned? Basis: 957 news stories in 18 TV news shows (* ends on 31.12.)

39. Context III: Guerilla strategy not on the screen Although the strategy of Hamas can not be understood without noticing the importance of the civilian environment, both for evading Israeli attacks as well as a means for mobilizing international support, this aspect was widely ignored by the TV journalists. The Gaza conflict: Arguments and evaluations Is mentioned that Hamas fighters are hiding among civilians in Gaza? Basis: 957 news stories in 18 TV news shows (* ends on 31.12.)

40. Facts are subject to ideology When it came to mentioning the ongoing missile attacks on Israel, there was again a marked West-Eastern divide. Only 1 in 10 stories in the Arab channels mentioned the missile attacks. The Gaza conflict: Arguments and evaluations Is mentioned that Hamas is firing missiles on Israel? Basis: 957 news stories in 18 TV news shows (* ends on 31.12.)

41. Arab news show unity in ignoring the Kassam threat While there was some variance in the way and the number of times Western TV stations mentioned the Kassam attacks, Arabic programs displayed a similar position in this aspect. The Gaza conflict: Arguments and evaluations Media comparison: Is mentioned that Hamas is firing missiles on Israel? Basis: 957 news stories in 18 TV news shows (* ends on 31.12.)

42. Context IV: Only British news interested in solutions Even more sobering is the fact, that possible solutions to the conflict were addressed rather infrequently. British news again gave more depth to its coverage than the other outlets in this respect. The Gaza conflict: Arguments and evaluations Are solutions to the conflict mentioned? Basis: 957 news stories in 18 TV news shows (* ends on 31.12.)

43. German news stays on the surface Whereas British and American programs showed some interest in possible ways out of the conflict, German and Arabic news stayed on the surface of events, simply describing what happened in Gaza. The Gaza conflict: Arguments and evaluations Media comparison: Are solutions to the conflict mentioned? Basis: 957 news stories in 18 TV news shows (* ends on 31.12.)