Rula Jebreal has done more in the time since MSNBC cut her loose to present an alternative reality to the usual "Israel can do no wrong" claptrap than she ever would have if she had stayed. In this segment, she takes on Breitbot Ben Shapiro and does not cut him even a millimeter of slack.
TPM:
When it was Jebreal's turn to speak, she immediately highlighted Shapiro's penchant for the incendiary.
"Well, I think Ben is not really in a position to lecture us about extremism, especially after what he said about President Obama, when he called him Jew-hater, when he called him anti-Semitic and when he called for the expulsion of Arabs in the West Bank and Gaza, and Arab-Israelis like myself, as a solution," Jebreal said.
Jebreal said it's telling that Shapiro is too much for The Atlantic's Jeffrey Goldberg.
"You know, it's so hard to listen to somebody that even Jeffrey Goldberg called a fascist," Jebreal said.
One of the more interesting moments in the debate was when they turned to the question of false equivalencies. From the transcript:
JEBREAL: I think you're wrong about the media. I believe, certainly, that CNN has shown both sides. But there is an impression, Ben -- and I understand why you feel this way -- that certainly when it comes to celebrities, that they're giving Hamas a pass.
SHAPIRO: I think this is sort of the point with regard to showing both sides. Showing two sides is equivalent. And your idea of balance is to show Israel's side and then Hamas' side and then claim that balance has been achieved. Well, that's the sort of media coverage that would have led to us losing World War II. So I'm not a big fan of that sort of balance.
CAMEROTA: But Ben, you're the one who's actually equating Hamas and Palestinian civilians. Those are not equal.
I suppose CNN brought Shapiro on for the fireworks, but I would much rather see Jebreal debate someone who isn't just a puppet for right-wing neocons.
