US Media and the Arab World: Freedom of Expression on Palestine

In his keynote address at the fourth annual ACW conference, Marc Lamont Hill explained that prevalent negative associations with the Middle East in American society stem from a racist and Orientalist point of view that positions the region as a moral and intellectual opposite of the West. This framework, coupled with a general lack of knowledge and fundamental misunderstandings, leads to the dehumanization of Arab and Muslim lives and reinforces the belief that these communities are unable to engage in work toward equality, justice, freedom, and democracy.

Hill asserted that because many in the West view democracy as a uniquely Western product, they assume the Arab world is not ready for it, a mindset that limits media and societal discourse and necessitates a new moral and ethical vocabulary. While he noted that the media’s role should include holding power accountable and expanding democratic possibilities, Hill pointed out that political, intellectual, and professional constraints often prevent people from speaking truths due to the fear of consequences, citing his own firing from CNN following his speech on Palestine at the United Nations as a primary example.

Regarding Palestine specifically, Hill argued that American media buttresses uneven relations of power by treating Israel and the occupied Palestinians as equals, which creates a skewed reality that ignores international law and the influence of Western capital. He concluded that narratives describing the conflict as "intractable" or "forever fighting" further strip Arab communities of human agency and preclude meaningful conversations about the region’s capacity for democratization and peaceful solutions.