U.S. publishing giant erases Israel off map (Harper’s Magazine)

U.S. publishing giant erases Israel off map

After strange excuse, company takes sudden action

http://www.wnd.com/2014/12/u-s-publishing-giant-erases-israel-off-map/

A Middle East with no Israel?

That’s what students in that region of the world will see when they open their new world atlases as provided by the American-based mega-corporation HarperCollins.

And apparently this batch of maps did not come from the company’s fiction department.

The Telegraph of London has reported the global publishing house sells English-language altlases to schools in the Middle East that show Syria and Jordan extending to the Mediterranean Sea. The West Bank and Gaza Strip are also shown, but Israel is nowhere to be found on the map.

UPDATE: Shortly after WND’s posting of this article, HarperCollins vice president for corporate communications called and sent the following statement via email:

“HarperCollins regrets the omission of the name Israel from their Collins Middle East Atlas. This product has now been removed from sale in all territories and all remaining stock will be pulped. HarperCollins sincerely apologizes for this omission and for any offense caused.”

Erin Crum, vice president of corporate communications for HarperCollins, would not say how many of the maps had actually been delivered to customers in Arab countries.

Besides some unflattering media coverage, the HarperCollins atlases also drew sharp criticism from the Bishops’ Conference of England and Wales, which accused the company of “harming peace efforts in the Middle East,” the Telegraph reported.

“The publication of this atlas will confirm Israel’s belief that there exists a hostility towards their country from parts of the Arab world. It will not help to build up a spirit of trust leading to peaceful co-existence,” Bishop Declan Lang, the chairman of the Bishops’ Conference Department of International Affairs, told the Tablet, an international Catholic newspaper.

“Maps can be a very powerful tool in terms of delegitimizing ‘the other’ and can lead to confusion rather than clarity. We would be keen to see relevant bodies ensure that all atlases anywhere reflect the official United Nations position on nations, boundaries and all political features,” added Jane Clements, director of the Council of Christians and Jews.

 

Collins Bartholomew, the subsidiary of HarperCollins that specializes in maps, told the Tablet that including Israel would have been “unacceptable” to its customers in the Gulf region and the change incorporated “local preferences.”

The Tablet said it had discovered the customs officers in one unnamed Muslim country only permitting the import of school atlases once Israel had been deleted by hand.

HarperCollins is one of the world’s largest publishing houses and its stable of imprints includes the Thomas Nelson lineup of Christian books, which it acquired in 2011.

Just last year, another major publishing house, Scholastic Inc., was caught selling children’s books that omitted Israel from an illustrated map. Scholastic, the world’s largest publisher of children’s books, was forced to apologize after parents began complaining and negative reviews started showing up on Amazon and Twitter. The company said in a statement it apologized and “regretted” printing a book that “inadvertently omits Israel” on a map.

HarperCollins Publishers is a wholly-owned division of News Corp., the global media company overseen by Rupert Murdoch and various family members. It includes news services such as Fox News and the Wall Street Journal, digital real estate services, book publishing, digital education and pay-TV distribution. Headquartered in New York, the activities of News Corp. are conducted primarily in the United States, Australia and the United Kingdom.

HarperCollins

HarperCollins is a subsidiary of News Corp.

Note: Alwaleed bin Talal is a stockholder in News Corp, the Saudi Arabia prince, and a benefactor for the Prince Alwaleed Bin Talal Center for Muslim-Christian Understanding.

K. Rupert Murdoch is the chairman & CEO for News Corp, and a papal knighthood knight.

papal knighthood is an honor conferred by pope from the Roman Catholic Church.

Was Pope Benedict XVI (Joseph Ratzinger) A Nazi? Why Join the Hitler Youth?

By Austin Cline

Agnosticism/Atheism Expert

http://atheism.about.com/od/benedictxvi/i/RatzingerNazi_2.htm

Benedict XVI (Joseph Ratzinger) is the pope emeritus for the Roman Catholic Church, and an associate of George Weigel.

George Weigel is an associate of Benedict XVI (Joseph Ratzinger), and a contributor for the Wall Street Journal.

John J. Studzinski is a papal knighthood knight, a director at the Atlantic Council of the United States (think tank), and a director at the Human Rights Watch.

Open Society Foundations was a funder for the Atlantic Council of the United States (think tank), and the Human Rights Watch.

George Soros is the founder & chairman for the Open Society Foundations, was a benefactor for the Human Rights Watch, and the chairman for the Foundation to Promote Open Society.       

Foundation to Promote Open Society was a funder for the Human Rights Watch, Media Matters, and the Brookings Institution (think tank).

Media Matters monitors Fox News.

Chuck Hagel was the chairman for the Atlantic Council of the United States (think tank), a professor at Georgetown University, and is the secretary at the U.S. Department of Defense for the Barack Obama administration.

Prince Alwaleed Bin Talal Center for Muslim-Christian Understanding was a center at Georgetown University.

Alwaleed bin Talal is a benefactor for the Prince Alwaleed Bin Talal Center for Muslim-Christian Understanding, a stockholder in News Corp, and the Saudi Arabia prince.

Hugh B. Price was a director at Georgetown University, and a senior fellow at the Brookings Institution (think tank).

Nemir A. Kirdar was a director at Georgetown University, and is a trustee at the Brookings Institution (think tank).

Donald F. McHenry is a professor at Georgetown University, and an honorary trustee at the Brookings Institution (think tank).

Saban Center for Middle East Policy is a policy center at the Brookings Institution (think tank).

Haim Saban is a benefactor at the Saban Center for Middle East Policy, a trustee at the Brookings Institution (think tank), a friend of Shimon Peres, and the founder of the Saban Family Foundation.

Shimon Peres is a friend of Haim Saban, and the president of Israel.

Saban Family Foundation was a funder for the Brookings Institution (think tank).

John D. & Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation was a funder for the Brookings Institution (think tank), and the Harper's Magazine.

Harper & Row was the owner of the Harper's Magazine, and the predecessor for HarperCollins.

HarperCollins is a subsidiary of News Corp.

Martha L. Minow is a director at the John D. & Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation, Newton N. Minow’s daughter, and Barack Obama was her student.

Newton N. Minow is Martha L. Minow’s father, a member of the Commercial Club of Chicago, and a senior counsel at Sidley Austin LLP.

R. Eden Martin is the president of the Commercial Club of Chicago, and counsel at Sidley Austin LLP.

Michelle Obama was a lawyer at Sidley Austin LLP.                    

Barack Obama was an intern at Sidley Austin LLP.

Sidley Austin LLP is the lobby firm for Israel.

Shimon Peres is the president of Israel, and a friend of Haim Saban.

Haim Saban is a friend of Shimon Peres, a benefactor at the Saban Center for Middle East Policy, a trustee at the Brookings Institution (think tank), and the founder of the Saban Family Foundation.

Saban Center for Middle East Policy is a policy center at the Brookings Institution (think tank).

Saban Family Foundation was a funder for the Brookings Institution (think tank).

Cyrus F. Freidheim Jr. is an honorary trustee at the Brookings Institution (think tank), and a member of the Commercial Club of Chicago.

Francis E. George is a member of the Commercial Club of Chicago, and a cardinal for the Roman Catholic Church.

papal knighthood is an honor conferred by pope from the Roman Catholic Church.

K. Rupert Murdoch is a papal knighthood knight, and the chairman & CEO for News Corp.

Alwaleed bin Talal is a stockholder in News Corp, the Saudi Arabia prince, and a benefactor for the Prince Alwaleed Bin Talal Center for Muslim-Christian Understanding.

HarperCollins is a subsidiary of News Corp.