The two largest American broadcasting networks have responded sharply to a threat by the Arab Boycott Office in Beirut to cut off their news coverage in Arab states unless “this activity is beneficial to the Arab cause and under supervision of the Arabs.” Richard C. Wald, president of NBC News, told the Jewish Telegraphic Agency today that “We do not allow anyone to dictate the content of NBC news.”
In a statement issued yesterday, Richard Salant, president of CBS News, noted that “CBS News has covered news in all major Arab cities but never under supervision, nor would CBS News permit any government, including the U.S. government, to dictate the content of our news coverage.” He added that “CBS News does not cover events with an eye to which group would benefit. We cover events as carefully and objectively as we can regardless of who benefits.”
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The Archive of the Jewish Telegraphic Agency includes articles published from 1923 to 2008. Archive stories reflect the journalistic standards and practices of the time they were published.
