It's Official: Islam Gets a Free Pass

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A_Wanderer

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Naturally its easy to pick on Christians, they won't blow you up or cut your head off
BBC programme-makers tackle Islam differently from Christianity, its director general has admitted.

Mark Thompson was responding to criticism from comedian Ben Elton, who accused the BBC of being scared to make jokes about Islam.

Mr Thompson said: 'What Christian identity feels like to the broad population is a little bit different to people for whom their religion is also associated with an ethnic identity which has not been fully integrated.

There's no reason why any religion should be immune from discussion, but I don't want to say that all religions are the same. To be a minority I think puts a slightly different outlook on it.'

Mr Thompson, who spoke at a lecture for think-tank Theos, said shows critical of Islam would be shown if they were of high quality.

Elton made his comments earlier this year in an interview with Christian magazine Third Way when he was asked if too much deference was shown to religious people.

'I think it all starts with people nodding whenever anybody says, 'As a person of faith ...',' he said.

'And I believe that part of it is due to the genuine fear that the authorities and the community have about provoking the radical elements of Islam," he said.

'There's no doubt about it, the BBC will let vicar gags pass but they would not let imam gags pass. They might pretend that it's, you know, something to do with their moral sensibilities, but it isn't. It's because they're scared. I know these people.'

However Thompson's admission was met with derision by Christian and media groups.

Stephen Green, director of Christian Voice, said: 'Mr Thompson seems to be saying that because Islam is a minority religion it should be treated with kid gloves.

'This is ridiculous. All religions should be treated with equally and with the same approach. I think the reality is that the BBC treats coverage of Islam and Muslims differently because it is terrified of offending them. It is political correctness. The BBC is simply not bothered about offending Christians despite the majority of this country being of that faith.'

John Beyer, director of Mediawatch, said: 'All religions need to be treated in the same way, otherwise how can the BBC claim to be impartial?

'I think that any approach to religious debate and discussion that is not impartial is not what the BBC should be doing.'

The corporation faced accusations of blasphemy from Christians after it broadcast controversial stage show Jerry Springer – The Opera live on BBC2.

A record more than 47,000 complaints were made against the show which was strewn with expletives and featured Jesus, Mary and God as deviant guests on Jerry Springer's TV show and up to 300 swear words.

However Mr Thompson, a practising Catholic, did insist that programmes that criticised Islam would be broadcast if they were of sufficient quality.

He revealed that his religious beliefs did play a part in the editorial decisions he made.

In his speech last night, the executive claimed there are now more programmes about religion on BBC television and radio than there have been in recent decades, whereas coverage has declined on ITV.

A BBC spokesman said: 'People should look at his actual comments rather than trying to infer additional meaning that isn't there.

'What Mark Thompson said is that all religions are not the same - he did not say Islam, or indeed any faith, should be treated more sensitively than Christianity. In fact he made it crystal clear that no religion should be regarded as off limits for the BBC.'
The BBC will tackle Islam differently to Christianity, admits its Director General | Mail Online

It's either all alright, or none of it is, it isn't a question of respecting Islam, it is a justified fear based off the actions of a number of believers, although thankfully a cartoon of Mohammed or a blasphemous joke will hurt them more than a bullet :D
 
Well, it's not just Islam but also New Labour that gets a free pass on the BBC. This is not right wing paranoia but well-attested to. Most BBC staffers are Labour supporters. BBC have become a joke of an organisation, to be honest.
 
I think part of it has to do with who's the group doing the talking. Fat jokes are great when made by a fat person; they're mean when they're made by a skinny person. Jewish jokes are great when they're told by a Jew; they're anti-Semitic when they're told by someone else. Black jokes by a black person, Hispanic jokes by a Hispanic person, etc.
 
Its a win, there is now an attitude of respect, or thinly veiled fear and contempt, for Islam
THE highly-anticipated video game Little Big Planet has been delayed due to fears one song in the game may cause religious offence.
Little Big Planet is a critically-acclaimed, G-rated game that lets players guide a character named Sackboy through a series of levels which can also be created and shared amongst users.

Developed by Media Molecule and published by Sony, the game uses licenced music in the background during gameplay.

One of these tracks, "Tapha Niang" by Grammy-award winning musician Toumani Diabaté, apparently contains lyrics which are quotes from Islamic holy text the Koran.

In an online statement, Sony said it was withdrawing Little Big Planet worldwide after discovering the song's lyrics.

"It has been brought to our attention that one of the background music tracks licensed from a record label for use in the game contains two expressions that can be found in the Qur’an."

"We have taken immediate action to rectify this and we sincerely apologize for any offense (sic) that this may have caused."

Sony was allegedly reacting to a letter, published on gaming website Kotaku, saying Muslim gamers found the combination of music and words from the Koran "deeply disturbing".

The letter translated the offending lyrics as "Every soul shall have the taste of death" and "All that is on earth will perish".

However the song, from the album Boulevarde de L'independence, may not have been intended to offend anyone.

It was released two years ago by Diabaté - who is also a devout Muslim, according to the Taipei Times. The African musician has never previously been associated with religious controversies.

Sony may have wished to avoid another religious debacle after a notorious run-in with the Church of England last year.

In June 2007, the Church of England was considering legal action over the use of the sacred Manchester Cathedral as a setting for a shootout in blockbuster video game Resistance: Fall of Man.

The church said Sony's production was "insensitive" given the rate of gun crime in Manchester, and rebuked Sony's claims it had sought permission to re-create the cathedral.

The Manchester Cathedral controversy came two months after animal rights groups were shocked to see a real goat's carcass used at the launch party for Sony's God Of War II.

Sony’s decision to withdraw Little Big Planet has left Media Molecule "shellshocked and gutted", according to a statement on the developer's website.
Little Big Planet delayed by Koran quotes | NEWS.com.au

It seems such an utterly innocent use of a cultural product (a song written by an apparently devout Muslim) and a big overreaction by Sony, although that the offence is the combining of quranic versus to music does suggest that some hardcore moron was going out of his way to get offended.
While playing your latest game, "LittleBigPlanet" in the first level of the third world in the game (titled "Swinging Safari"), I have noticed something strange in the lyrics of the music track of the level. When I listened carefully, I was surprised to hear some very familiar Arabic words from the Quran. You can listen to part of the track here:

The words are:

1- In the 18th second: ("kollo nafsin tha'iqatol mawt," literally: 'Every soul shall have the taste of death').

2- Almost immediately after, in the 27th second: ("kollo man alaiha fan," literally: 'All that is on earth will perish').

I asked many of my friends online and offline and they heard the exact same thing that I heard easily when I played that part of the track. Certain Arabic hardcore gaming forums are already discussing this, so we decided to take action by emailing you before this spreads to mainstream attention.

We Muslims consider the mixing of music and words from our Holy Quran deeply offending. We hope you would remove that track from the game immediately via an online patch, and make sure that all future shipments of the game disk do not contain it.
The point of the Mohammed cartoons was that free expression is stifled by self-censorship in regards to particular religious groups, this incident is an example of that style of self-censorship. A situation where particular blasphemies become off-limits because of fear or intimidation is bad, it doesn't foster any respect or positive attitudes towards others.
 
Its a win, there is now an attitude of respect, or thinly veiled fear and contempt, for Islam
THE highly-anticipated video game Little Big Planet has been delayed due to fears one song in the game may cause religious offence.
Little Big Planet is a critically-acclaimed, G-rated game that lets players guide a character named Sackboy through a series of levels which can also be created and shared amongst users.

Developed by Media Molecule and published by Sony, the game uses licenced music in the background during gameplay.

One of these tracks, "Tapha Niang" by Grammy-award winning musician Toumani Diabaté, apparently contains lyrics which are quotes from Islamic holy text the Koran.

In an online statement, Sony said it was withdrawing Little Big Planet worldwide after discovering the song's lyrics.

"It has been brought to our attention that one of the background music tracks licensed from a record label for use in the game contains two expressions that can be found in the Qur’an."

"We have taken immediate action to rectify this and we sincerely apologize for any offense (sic) that this may have caused."

Sony was allegedly reacting to a letter, published on gaming website Kotaku, saying Muslim gamers found the combination of music and words from the Koran "deeply disturbing".

The letter translated the offending lyrics as "Every soul shall have the taste of death" and "All that is on earth will perish".

However the song, from the album Boulevarde de L'independence, may not have been intended to offend anyone.

It was released two years ago by Diabaté - who is also a devout Muslim, according to the Taipei Times. The African musician has never previously been associated with religious controversies.

Sony may have wished to avoid another religious debacle after a notorious run-in with the Church of England last year.

In June 2007, the Church of England was considering legal action over the use of the sacred Manchester Cathedral as a setting for a shootout in blockbuster video game Resistance: Fall of Man.

The church said Sony's production was "insensitive" given the rate of gun crime in Manchester, and rebuked Sony's claims it had sought permission to re-create the cathedral.

The Manchester Cathedral controversy came two months after animal rights groups were shocked to see a real goat's carcass used at the launch party for Sony's God Of War II.

Sony’s decision to withdraw Little Big Planet has left Media Molecule "shellshocked and gutted", according to a statement on the developer's website.
Little Big Planet delayed by Koran quotes | NEWS.com.au

It seems such an utterly innocent use of a cultural product (a song written by an apparently devout Muslim) and a big overreaction by Sony, although that the offence is the combining of quranic versus to music does suggest that some hardcore moron was going out of his way to get offended.
While playing your latest game, "LittleBigPlanet" in the first level of the third world in the game (titled "Swinging Safari"), I have noticed something strange in the lyrics of the music track of the level. When I listened carefully, I was surprised to hear some very familiar Arabic words from the Quran. You can listen to part of the track here:

The words are:

1- In the 18th second: ("kollo nafsin tha'iqatol mawt," literally: 'Every soul shall have the taste of death').

2- Almost immediately after, in the 27th second: ("kollo man alaiha fan," literally: 'All that is on earth will perish').

I asked many of my friends online and offline and they heard the exact same thing that I heard easily when I played that part of the track. Certain Arabic hardcore gaming forums are already discussing this, so we decided to take action by emailing you before this spreads to mainstream attention.

We Muslims consider the mixing of music and words from our Holy Quran deeply offending. We hope you would remove that track from the game immediately via an online patch, and make sure that all future shipments of the game disk do not contain it.
The point of the Mohammed cartoons was that free expression is stifled by self-censorship in regards to particular religious groups, this incident is an example of that style of self-censorship. A situation where particular blasphemies become off-limits because of fear or intimidation is bad, it doesn't foster any respect or positive attitudes towards others.
 
I think part of it has to do with who's the group doing the talking. Fat jokes are great when made by a fat person; they're mean when they're made by a skinny person. Jewish jokes are great when they're told by a Jew; they're anti-Semitic when they're told by someone else. Black jokes by a black person, Hispanic jokes by a Hispanic person, etc.

:yes:
 
If you insult 'some' Muslims-you may be in danger of having your head cut off or being blown up.

If you insult some Christians they just may end up praying for you.

:)

<>
 
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