Nir Rosen Lara Logan Twitter Controversy
Tweeting feels like IM'ing but it's more like blogging.
Nir Rosen, a prolific journalist and activist, made a series of outrageous comments on his Twitter stream about the brutal assault on CBS reporter Lara Logan during the Egypt protests. NRO’s Jim Geraghty was among many to preserve them for posterity before they went down the memory hole:
Karen J. Greenberg, executive director of NYU’s Center on Law and Security, one of Rosen’s many employers, issued this statement:
Nir Rosen is always provocative, but he crossed the line with his comments about Lara Logan. I am deeply distressed by what he wrote about Ms. Logan and strongly denounce his comments. They were cruel and insensitive and completely unacceptable. Mr. Rosen tells me that he misunderstood the severity of the attack on her in Cairo. He has apologized, withdrawn his remarks, and submitted his resignation as a fellow, which I have accepted. However, this in no way compensates for the harm his comments have inflicted. We are all horrified by what happened to Ms. Logan, and our thoughts are with her during this difficult time.
Rosen has issued abject apologies on Twitter and in an interview with FishbownDC’s Betsy Rothstein, who issued this preface:
Strangers are now lambasting him. Friends and family are telling him he’s not fit for Twitter. He says he agrees. Like many men, he says, he made a tasteless joke. Like most men, he adds, he needs to be far more sensitive. We caught up with him in an email exchange from Dubai, where he is as of this morning. Attempting damage control, he agreed to answer our questions. Rosen contributes to Atlantic Monthly,WaPo, NYT Magazine and Harper’s. Due to his vitriolic comments, he has resigned as a fellow at New York University Center on Law and Security.
His tweets from Feb. 15: “Lara Logan had to outdo Anderson. Where was her buddy McCrystal.” But there was more: Yes yes its wrong what happened to her. Of course. I don’t support that. But, it would have been funny if it happened to Anderson too.” He was referring to CNN’s Anderson Cooper, who suffered beatings during his Egypt coverage. He also called Logan a war monger, saying, “Jesus Christ, at a moment when she is going to become a martyr and glorified we should at least remember her role as a major war monger.”
Among Rosen’s responses:
I’ve often been warned by friends that someone as rash and careless as me should not be on twitter, and clearly they were right. I have certainly lost any desire to use twitter mostly because I am ashamed of what happened and I’m eager to retreat from the public spotlight I brought upon myself.
[…]
Its difficult to try to explain why you were a jerk (or an asshole). On twitter I often banter and argue with various acquaintances about subjects like the morality of wikileaks, the war in Afghanistan, etc. We don’t regard it as a place to make serious statements, after all, at least I thought, it’s just silly social media, but that was idiotic of me and showed terrible judgment. I heard that Ms. Logan was roughed up like many other journalists, I had not realized it was something more serious. I thought I would provoke a friend on Twitter, childishly, and then the exchange grew and suddenly statements that I could not possibly mean were being taken seriously and I was hurting people I didnt even know without any intention. I am not suggesting that making such jokes are ever okay. I have known women, and actually quite a few men, who have been sexually assaulted, and in the last eight years I have often reported on such abuses. When you’re in war zones you develop a black humor and make jokes about your death, other people’s deaths, other terrible things, writers and photographers do it, as of course do Bosnians, Iraqis, Somalis and others as a coping mechanism. But taken out of context this can be deeply hurtful, especially when made by a man. A man should never joke about women being abused or harassed.
[…]
I have spent eight years risking my life as a journalist and also as a consultant to several NGOs and humanitarian organizations to bring attention to victims of injustice and to give voice and empowerment to the weak. By joking around with some friends I betrayed all that and betrayed my family, friends and supports, and I brought shame upon myself and them.
There’s much more at the interview, which I commend to you in full. He has gone light years beyond the typical “I apologize if anyone was offended” line public officials do when caught. Given his history, I believe him to be sincere in both his regret and embarrassment at his remarks, not just at getting caught.
While I’ve encountered Rosen at public fora in DC, I can’t claim to know him. But his reputation, at least before this incident, was as a brilliant and caring fellow. He’s been invited to testify before the Senate Foreign Relations Committee and fellowed at prestigious and centrist academic institutions including New America’s Foundation and the American Academy in Berlin in addition to NYU. He’s not just some crank with a Twitter account.
My strong hunch is that an hour’s ugliness on Twitter will become a mere asterisk on an otherwise distinguished career. But this is merely the latest in a long line of examples of people embarrassing themselves on social media, whether it be Twitter, Facebook, or a blog.
I constantly see people railing against Big Media companies and other institutions who issue social media guidelines to their employees. The company rationale is always that the person is a “brand” who reflects on them 24/7. The crowd response is that people are more than their jobs and should be able to say or do whatever they want in their free time.
The companies are right.
The Agonist‘s Sean Paul Kelly rightly asks, “But seriously, who among us has never said anything way out of line?”
Not me, that’s for sure.
Alas, I responded, “Tweeting feels like IM’ing but it’s more like blogging.”
While we can usually get away with an out-of-public-character snide remark in private conversation, social media is public. And it’s shocking how many otherwise thoughtful people haven’t figured that out yet.
To me, this falls under a quote I use all the time: “What is wrong with some people?”
Like you, James, I would NEVER even consider saying something like this.
Pretty shoddy. I have to say that Mr Rosen’s Twitter feed has not been part of my standard reading material. I hadn’t really had him pegged as a bad/nasty/strange chap in the past, but I have to say that this J. Goldberg post flags up some rather unsavoury stuff:
http://www.theatlantic.com/national/archive/2011/02/the-pro-taliban-america-bashing-tweets-of-nir-rosen/71361/
Not sure I’d want to employ him, if the stuff JG has dredged up is a) in context and b) representative.
I know very little about Mr. Rosen, and I will not say anything about him. What concerns me is how often this type of behavior occurs in our society. Somehow, there are at least some people who seem to think that these types of remarks are acceptable when they make them, otherwise they wouldn’t be made in the first place.
No mention of his antics while imbedded with the Taliban? Using his credentials to get them past checkpoints? He is a traitor.
I don’t what to think of him yet, but after reading his apology I’ve at least tamped down my initial reaction of total loathing. This was on pro forma “I’m sorry if anyone was offended”. It seemed genuine and sincere.
Steven Plunk is reffering to Nir Rosen’s embedding with the Taliban and using his paperwork to help them pass through an Afghan army checkpoint.
http://smallwarsjournal.com/blog/2008/10/an-american-journalist/
His defense suggests to me, he’d be more comfortable living in another country.
” Using his credentials to get them past checkpoints? He is a traitor.”
They already get past checkpoints. They go wherever they want. OTOH, he has let us see the Taliban and the insurgents in Iraq in a way others did not. Understanding one’s enemy is valuable.
Steve
The question is whether Nir Rosen was an accessory to someone being killed by aiding the Taliban past a security checkpoint, whether or not the Taliban may have gotten around it some other way, he choose to be an active participant in their activities, not simply report them.
IOW, if underage kids will get a hold of drugs and alcohol anyway, I’m not absolved from moral responsibility if I decide to give some kids drugs and alcohol and someone gets hurt.
@PD-Then I assume you did not read his Rolling Stone piece. Rosen went from Taliban commander to Taliban commander. He saw no fighting. The piece is quite informative about the internal problems with the Taliban.
Steve
Read the link steve, the important thing about helping the Taliban move past the security lines, maybe to kill Americans, maybe not, isn’t just that he thinks it’s enlightening, and I quote Mr Rosen:
“isnt it important to understand who they are? and most importantly, wouldnt it make for a fun read?”
Now go back and read what he says about Ms. Logan. “I’m rolling my eyes at all the attention she will get.”
He’s a rat bastard.
“When you’re in war zones you develop a black humor and make jokes about your death, other people’s deaths, other terrible things, writers and photographers do it…as a coping mechanism.”
His apology would seem more sincere if he didn’t make flimsy excuses like this.
He also said, “I Feel Like Shrinking Now.”
It’s odd that he thinks that anyone should care how HE feels.
Rosen takes hypocracy to new heights. How can someone who claims to bring attention to human rights violations make light of such a horrific assualt on a Ms. Login. He’s no better then the assailants. He has a history of this behavior and shame on NYU for giving him a fellowship in the first place. NYU knew his true
nature before this latest incident and only terminated the relationship
because of the negative press they are getting.
I hope he never works again in mainsteam media. Maybe the Muslim Brotherhood will hire him as a PR consultant.
When are you white imbeciles going to get it that you are hated by jews, and only a goddamned object of mockery and beast of burden for them?