Boston Globe Airbrushes Khatami Remarks

Imagine a speech given in Boston by a cleric opposed to homosexual behavior who said this:

...In many Islamic countries homosexual relationships as well as non-consensual heterosexual relationships have been punishable...There are also others, there are others in the world that have similar views namely important sects of Christianity...So yes you are correct homosexual activity is a crime in Islam...And crimes are punishable...The fact that could crimes be punished by execution is debatable.

Now imagine that the Boston Globe runs 3 stories on this cleric’s speech (here, here, and here), and DOES NOT QUOTE OR EVEN MENTION THIS REMARK in any of the stories!

Now imagine further that this ‘cleric’ is not merely a religious figure, but is the former head of government of a theocratic regime (surprise! It’s not Vatican City).

That’s exactly what happened this week in Boston when Mohammad Khatami, the former president of Iran, spoke at the Kennedy School of Government on September 10. He spoke in the presence of Boston Globe reporters, who apparently deemed his remarks on homosexuality not worthy to print. This sort of selective airbrushing is what passes for ‘unbiased’ journalism in newspapers today.

Could any Christian clergyman make a high-profile visit to Boston and argue in favor of criminal punishment of gays without these remarks being reported in the Boston Globe? Yet when a Muslim theocrat (who led a regime that has a record not only of persecuting gays but also of hanging them) advocates criminal punishment of gay behavior, these remarks are not reported. Why?

(Hat Tips: Andrew Sullivan, Doug Ireland)