June 19, 2007

Countering Stereotypes, But...

So yes, this article on the happy-go-lucky beachgoers in Tripoli is a valuable piece. It promises to counter stereotypes about Tripoli as an Islamist haven, provide a nuanced view of the Middle East, yadda yadda yadda. But some editor should have had the good graces to cut this one line:

"'I've come here with my parents to stay in our seaside bungalow to swim, sunbathe, have fun with my friends and forget the war,' says Sarah, whose pink two-piece swimsuit hugs the curves of her adolescent body."

While I'm aware, and glad, that we can all be fun-loving and liberal in Tripoli these days, I still think that grown men shouldn't write journalism that could be confused with soft-core porn. Go ahead, call me a prude.

Comments (6)

Barry Meislin:

I particularly liked this bit:

Now, says the historian, "extremist ideas are hatching" among the poor and in intellectual circles due to "anti-Sunni" U.S. policies in Afghanistan, Iraq and the Palestinian territories.

Merely proving once again that the creative potential in this region should never, ever be underestimated.

Posted by Barry Meislin | June 19, 2007 7:28 AM

Posted on June 19, 2007 07:28

David Kenner:

I missed that part. Someday, someone needs to write an article about the persistent infantilizing of the Arab world in the foreign press (while I linked to the Tripoli article in Naharnet, I believe it's an AP story?). Oh no, those poor Arabs cannot be expected to be responsible for their own beliefs -- they must be the result of American intervention!

How lame. And condescending.

Posted by David Kenner | June 19, 2007 7:40 AM

Posted on June 19, 2007 07:40

Mustapha:

Yeap,
That paragraph hit me too..

Posted by Mustapha | June 19, 2007 8:06 AM

Posted on June 19, 2007 08:06

David, you're a prude

Posted by M | June 19, 2007 1:40 PM

Posted on June 19, 2007 13:40

Bill:

Those curves look a little post-adolescent to me...