Armenian National Committee of America
1711 N Street NW
Washington, DC 20036
Tel. (202) 775-1918
Fax. (202) 775-5648
Email [email protected]
Internet
PRESS RELEASE
February 2, 2007
Contact: Elizabeth S. Chouldjian
(202) 775-1918
TIME MAGAZINE TO CORRECTLY CHARACTERIZE
THE ARMENIAN GENOCIDE
— ANCA Welcomes New Policy by Leading International Magazine
— European Edition Distributes 550,000 DVDs
Featuring Full-Page Ad and a Factual
Documentary on the Armenian Genocide
WASHINGTON, DC – The Armenian National Committee of America
(ANCA) has welcomed TIME Magazine’s newly announced policy of
properly characterizing the Armenian Genocide as clear instance
of genocide, as well as a series of other moves taken by this
leading international newsweekly to atone for its mistaken
distribution, in June of 2005, of a DVD denying this crime
against humanity.
TIME’s actions come in the wake of an amicable agreement reached
between the publication and the ANCA’s Brussels-based European
affiliate – the European Armenian Federation for Justice and
Democracy (EAFJD), along with the Armenian National Committee of
France (CDCA), the California Courier, and a range of leading
community and human rights organizations.
"We welcome TIME Magazine’s judgment that – in the interest of its
readers’ right to accurate reporting – the Armenian Genocide should
be reported as a fact, without qualification," said ANCA Executive
Director Aram Hamparian. "This announcement by TIME, along with
similar policy statements by the New York Times, the Boston Globe,
and many other leading publications, only increases the pressure
on the Administration to abandon its morally bankrupt complicity in
the Turkish government’s denial of its crime against the Armenian
nation."
The Feb. 12, 2007 issue of the European edition of TIME magazine –
available in newsstands throughout Europe as of Feb. 2nd – carries
a full-page factual announcement on the Armenian Genocide, along
with a complimentary DVD, in English and French, which contains a
compelling 52-minute documentary on the Armenian Genocide by French
director Laurence Jourdan. The DVD also includes a 46-minute
interview with Dr. Yves Ternon, a leading expert on the Armenian
Genocide.
Both the DVD and the full-page ad were provided free of charge by
TIME Europe (circulation 550,000) after realizing that its staff,
without proper review, had inserted in the June 6, 2005 issue of
TIME Europe a Turkish DVD as a paid advertisement under the guise
of promoting tourism to Turkey. The Turkish DVD, paid for by the
Ankara Chamber of Commerce, was a deceitful attempt to spread
malicious lies and denialist propaganda on the Armenian Genocide.
To correct this error, TIME (Europe) published, in its October 17,
2005 issue, a critical page-long letter to the editor jointly
signed by the following five French organizations: Memoire 2000,
the Coordinating Council of Armenian Organizations of France
(CCAF), Comité de Defense de la Cause Armenienne (CDCA) — ANC
France, J’Accuse, and the Movement Against Racism and for
Friendship Among Peoples (MRAP). In an Editor’s note appended to
the letter, TIME apologized for disseminating the Turkish DVD.
In December 2005, these five organizations along with the
Switzerland-Armenia Association (SAA), the French Association of
Armenian Lawyers and Jurists (AFAJA), the European Armenian
Federation for Justice and Democracy for Justice and Democracy
(EAFJD), and The California Courier newspaper reached an amicable
agreement with TIME executives ensuring that the facts of the
Armenian Genocide are not distorted again in the pages of the
magazine.
Subsequently, Michael Elliott, the Editor of TIME International,
issued the following public statement, in a letter addressed to
California Courier publisher Harut Sassounian: "Please be advised
that, in common with other leading news organizations, it is TIME’s
policy and practice to refer to the Armenian genocide as a
historical fact. Accordingly, I will be informing our
correspondents and editors that the term ‘Armenian genocide’ should
be used without qualification."
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress
