Kate Anastasia Le | Staff Writer
Don’t stop at the headline. That was the primary warning delivered to Florida International University students on Thursday during “Voices of the Middle East,” an on-campus panel addressing how news coverage shapes perceptions of the region.
The Sept. 17 event, hosted at the Steven J. Green School of International & Public Affairs, was organized by Global Jewish Studies and Hillel at FIU in partnership with Eighteen 13. Running from 3:30 p.m. to 4:45 p.m., the discussion featured Noa Tishby, former Israeli envoy for combating antisemitism; Jonathan Elkhoury, a minority rights advocate; and Fatema Al Harbi, Gulf Affairs Director at Sharaka.
With social media feeds driving much of the discourse around foreign policy, the conversation quickly centered on the pitfalls of digital news consumption.
“Don’t stop at the headline,” Elkhoury said. “Seek the explanation, and rely only on credible sources.”
He noted that the region’s geopolitical landscape cannot be understood through brief posts or sensational headlines crafted for engagement, urging attendees to seek out comprehensive explainer reporting rather than relying on short summaries circulated online.
Tishby and Al Harbi supported that assessment, encouraging attendees to review coverage across multiple credible, independent newsrooms before settling on conclusions.
The panel concluded with an open question-and-answer session with students in the audience. The event was co-sponsored by the Dorothea Green Lecture Series, the Ruth K. & Shepard Broad Distinguished Lecture Series, JG Legal, and the Gordon R. Miller Charitable Trust.
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