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Hot on the heels of erroneous reporting in Channel 4's Dispatches programme and the wildly biased reporting of the BBC's Newsnight in the recent past, The Times has carried out its own ram-raid on Muslims in the UK. The main "opus" of work was on Friday 7th September by a reporter called Andrew Norfolk. There was a front page "expose" of a "Hardline Takeover of British Mosques" as well as another piece attempting a character assassination of Shaikh Riyad ul Haq. The TimesOnline also published the transcripts of four of the shaikh's lectures - with appropriately capitalised sentences so that a casual viewer would be able to pick out the bits to be tutted over. There was also another article highlighting the "evils" of the madrassa system. This was followed by a disgraceful article by former Today Programme Editor and well-known Islamophobe Rod Liddle. The article makes a series of reprehensible slurs against Islam especially about the treatment of women, which is pretty rich coming from a man who left his wife and mother of his children during their honeymoon in order to move in with his girlfriend. Perhaps Liddle should reflect somewhat on his own conduct before abusing others. Today there was another article from the prolific Andrew Norfolk, this time about Tablighi Jamaat's apparent wish to take over the whole world. With such a storm of articles from him I was almost tempted to email The Times and ask if Norfolk was done with denigrating Muslims so that I could get on with writing this article. A quick search on The Times website reveals that Andrew Norfolk is not just a common hack but rather is fostering a journalistic speciality - defaming Islam: Andrew Norfolk
07 September 2007 The Times
The homegrown cleric who loathes the British Andrew Norfolk
07 September 2007 The Times
A movement fostered by the fear of "imperial" rule Andrew Norfolk
07 September 2007 The Times
Hardline takeover of British mosques Andrew Norfolk
07 September 2007 The Times
The unexpected profile of the modern terrorist: 26, from a caring family, married, with children, graduate Andrew Norfolk
07 July 2007 The Times
Bride "beaten to death at home" Andrew Norfolk
04 January 2007 The Times
Madrassas "must teach citizenship curriculum" Greg Hurst; Andrew Norfolk
17 May 2007 The Times
Bomber's widow is held in anti-terror raid Andrew Norfolk
10 May 2007 The Times
Gangs used Asian "cornershop banks" to launder millions David Brown; Stewart Tendler; Andrew Norfolk
21 April 2007 The Times
Anger and disbelief greets return of terror spotlight Andrew Norfolk
28 January 2006 The Times
Police killer suspect fled Britain in a veil Andrew Norfolk
20 December 2006 The Times
Plots and paranoia are mainstream views for Muslims Andrew Norfolk
02 February 2007 The Times
BNP man vilifies Islam at race hate retrial Andrew Norfolk
20 October 2006 The Times
Suspended teacher should have removed veil, say Muslim leaders Andrew Norfolk
18 November 2006 The Times
"Robbers had tried to pray at mosque" before PC was shot Andrew Norfolk
21 October 2006 The Times
How bombers' town is turning into an enclave for Muslims Andrew Norfolk
25 November 2006 The Times
School helper who refused to remove her veil is sacked One needs to point out to Norfolk that it is hardly "investigative journalism" to buy a few tapes of Islamic lectures freely available in Islamic bookstores and online Islamic shops, get your secretary to type the transcripts and then cherry-pick out all the "juicy bits". Nor is it fair and balanced reporting to characterise an entire movement such as Tabligi Jamaat on the basis of six or seven sentences read out in a speech. None of the articles contain any opposing view but rather they are semi-hysterical rants in the format of "The Muslims are coming - Run for your Lives!!!" usually seen in The Sun and Daily Mail. It seems that The Times has taken its recent design change from a broadsheet to a tabloid rather too much to heart.
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