Reflections in a Bloodshot Lens: America, Islam, and the War of Ideas
Pintak provides a provocative and sophisticated appraisal of the flawed lenses through which Americans view the Muslim world. He cuts through the naivete that infects the conventional wisdom about the relationship between the West and Islam. This fine book should stimulate some much-needed thinking about the dangers the U.S. public and policy makers face because of their simplistic world view. -- Philip Seib, Lucius W. Nieman Professor of Journalism, Marquette University; author of Beyond the Front Lines: How the News Media Cover a World Shaped by War. A compelling and long-needed work. Pintak shows that ideas are weapons too, jump-starting the reader with a jolt of reality needed to understand the Arab and Muslim worlds from their perspective. Had this book been available and studied before our invasion of Iraq, perhaps no one in or out of the Administration would have believed it would be a short exercise. -- Charles A. Krohn, Former Deputy Chief of Public Affairs, U.S. Army Pintak combines the keen eye of an experienced journalist with [a] sharp intellect. [He] is not afraid to demolish entrenched mythologies. -- Hisham Melhem, Washington correspondent, an-Nahar newspaper (Lebanon) and host, Al-Arabiya TV's Across the Ocean An acute, informed and timely insight into colliding worlds of perception which dominate the global agenda. -- Jim Muir, Middle East correspondent for the BBC and others