February 6, 2004

The Clash Over Middle East Studies

Critics say the programs are biased against U.S. foreign policy and need a review board

By Jennifer Jacobson

Brandeis University plans to open a Center for Middle East Studies this fall that, officials there say, will be free of bias.

It will not be solely focused on the Arab-Israeli conflict, which is what most centers pay attention to, says Jehuda Reinharz, the university's president. And it will be "ideologically free," he says, "to the extent we can make that possible."

But offering a program in Middle East studies whose ideology offends no one may prove to be no less difficult