From WNYC in New York, this is NPR's On the Media.

I'm Brooke Gladstone.

And I'm Bob Garfield.

Another disastrous week in the Middle East dominates the news,

despite an extraordinary effort by the Israeli government

to close off the flow of information.

Journalists have been banned from the cities of Ramallah and Bethlehem,

expelled, threatened with government lawsuits, and subjected to bullets, tear gas, and stun grenades.

Press organizations around the world have decried the clampdown,

charging censorship and calling for investigations.

Last Sunday, Israeli authorities announced that they would begin enforcing existing rules

under which journalists must submit reports about defense matters to a military censor.

They have also routinely denied press credentials to Palestinian journalists,

including those working for foreign news agencies.

Nasser Ata has been a producer for more than a dozen years for ABC News.

He's on the line from Jerusalem. Welcome to the show.

Thank you.

Your press pass runs out in a couple of weeks. You are ultimately regarded as a Palestinian

by the Israeli government. Also, you have an American passport.

ABC will certainly grant you a new press pass, but will the Israeli government

approve it?

I hope they will give it to me, and I hope that they will give it to my colleagues

...