ei: What is the Electronic Intifada?

Q: What is The Electronic Intifada (EI)?

EI: The Electronic Intifada project (EI) is an online educational gateway to information about the Israeli-Palestinian Conflict, produced by a small network of activists with a history of Internet and alternative media development. For a more in-depth description of EI, please see Introducing the Electronic Intifada.

Q: Who are the four founders of EI?

EI: EI was launched on 23 February 2001 by four writers and activists: Ali Abunimah, Arjan El Fassed, Laurie King-Irani, and Nigel Parry. Two of our founders, Ali Abunimah and Arjan El Fassed, are Palestinians, Laurie King-Irani is American and Nigel Parry is Scottish. All four founders have lived in the Middle East for varying periods of time -- Palestine, Jordan, and Lebanon. For more information about the founders and wider EI Team, see For a more in-depth description of EI, please see The Electronic Intifada Team.

Q: Why the name "The Electronic Intifada"?

EI: We wanted a dynamic name that reflected the fact that we were employing technology to challenge the existing deficits in media coverage and popular understanding of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. Intifada is the name the Palestinian people have given their two uprisings (1987-1992, 2000-). For more information about the meaning of "intifada", see the FAQ "what does "intifada" mean?" The name is one we coined, which received its first print mention and explanation on 26 October 2000 in Al-Ahram Weekly.

Q: What does EI do?

EI: EI undertakes research, and compiles and publishes reference material, commentary & analysis, personal journals from the frontlines of the conflict, media news and analysis, and even satire. EI aims aspects of its information service at journalists & editors, activists -- occasionally encouraging letters of concern -- at students of the media, and researchers looking for reference material, and offers automatically updating streaming content via our "wire service for websites", EI WIRE.

Q: What principles guide your work?

EI: EI is committed to communicating the realities of life on the ground for ordinary Palestinians and challenging myths and distortions about them in the commercial media through analysis and our own reporting. EI is independent of any political, factional, ethnic, or religious affiliation, and bases its view of the conflict on the foundation of universal human rights and international law. The Electronic Intifada condemns all attacks on civilians, regardless of the perpetrators, yet encourages people to examine the structural roots and dynamics of violence in the conflict and the imbalance of power that perpetuates these dynamics.

Q: Who funds the Electronic Intifada?

EI: EI is powered primarily by voluntary work from its four founders and a loose network of correspondents, technical people, and photographers around the world, including in Palestine, the US, Canada, and Europe. In addition, EI is funded by individual donors, mostly in the United States, 50% of whom are giving small amounts of US $25-$100 dollars to keep our project going, with a small scattering of occasional larger donors. Our annual budget in 2002 was just US $39,000. This helps pay for web and graphic design services, computer hardware, and administration costs, the latter of which accounted for just 12% of our 2002 budget. For more information about EI's needs and budget, see Donate to support the work of the Electronic Intifada.

Q: Is that enough to run a website like this?

EI: We've made do at different times with the resources we have, beginning from a balance of zero in February 2001. Since then we've expanded as voluntary help and resources have allowed, but in truth, we could obviously be doing much more, with a higher quality, more consistently, if we had access to greater resources which has periodically become frustrating. None of EI's founders or writers are able to work full time on EI as they have other jobs, and as the project has grown, there is an increased workload. For information on how you can financially support EI's important work, see Donate to support the work of the Electronic Intifada.

Q: What are your plans for the future?

EI: EI would like to expand the scope of our coverage of on-the-ground events to a far greater degree, developing deeper links with organisations and skilled individuals on the ground. We would also like to offer wider coverage of the Palestinian community outside the country and our relationship with related organisations, as well as increasing the profile of the project. Our hope is that future funders and contributors will enable us to meet these goals. Specific goals include an increase of photographic, video and other multimedia on the site, and more regular and in-depth additions to all of the 18+ content sections on our site.

Q: Can I ask you questions that are not answered here?

EI: Please do. Our contact page is here.