The Guardian reported: "The chancellor, Matthew Goldstein, addressing the board on Monday night, said he had supported the original recommendation of the award and praised Kushner's 'extraordinary body of work'. He urged the board to overturn last week's decision and to support the award."
Some members of the board spoke, all of them voicing support for Kushner. One of them described the row as a "blemish" on the university's reputation as an upholder of freedom of expression.
Here's how the Times put it: "Having embarrassed themselves more than was absolutely necessary in the eyes of many New Yorkers, trustees of the City University of New York are...to undo the damage."
Tony Kushner told the Times in an interview, "I have been honoured many times by prominent Jewish organisations, proudly identified as a Jew and maintained a passionate support for the continuous existence of the State of Israel."
"An apology should come from the Board of Trustees for not following the dictates of simple fairness and decency when this happened, and allowing someone who deserved better treatment to be treated shabbily."
Since the action of the CUNY board, he has received an outpouring of support from peace groups, friends, and intellectual and artistic groups. "It's completely overwhelming," he said.
In an earlier statement, Kushner, who has edited a collection of essays critical of Israel, said: "It's been my experience that truth eventually triumphs over sound bites, spin and defamation. And that reason, honest inquiry and courage, which are more appealing and more persuasive than demagoguery, will carry the day."
His story went from the Jewish press to the pages of the New York Times, and quickly became an international free speech issue.
But even if his status is rehabilitated, the Times asks: "Will a reversal end the affair? Not necessarily. Closing a self-inflicted wound can be tough."
The problem, of course, is that Kushner's status earned him reconsideration; other less well-known personages critical of Israel, including academic and political analysts, are often targeted in ways that generate less attention and debate.
Many conclude it's just not worth it to speak up about Israeli policy, less they became targeted and smeared - and even lose their jobs.
Meanwhile, Helen Thomas continues to live defensively as an exile in the strait-laced Washington media world in which she was once a luminary. A group of journalists are now lobbying the Society of Professional Journalists to reinstate her status but, aged 90, she has no major newspapers or high-profile politically acceptable people behind her.
Perhaps, next, Tony Kushner could write a play about how Thomas has suffered the slings and arrows of unfair slurs and demonisation.
News Dissector Danny Schechter edits Mediachannel.org. He is the author of When News Lies: Media Complicity and the Iraq War. His latest film is Plunder The Crime of Our Time.
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