Quarterly Impact Report
January — March 2023
Notable Successes
Responding to the Wave of Terror
Israel continues to suffer from a wave of Palestinian terror and the resulting skewed coverage in the international media.
On one weekend at the end of January, Israel’s capital was rocked by two terror attacks within the span of 14 hours when a terrorist opened fire outside a synagogue in the northeastern Jerusalem neighborhood of Neve Yaakov, murdering seven people and injuring three more. Then, hours later, a 13-year-old Palestinian opened fire on a group of Jews returning from prayer in the Silwan neighborhood outside the Old City, wounding a father and son.
On both occasions, HonestReporting responded on social media in real-time as the foreign press published their stories, exposing headline failures, bias, and getting factual information corrected.
On Twitter, HonestReporting’s posts calling out media outlets including The New York Times, ABC News, CBS News, NPR, The Guardian, The Times of London, and The Independent. One tweet admonishing Reuters was viewed over 165,000 times.
Tragically, HonestReporting was there again when a Palestinian rammed his car into a Jerusalem bus stop only a few weeks later, murdering two young Israeli children. The New York Times, Washington Post, CNN, AP, Reuters, BBC, The Times of London, and Daily Mail were immediately challenged on their reporting. One tweet critiquing NPR gained a remarkable 267,000 impressions alone.
Responding to the Wave of Terror
Israel continues to suffer from a wave of Palestinian terror and the resulting skewed coverage in the international media.
On one weekend at the end of January, Israel’s capital was rocked by two terror attacks within the span of 14 hours when a terrorist opened fire outside a synagogue in the northeastern Jerusalem neighborhood of Neve Yaakov, murdering seven people and injuring three more. Then, hours later, a 13-year-old Palestinian opened fire on a group of Jews returning from prayer in the Silwan neighborhood outside the Old City, wounding a father and son.
On both occasions, HonestReporting responded on social media in real-time as the foreign press published their stories, exposing headline failures, bias, and getting factual information corrected.
On Twitter, HonestReporting’s posts called out media outlets including The New York Times, ABC News, CBS News, NPR, The Guardian, The Times of London, and The Independent. One tweet admonishing Reuters was seen by over 165,000 readers.
Tragically, HonestReporting was there again when a Palestinian rammed his car into a Jerusalem bus stop only a few weeks later, murdering two young Israeli children. The New York Times, Washington Post, CNN, AP, Reuters, BBC, The Times of London, and Daily Mail were immediately challenged on their reporting. One tweet critiquing NPR gained a remarkable 267,000 impressions alone.
HonestReporting
@HonestReporting
10:08 AM · Jan 27, 2023 · 165.3K views
Responding to the Wave of Terror
Israel continues to suffer from a wave of Palestinian terror and the resulting skewed coverage in the international media.
On one weekend at the end of January, Israel’s capital was rocked by two terror attacks within the span of 14 hours when a terrorist opened fire outside a synagogue in the northeastern Jerusalem neighborhood of Neve Yaakov, murdering seven people and injuring three more. Then, hours later, a 13-year-old Palestinian opened fire on a group of Jews returning from prayer in the Silwan neighborhood outside the Old City, wounding a father and son.
On both occasions, HonestReporting responded on social media in real-time as the foreign press published their stories, exposing headline failures, bias, and getting factual information corrected.
On Twitter, HonestReporting’s posts called out media outlets including The New York Times, ABC News, CBS News, NPR, The Guardian, The Times of London, and The Independent. One tweet admonishing Reuters was seen by over 165,000 readers.
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SBS Australia Deletes Biased News Podcast, Takes ‘Appropriate Measures’ Against Hate Journalist
After drawing attention to a news podcast published by Australia’s publicly-funded Special Broadcasting Service (SBS), HonestReporting’s forensic research exposed SBS journalist Essam Al-Ghalib had once tweeted “#F*ckIsrael” and called the Jewish state “the BIGGEST terrorist in the world.” Al-Ghalib moreover described IDF troops as “bloody murderers” and claimed Jerusalem put Palestinians in “concentration camps.”
With the help of Peter Wertheim, co-chief executive of the Executive Council of Australian Jewry, HR filed a formal complaint under the SBS Code of Practice while simultaneously asking the broadcaster if Al-Ghalib could be trusted to report on the Arab-Israeli conflict without bias or agenda.
SBS’s Ombudsman upheld HonestReporting’s complaint, stating that steps had been taken to prevent future instances of anti-Israel bias. SBS launched an internal investigation into Al-Ghalib’s hateful tweets, during which he was forced to stand down from his duties. An SBS spokesperson confirmed to HonestReporting that, while the reporter was allowed to return to work, “appropriate measures have been taken to manage this issue.”
SBS Australia Deletes Biased News Podcast, Takes ‘Appropriate Measures’ Against Hate Journalist
After drawing attention to a news podcast published by Australia’s publicly-funded Special Broadcasting Service (SBS), HonestReporting’s forensic research exposed SBS journalist Essam Al-Ghalib had once tweeted “#F*ckIsrael” and called the Jewish state “the BIGGEST terrorist in the world.” Al-Ghalib moreover described IDF troops as “bloody murderers” and claimed Jerusalem put Palestinians in “concentration camps.”
With the help of Peter Wertheim, co-chief executive of the Executive Council of Australian Jewry, HR filed a formal complaint under the SBS Code of Practice while simultaneously asking the broadcaster if Al-Ghalib could be trusted to report on the Arab-Israeli conflict without bias or agenda.
SBS’s Ombudsman upheld HonestReporting’s complaint, stating that steps had been taken to prevent future instances of anti-Israel bias. SBS launched an internal investigation into Al-Ghalib’s hateful tweets, during which he was forced to stand down from his duties. An SBS spokesperson confirmed to HonestReporting that, while the reporter was allowed to return to work, “appropriate measures have been taken to manage this issue.”
SBS Australia Deletes Biased News Podcast, Takes ‘Appropriate Measures’ Against Hate Journalist
After drawing attention to a news podcast published by Australia’s publicly-funded Special Broadcasting Service (SBS), HonestReporting’s forensic research exposed SBS journalist Essam Al-Ghalib had once tweeted “#F*ckIsrael” and called the Jewish state “the BIGGEST terrorist in the world.” Al-Ghalib moreover described IDF troops as “bloody murderers” and claimed Jerusalem put Palestinians in “concentration camps.”
With the help of Peter Wertheim, co-chief executive of the Executive Council of Australian Jewry, HR filed a formal complaint under the SBS Code of Practice while simultaneously asking the broadcaster if Al-Ghalib could be trusted to report on the Arab-Israeli conflict without bias or agenda.
SBS’s Ombudsman upheld HonestReporting’s complaint, stating that steps had been taken to prevent future instances of anti-Israel bias. SBS launched an internal investigation into Al-Ghalib’s hateful tweets, during which he was forced to stand down from his duties. An SBS spokesperson confirmed to HonestReporting that, while the reporter was allowed to return to work, “appropriate measures have been taken to manage this issue.”
Social Media
HonestReporting’s social media presence has witnessed a dramatic increase since the beginning of 2023 and the figures prove it:
Impressions / Reach
Engagement (Interaction with our content)
Total posts (all platforms)
Posts per day (all platforms)
Video Views
2022 (full year)
2023 (to 03/31/23)
HR’s Twitter account is reaching influencers, politicians, and media personalities as many tweets go viral. For example, a detailed thread critiquing a biased New York Times video investigation into IDF actions in Nablus had an incredible reach of over 457,000.
HR’s Twitter account is reaching influencers, politicians, and media personalities as many tweets go viral. For example, a detailed thread critiquing a biased New York Times video investigation into IDF actions in Nablus had an incredible reach of over 457,000.
Corrections
In the first quarter of 2023, HonestReporting achieved 23 significant corrections from media outlets including:
The New York Times
Associated Press
Reuters
NBC News
NPR
Fox News
The Times of London
The Sunday Times of London
The Daily Telegraph
The Independent
Daily Mail
UPI
SBS Australia
Radio New Zealand
HonestReporting in the Media
HonestReporting has increasingly become the source of expertise that top media outlets turn to for interviews and analysis.
Here are just a few of the media outlets where we were published or interviewed in the first quarter of 2023:
BBC Scotland
ABC Australia News Radio
The Jerusalem Post
Al Jazeera
The Jewish Chronicle
The Algemeiner
ILTV
i24News
The Forward
The Daily Wire
Dutch Family 7 TV
Jewish News Syndicate
Jewish Journal
Arutz Sheva
Australian Jewish News
Speaking Events and Public Appearances
Gil Hoffman went on a speaking tour that brought HonestReporting to communities and college campuses across America. He spoke to students at Northwestern, the University of Arkansas, SUNY Binghamton, and UC Berkeley; and addressed communities in Maryland, South Carolina, Connecticut, Virginia, Illinois, Texas, Ohio and Arizona.
He and Simon Plosker also presented to organizations, events, and student groups, including:
Birthright
Hasbara Fellowships
WIZO
American Zionist Movement
UJA
Thrive Study Abroad
International Christian Embassy
Fitch Ratings
Middle East Forum
ChabadRatings
Jewish National Fund-USA
Limmud Houston
Connecticut Jewish Federation
Northern New Jersey Federation
Northwestern University
SUNY Binghamton University Zionist Organization
University of Arkansas
UC Berkeley
Interns
HonestReporting takes interns from a variety of Jewish Agency MASA-affiliated programs.
Reaching the younger generation is important to us and our interns don’t spend their time serving us coffee. HonestReporting interns become part of the team and make valuable contributions. So it’s thank you to:
Yoni Strashun
