Each week, HonestReporting reviews countless news articles, setting the record straight when journalists portray Israel unfairly by casting it as an aggressor and responsible for the ongoing conflict with the Palestinians, or disseminate antisemitic tropes.
That’s one of the many reasons why HR is active on social media. By using online platforms, HR can simultaneously expose bias and misinformation, and directly reach a given writer or outlet instantaneously to inform them of any errors. In this way, we are able to have an immediate impact, with the ultimate aim of garnering corrections.
So, for those not familiar with Twitter, below is a roundup of some of our media critiques from the past seven days.
Join the fight for Israel’s fair coverage in the news
1. Yahoo News depicts one-sided, distorted story of recent events in Gaza
When Yahoo News picked up a video produced by the Turkish media outlet TRT World, it wasn’t surprising that the information provided therein was supremely biased. The video omitted crucial facts and was devoid of vital background regarding Hamas’ policy of using violence to extort Israel as well as its practice of hiding behind “human shields.” It also mislabeled Israel’s security barrier as a “wall,” and mislead readers by using source material from six years ago, during the 2014 war between Israel and Hamas.
Woeful misinformation being peddled by @trtworld, and recycled by @YahooNews.
1. Israeli planes have been striking *Hamas assets* in Gaza, not all of Gaza. Citing @AlJazeera should be a hint as to the credibility of the claim. pic.twitter.com/GoDA6zrrQj
— HonestReporting (@HonestReporting) August 27, 2020
2. Hezbollah terrorists target Israeli troops, but The Times headline ignores the full picture
In recent months, Hezbollah has been attempting to catch Israel out on its northern border. From last year’s revelation that the Iranian proxy had constructed a network of subterranean tunnels crossing into Israeli territory, to its launching of a botched attack in late July, the IDF has been preparing for an inevitable flare-up. And it came this week, with Hezbollah firing at Israeli soldiers, thereby precipitating a response. A woeful London Times headline confused cause and effect .
Of course, Israel launched the air strikes after Hezbollah terrorists fired shots into Israel. But readers won't know that unless they read the article.
Poor headline, @TheTimes. pic.twitter.com/4CEpL4Ca3b
— HonestReporting (@HonestReporting) August 27, 2020
3. Los Angeles Times calls recognition of Jerusalem “a slap” to Palestinians
It’s truly astonishing how many journalists have adopted the Palestinian position that recognizing Jerusalem as Israel’s capital is tantamount to some kind of crime. It’s the Palestinians’ prerogative to be offended by whatever they so choose, but that does not mean that a given act is objectively wrong. The reality is that every country in the world has chosen its own capital. So why should Israel’s doing so be described as a “slap” to anyone?
Israel is a sovereign state, and like all sovereign states, it gets to choose its own capital. Recognition of such isn't a slap, @EliStokols @LATimes.
The Palestinians can be offended by the sun shining and the grass being green, but simply recognizing reality isn't an insult. pic.twitter.com/JPDOnXOZ0o
— HonestReporting (@HonestReporting) August 23, 2020
4. Prestigious dictionary perpetuates Apartheid smear against Israel
The Merriam-Webster dictionary is one of the most respected in the world. A feature on its site that culls from the internet recent examples of the use of a particular word in a phrase briefly accused Israel of ‘Apartheid’ this week — a sad consequence of media outlets and individuals widely promulgating the outrageous smear.
This is the result when media outlets like @NYTimes, @CNN, @Guardian, @BBC and others allow themselves to be used as a platform for smears against Israel: the lies become enshrined in prestigious dictionaries, and spread even further.
Via Tom Gross. pic.twitter.com/ThFIs69Kch
— HonestReporting (@HonestReporting) August 24, 2020
5. A bewildering clickbait poll by the International Business Times
Israel hasn’t bombed the West Bank since the Six-Day War. After acquiring the territory in the face of rampant Palestinian terrorism, the Jewish state has been forced to control the region militarily, occasionally fighting battles on the ground and launching major operations — but for almost two full decades, no such skirmishes have erupted. But for some reason an IBT poll this week asked its readers what they made of Israel “bombing… the West Bank.”
To make matters worse, the poll also asked whether Israel’s military response to ongoing terrorist attacks emanating from the Gaza Strip was “overly aggressive.”
Horrifically irresponsible poll on the @IBTimes website.
Israel is NOT bombing the West Bank. This is pure fiction.
And let it be very clear — the IDF is NOT bombing Gaza for the sake of it, but targeting Hamas infrastructure after repeated attacks on Israel. pic.twitter.com/XzjvC6kRwp
— HonestReporting (@HonestReporting) August 24, 2020
6. The Associated Press misrepresents Gaza terrorism
An AP story included the Hamas-directed launching of incendiary balloons into Israel as background information regarding US Secretary of State Mike on Pompeo’s visit this week to Jerusalem. But in doing so, the article excused the repeated acts of terrorism as “a bid to pressure Israel to ease the blockade.” Of course, the reason for Gaza’s isolation is its rulers’ perpetual violence.
Readers of this @AP article on Pompeo's arrival in Israel are not fully informed about the situation in Gaza:
1. Incendiary balloons are not simply a bid to pressure Israel to ease the blockade but also part of a longstanding campaign of attacks on Israeli civilian and property. pic.twitter.com/Z3onhJmlEG
— HonestReporting (@HonestReporting) August 24, 2020
7. BBC television producer’s obscene comparison
It is peculiar that a BBC television producer would be compelled to compare the problematic lyrics of an anthem about Britons never having been slaves to the theoretical situation of neo-Nazis singing about not having been “forced into a gas chamber.” We may never know the reason why, but we do know one thing – such reporting minimizes both the Holocaust and the deeply troubling rise of far-right antisemitic groups.
This is a @BBC exec. producer outrageously comparing Brits singing "Rule Britannia" to Neo-Nazis she imagines singing about "never being gassed". (Purely a figment of her odd imagination.)
Downplaying the genuine, menacing issues of antisemitism and neo-Nazism. Unacceptable. https://t.co/VMydkEuWsZ
— HonestReporting (@HonestReporting) August 26, 2020
