Key Takeaways:
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Media coverage of Pope Leo XIV’s Lebanon visit whitewashed Hezbollah, ignoring its long history of targeting Lebanon’s Christian community.
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Outlets repeatedly blamed Israel for instability, omitting Hezbollah’s ceasefire violations, attacks on Israeli civilians, and its systematic rebuilding of military infrastructure in southern Lebanon.
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By echoing Hezbollah’s narratives instead of scrutinizing them, major news organizations misled audiences and distorted the reality of which actor – Israel or Hezbollah – is driving Lebanon’s ongoing crises.
Pope Leo XIV’s first visit to the Middle East was met with excitement and applause. When he touched down in Lebanon, supporters from all walks of life lined the streets to cheer him on – including, surprisingly, Hezbollah and its supporters.
In fact, Hezbollah’s Imam Al-Mahdi Scouts Association, a pro-terror youth movement that primes children and teenagers to become engaged with Hezbollah from a young age, was also present. These are the same scouts that filled a stadium in commemoration of Hassan Nasrallah.
Some 60,000 children and teens, members of Hezbollah’s scouts, are participating in a gathering in Beirut to commemorate Hassan Nasrallah, under the name “Generations of the Sayyed.” pic.twitter.com/sIDIYgoPey
— Ariel Oseran أريئل أوسيران (@ariel_oseran) October 12, 2025
That did not stop the Irish Times from glancing over Hezbollah’s grooming of children, reducing the scouts’ role in its coverage to the benign description that the scouts were “assembling to perform,” portraying them as an innocent, ordinary youth movement, rather than an organization indoctrinating children into a terrorist movement.
Hezbollah itself released a warm statement discussing Lebanon’s “diverse composition,” and the hardships the Lebanese were facing “as a result of the Zionist occupation of parts of their land, and the continuation of its attacks against them and the threat to their security and stability in their country.”
What was striking was how unsurprised many in the media seemed by Hezbollah’s enthusiastic embrace of the Pope. This, despite the fact that Lebanon’s Christian population has steadily declined since Hezbollah’s rise to power. A country that once had a Christian majority has since become majority Muslim, in large part due to Hezbollah’s growing influence and the resulting sense of insecurity that has pushed many Christians to leave. The Christian community in Lebanon has specifically been the target of Hezbollah and Hezbollah-affiliated attacks throughout the years.
When the media did manage to acknowledge the declining Christian population and the broader deterioration of the country, it was frequently mentioned in the context of the war between Hezbollah and Israel, with the blame falling on Israel alone.
Take NBC’s coverage of the Pope’s visit, which referred to Israel’s “near daily attacks in Lebanon,” while noting that Lebanon is home to one of the largest Christian populations in the Middle East. Yet the report offered no context as to why Israel has been carrying out targeted strikes in Lebanon (hint: Hezbollah’s refusal to abide by the ceasefire and disarm).
In omitting that context, the coverage distorted the reality, implying that Israel is targeting Lebanon in ways that endanger the ancient Christian community. However, Israel has consistently protected minority groups both within Israel and more broadly in the region – a stark contrast to Hezbollah, whose actions have destabilized Lebanon and driven minorities out.
While The Washington Post did acknowledge that Lebanese Christians were leaving the country after Hezbollah gained more control, the journalists couldn’t help but insert blame on Israel for the decline in the Christian population in Bethlehem.
Yes, the drain of Christians from Bethlehem has been underway for years – a result of discrimination, harassment, and violence from their Muslim neighbors under Palestinian Authority rule.
But @washingtonpost won’t look beyond simply blaming Israel. pic.twitter.com/xBxvoFU1BN
— HonestReporting (@HonestReporting) December 1, 2025
Israel might be the convenient target, but it is not the primary reason for the decline of Bethlehem’s Christian population.
Recommended Reading: History Repeating Itself as Bethlehem’s Christians Face Extinction
Hezbollah remains a threat not only to Israel but also to the Christians who reside in Lebanon, especially as it refuses to adhere to the ceasefire. The terror group continues to work to rebuild its infrastructure in southern Lebanon, threatening the stability of the region.
Yet none of this has stopped the media from framing Israel as the aggressor, even in coverage of the Pope’s visit. For some outlets, it seems no story is complete without one more jab at Israel’s acts of self-defense.
CNN, for instance, appears to believe that Hezbollah only needed to stop firing rockets at Israeli civilians for the ceasefire to hold, without mentioning that Hezbollah also needs to disarm. When Israel fires, it does not do so indiscriminately, but through targeted operations aimed at Hezbollah leaders and infrastructure actively working to rebuild the group’s military capabilities.
Except Hezbollah hasn’t ceased, and that’s why Israel is firing.
Not firing rockets into Israel is only a small part of Hezbollah’s ceasefire obligations. Rebuilding its forces in southern Lebanon is a violation.@CNN‘s @bencnn won’t give you the full picture. pic.twitter.com/71hEHsJcQf
— HonestReporting (@HonestReporting) November 30, 2025
It is alarming that coverage of the Pope’s visit to Lebanon frequently echoed some of the same anti-Israel talking points found in Hezbollah’s press release of the event. It should sound as a wake-up call to the media to report accurately and objectively, scrutinizing the narratives of terrorist organizations rather than blindly amplifying their talking points.
Unfortunately, for many outlets, defaulting back to the “blame Israel” narrative appears easier than naming the terrorist organization responsible for Lebanon’s crises.
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