Success: HR Prompts New York Times to Finally Correct Glaring Western Wall Error

HonestReporting has successfully secured a correction from The New York Times that left us wondering why the Gray Lady failed to take remedial action for over a week despite being notified on multiple occasions about a glaring error.

Writing about the Israeli government pushing through the first part of the polarizing legislation to overhaul the Israeli judiciary last month, The New York Times’ Jerusalem bureau chief Patrick Kingsley referenced some of the more extreme politicians who form Benjamin Netanyahu’s coalition:

… Mr. Netanyahu’s coalition includes a finance minister who has described himself as a proud homophobe, a security minister who was convicted of racist incitement, and an ultra-Orthodox party that proposed fining women for reading the Torah at the holiest site in Judaism.

Although seemingly subtle, the mistake is significant: no one has proposed fining women for reading the Torah at Judaism’s holiest site.

It is true that the ultra-Orthodox Shas political party proposed legislating a fine of up to 10,000 shekels ($2,729) and up to six months in prison for women who read from the Torah, blow a shofar, put on prayers shawls or phylacteries — but this would not have applied to Judaism’s holiest site for the simple reason that Jews do not pray at Judaism’s holiest site.

As Kingsley and editors over at The New York Times should be well aware of by now, Judaism’s holiest site is the Temple Mount, which is administered by the Jordanian Waqf and subject to a status quo agreement that forbids Jewish prayer — by women and men alike.

Rather, Kingsley was referencing the Western Wall, which has been the subject of opposition by orthodox Jews to egalitarian prayer at the holy site.

No Jews – men or women – are able to read the Torah at the holiest site in Judaism – the Temple Mount. @nytimes, you meant to say the Western Wall, the holiest site where Jews are allowed to pray.@PatrickKingsley, please correct the error. https://t.co/wHggUTOavQ pic.twitter.com/oPMnBFi8jo

— HonestReporting (@HonestReporting) July 25, 2023

Shortly after the article was published, HonestReporting reached out to both The New York Times and Patrick Kingsley to request a correction.

Finally, after more than one week, another tweet and a second emailed request on August 1, The New York Times issued a correction.

🎉 It's taken over a week but @nytimes has finally responded to our numerous complaints and done the right thing by publishing a correction making it crystal clear that the Temple Mount is the holiest site in Judaism. https://t.co/f2Lz3fbhIn pic.twitter.com/loqO2H2490

— HonestReporting (@HonestReporting) August 3, 2023

While The New York Times prides itself on being the “newspaper of record,” it appears to have something of a blindspot when it comes to accuracy about matters pertaining to Jews and Israel.

Indeed, the publication has repeatedly made errors concerning Jewish holy sites in Israel, including by frequently diminishing the Jewish connection to the Temple Mount by suggesting its location as the site of the ancient temples is merely a “belief” as opposed to a historical fact that is supported by archeological evidence.

The latest mistake was bad. That The New York Times steadfastly refused to correct the error immediately is simply appalling.

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