A CNN feature on an alleged “famine” in Gaza offers a case study in what happens when journalists let their storylines lead the facts instead of the other way around. The article’s central premise—that famine has taken hold in Gaza and that Israel is solely to blame—collapses upon examination of CNN’s own reporting.
CNN clearly understands that bad journalism not only does a disservice to its audience, but it also puts innocent civilians in danger. So, what are we to make of the fact that these reporters are knowingly repeating the same mistakes?
CNN’s coverage portrays three separate standards in the law of armed conflict: a unique, higher standard applied to the Jewish state; the standard applied to the rest of the world; and no standard to Palestinian terrorists who seek to wipe the Jewish state from the face of the earth.
CNN’s obsessive and slanted reporting continues to leave its audience without important information necessary to understand events. Notably, the omissions all work to downplay and omit the terrorism and violence being waged against Israel, instead highlighting only the decontextualized responses of the Israeli Defense Forces.
