Memo to the Media: Check Those Civilian Casualty Claims
In Operation Pillar of Defense, some media, relying on Palestinian sources, exaggerate the proportion of civilian casualties in Gaza. They give less weight to Israeli figures and ignore the fact that 2 out of 3 fatalities are men between ages 18-40.
In a Washington Post op-ed, Israel's ambassador to the United States writes, “Hamas knows that it cannot destroy us militarily but believes that it might do so through the media."
The many criticisms of a recent New York Times article by David Carr might feel like a confusing blur of names. But regardless of whose name is spelled how, the reporter did a dramatic disservice to readers by ignoring facts and context in his indictment of Israel.
On a regular basis, The Huffington Post is a wasteland of biased and context-free reporting about Israel. During the current conflict between Israel and Hamas in the Gaza Strip, The Huffington Post has hit a new low.
NPR's Leila Fadel, a victim of harassment by Egyptian authorities, raises the false charge of Israel targeting journalists. She states Israel "struck a media building," without noting that Israel hit equipment belonging to Hamas' Al-Aqsa TV and Al-Quds TV.