When the international media quote Hamas or the UN in regard to casualties on the ground it would appear that their need to report 24/7 on the conflict supersedes the old journalistic requirement to check and verify. it would appear that today it is far easier, and for some reason seemingly accepted practice; to go ahead and report an incident and the worry about the facts at a later date, hell they can always retract if needs be. But by then as we all know it is too late and the damage is done.
What short memories the media appears to have. I seem to remember something about an alleged massacre in Jenin in 2002. At the time, the international media and the world at large was outraged by reports of Israeli troops killing thousands of innocent Palestinians. Networks were queuing up to give space to Palestinian spokespeople to tell of the terrible massacre of their people at the hands of the evil Israeli. Most notable at the time was Saeeb Erakat who stood in front of the world in righteous outrage, claiming thousands of his brethren dead and accusing the Israelis of covering up the incident by bulldozing buildings, taking the bodies away to hide them and hence their refusal to allow the international press into the area. The press where in a feeding frenzy. They couldn't get enough, eager to broadcast and publish, verification be damned. A day later the thousands became five hundred. Perhaps far less than the original casualty figures claimed by Palestinian sources, but still a massacre by any definition. Still the international press held on to and reported every baseless claim and accusation. Human rights organisations joined the frenzy insisting that Israel be investigated for war crimes. The UN called for an inquiry. And then the dust cleared, the violence subsided and the journalists and human rights organisations were allowed in to Jenin to check for themselves. "To late" cried the Palestinians. the Israelis have used the time to cover up their crime.
Of course the world then learned that the story had no basis in fact. It was, excuse my "Fench",;"utter bollocks". There had indeed been a battle in Jenin in one particular area, in which twenty three Israelis were killed along with, if my memory serves me correctly; fifty two Palestinians, twelve of which were civilians, the rest combatants. The problem was that the headlines of "Massacre in Jenin" remained in the public psyche. Although there was no massacre, a fact confirmed by both the UN and Amnesty International; it didn't matter. The irresponsible and unprofessional reporting which preceded any form of validation or verification; had done a level of damage which could not and never will be undone.
I thought or at least hoped; that people and organisations were supposed to learn from their mistakes and change their processes and procedure accordingly. It would appear watching and reading the international media, that this is not the case. In reporting the current conflict in Gaza, TV stations and newspapers alike seem all to eager to quote Palestinian UN and NGO sources in regard to alleged "war crimes" and civilian casualty figures. Today news organisations often qualify these reports by adding a "disclaimer" which usually takes the form of "we have been unable to verify these figures as of yet"or something to that effect. The fact is however that the public does not hear this qualification. they see pictures and they hear figures. They do not pay heed to qualifications.
The international media understands this all too well, however short memories, a "couldn't care less" attitude and a desire to be first with the news is leading the media to make the same irresponsible errors all over again. Mistakes which in the end only serve to bring into question the credibility and professionalism of the worlds press. It also makes them an accomplice to cynical and dangerous manipulation of a global audience which deserves to see and hear the facts as they are, not as one side of the conflict would have you believe.
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