LATEST IMPACT: 2023-11-27 CJPME prompts headline change: From Hamas “command centre” to tunnel with “toilets and air conditioning”
On November 24, 2023, CJPME staff, as well as members of CJPME Saskatoon, wrote to the Saskatoon Star Phoenix about a problematic headline. It read: “Hamas tunnel under Al-Shifa shows how terror group was using the hospital as command center.” However, the story itself described the tunnel under al-Shifa in some detail. Despite Israel’s bold claims about the area serving as a command centre before attacking the hospital, when they went in, they found no more than some toilets and air conditioning — not much else.
After CJPME’s efforts, the headline was updated and now reads, “Toilets and air conditioning: Videos show inside Hamas tunnel under Al-Shifa hospital.” It is a dramatic change and an appropriate one.
This incident helps highlight the need for journalists to be skeptical of Israeli military claims, as history shows the claims are often highly sensationalized. Media should also not exaggerate headlines to generate traffic.
Click here to see other recent examples of our impact with Canadian media.
Pushing for better Middle East coverage in Canadian Media!
The Media Accountability Project (MAP) is an initiative of Canadians for Justice and Peace in the Middle East (CJPME) and was created to encourage Canadian media to provide professional and fair-minded coverage on the Middle East, especially Palestine-Israel. The work of the MAP is based on professionally recognized journalistic ethics, as established by the Canadian Association of Journalists (CAJ) and the Canadian Broadcast Standards Council, which direct journalists at all levels to provide accurate, fair, independent, transparent and diverse coverage.
See our essays for in-depth explorations into common media missteps on Palestine-Israel.
Members of the Canadian public who wish to participate in the MAP's action alerts are invited to sign-up as "Media Responders." Once registered, Media Responders will receive occasional emails encouraging them to follow up with a particular journalist or news outlet to demand improvemens to coverage. Donate here to support our media accountability work!