Middle East War: reporting truth and lies
Ten days after the first reports on the partial destruction of al-Ahli Arab Hospital in the Gaza Strip, it remains unclear how many people died, which projectile triggered the tragedy and, above all, from which side it was fired. But for commentators one thing is clear: the lack of objective coverage immediately after the attack should be a lesson for journalists and the general public.
On the threshold of the deepfake era
Foreign policy expert Botond Feledy reflects on the news coverage in Új Szó:
“The lesson is to remain open to the fact that, as new information comes in, one must be willing to revise one’s own first version of the story, both if it changes the story in the same direction as one’s subjective reading as well as if it changes it in the opposite direction. It seems that this is what journalism in the 21st century will be about to a not insignificant extent. And we are only just on the threshold of the deepfake era and AI-generated footage.”
Journalists must not be mouthpieces for social media
This is a textbook case for journalism courses, says El Mundo:
“The massacre at Al-Ahli Arab Hospital should be compulsory study at universities. ... The worst aspect is that instead of dispelling the fog on social networks many journalists have become their mouthpieces. ... In Al-Ahli Hospital even the most modest form of journalism has been buried: that which simply checks facts and points to the bias of its sources. ... As terrible as this may seem, journalism requires distance.”
Russia and China amplifying the effect
Disinformation can have a major impact on the West, warns Le Point:
“This propaganda is so effective also because it is being amplified around the world by Russia and China. The two powers are pursuing digital destabilisation strategies aimed at denigrating the US and its allies. Their method is always the same: sowing doubt so that it’s impossible to distinguish between truth and lies. ... The accusation of ‘double standards’ levelled against the West is devastating. If the impression spreads that Western support for Israel goes hand in hand with indifference towards the fate of Palestinian civilians, it will become even more difficult for the West to convince the countries of the South of the correctness of its positions in the Middle East and Ukraine.”
