Did News Agencies Use Photos From Pro-Hamas Journalists in Coverage of Israel Attacks?

A report this week suggested that sources including The New York Times (Lean Left bias), Associated Press (Lean Left bias), and Reuters (Center bias) used photos from freelancers embedded with Hamas during the Oct. 7 attacks on Israel.

The Details: Pro-Israel media watchdog HonestReporting (not rated) focused on photographer Hassan Eslaiah, and how AP used Eslaiah's photos of Hamas attacking Israel. HonestReporting published a photo of Eslaiah with a Hamas leader and asked, "Is it conceivable to assume that 'journalists' just happened to appear early in the morning at the border without prior coordination with the terrorists?" AP and CNN (Lean Left bias) cut ties with Eslaiah following the report but didn't specify why.

Key Quotes: "These journalists were accomplices in crimes against humanity; their actions were contrary to professional ethics," said Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's office. "It is reckless to make such allegations, putting our journalists on the ground in Israel and Gaza at risk," read a statement from the Times.

How the Media Covered it: Left-rated sources highlighted statements from the sources in question denying that they had prior knowledge of the attacks or embedded journalists with Hamas. Right-rated sources often framed the sources' use of photos from the freelancers as unethical and questioned why the freelancers didn't notify authorities or news outlets of the attacks ahead of time.

Why the Difference? Some, especially on the right, believe major news sources are unwilling to frame Hamas negatively. Read more about ideological divisions over Israel and Palestine.