OPINION:
It should come as no surprise that many news media conglomerates are having a hard time with balanced coverage during the dramatic rise of antisemitism since the Oct. 7 invasion of Israel by Hamas.
Could it be that a low-rumbling of prejudice inside the news business manifests itself in blind reporting? World history reveals a thread of hatred toward the Jews. Such has been recorded in both the New and Old Testament of the Bible. Prophetically as well. The newsroom is not immune.
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“Then they will deliver you up to tribulation and kill you, and you will be hated by all nations for My name’s sake.” – Matthew 24:9
In an interpretation of Matthew in the Blue Letter Bible, in a part titled, “The Hatred of Jewish Believers,” Thomas Ice explains that in the above verse: “Jesus predicts that all the nations of the world will hate the Jewish believers living in Israel during the tribulation. Why? Because they hate Jesus, the Messiah!”
Granted, we are most likely, presently not living in the time of tribulation. However, recent news stories such as the ones about higher security cost at Jewish schools in the U.S., Jewish college students filing complaints over ‘rampant and pervasive antisemitism,’ and Harvard accused of ‘severe and pervasive’ antisemitism in lawsuit filed by Jewish students, are hard to find in the mainstream press.
SEE ALSO: WATCH: Holocaust survivor shares story of survival, warns against dangers of antisemitism
“And at that time many will fall away and will deliver up one another and hate one another. And many false prophets will arise, and will mislead many. And because lawlessness is increased, most people’s love will grow cold. But the one who endures to the end, he shall be saved.” – Matthew 24:10-13
Nearly four months after the Hamas attack, The New York Times, published a feature story, “‘Screams Without Words’: How Hamas Weaponized Sexual Violence on Oct. 7” with the subhead, “A New York Times investigation uncovered new details showing a pattern of rape, mutilation and extreme brutality against women in the attacks on Israel.”
Although the content is heavy on the graphic details, the New York Times piece does illustrate the demon-like attributes of Hamas. However, other stories coming from the platform appear to quickly judge and skew Israel’s response.
The story of an explosion at a hospital in Gaza on Oct. 17, pointed to an Israeli rocket first before including the possibility of a Hamas misfire. The headline stated the blast “killed hundreds,” but the claim is still unsubstantiated. An unclassified U.S. intelligence report estimated the death toll “at the low end of the 100 to 300 spectrum.”
Unfortunately, many media platforms are quoting unreliable sources for stories and statistics. News agencies seem to ignore the fact that some of the people used for critical information are either Hamas or connected to Hamas. How can a terrorist group be trusted with telling the truth?
Reuters, for example, has reported that: “Israel’s military campaign in Gaza has killed at least 25,700 Palestinians since Oct. 7, health authorities in the Hamas-run enclave say.” The Gaza Health Ministry, aka Hamas, reports on Palestinian casualties without clarifying if the deceased are civilians or combatants.
Over the last several months, culture trackers have found that the antisemitic strain in America goes beyond news reports and into entertainment. Saturday Night Live aired a skit that mocked not the Harvard, University of Pennsylvania, and Massachusetts Institute of Technology presidents “who waffled on whether calls for ‘genocide of Jews’ violate their conduct codes,” but the Rep. Elise Stefanik.
Although in real life, each college president downplayed the antisemitism raging across their campuses, and refused to take action against the calls for genocide of the Jews, SNL diverted by attempting to poke fun at Rep. Stefanik, the Congresswoman who questioned the presidents during a House hearing.
Christian Toto, founder of Hollywood in Mr. Toto, put it this way: “Ignore college students ripping down hostage posters. Look away as university professors praise Hamas. The real villains in the post-Oct. 7 world are Elon Musk and Republicans, according to ‘SNL.’”
The latest pressure on Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is to secure the release of those prisoners who have been held for more than three months. The U.N. has been calling for a ceasefire and President Joe Biden is reportedly sending CIA Director William Burns, who will soon travel to Europe to try and negotiate an extended cease-fire deal that would free the remaining hostages held by the Palestinian militant group Hamas.
Mr. Netanyahu recently praised U.S. Jewish leaders for “finally” standing up to antisemitism on college campuses and elsewhere, shortly after the president of the University of Pennsylvania resigned “following an uproar over her refusal to declare that calls for Jewish genocide violate school rules,” the Times of Israel reported.
“There’s a whopping wave of antisemitism, from the left and partially from the right,” Mr. Netanyahu told ministers gathered in Jerusalem. “It has seeped onto university campuses there and come out into the open.”
“What’s important is that figures and leaders of the Jewish community are finally standing up,” he continued. “They are standing up against this antisemitism, and it is the only way to fight it: proudly, gloriously, not to bury your head in the sand, to fight back tooth and nail.”
Two recent X posts by Pastor Jack Hibbs of Calvary Chapel Chino Hills, author of the upcoming book, “Living in the Daze of Deception,” point to another issue mainstream media is having a hard time with: declaring that the U.S. is now at war, defending its own interests in the Middle East, including its alliance (although sketchy) with Israel.
In one post, Mr. Hibbs states, “By all observations it looks like we are at war just in time for the election cycle.” The post links to a CNN story about the US and UK carrying out additional strikes against Houthi targets in Yemen on Monday.
By all observations it looks like we are at war just in time for the election cycle.https://t.co/ADOsUEiWgi
— Jack Hibbs (@RealJackHibbs) January 22, 2024
In another recent post, he states, “More on the fact that the USA is at war but the news or Joe isn’t saying so.” The post also links to a CNN story headlined: “US carries out airstrikes on Iranian-backed militias in Iraq.”
More on the fact that the USA is at war but the news or Joe isn’t saying so.https://t.co/9EbLGEL56e
— Jack Hibbs (@RealJackHibbs) January 24, 2024
In an introduction of Mr. Hibb’s upcoming book on his website, it states:
Jesus warned that deception would grow worse as we draw nearer to the end times, saying, “Take heed that no one deceives you.” (Matthew 24:4). Distinguishing truth from error has become increasingly challenging—even in the church. We live in a time when falsehoods assault us from every direction.
But we are not without hope!
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Alex Murashko is a journalist and the writing team leader for Think Eternity, a site for powerful faith content to help you live the fulfilled life in Jesus. Murashko’s ministry website highlighting the work of journalists and media: MediaOnMission.org Connect: @AlexMurashko.
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