Posts Use Fabricated Audio to Misrepresent CNN Report During Rocket Attack in Israel
Facts And Fact Checking,Israel Hamas Violence,Social Media
A CNN report on Oct. 9 showed a news crew in Israel taking shelter in a roadside ditch during a rocket attack. But social media posts used fabricated audio of the news coverage to falsely claim the reporters were “faking an attack.” The audio was altered by a conservative commentary organization that acknowledged “the voice over isn’t real.”
The Palestinian militant group Hamas attacked Israel on Oct. 7, launching rockets from Gaza and infiltrating the Israeli border by air, ground and sea to target civilians and soldiers and take hostages. Israel responded by declaring war on Hamas, mobilizing its military reservists and starting airstrikes on Gaza.
More than 5,000 Palestinians and 1,400 Israelis have been killed in the war, as of Oct. 23, the United Nations said, citing the Gaza Ministry of Health and Israeli official sources, respectively.
Meanwhile, the conflict has been a source for widespread misinformation online.
Journalists in the region have been at risk due to their proximity to ground assaults and fired missiles. At least 23 journalists covering the conflict have been confirmed dead, with 11 others injured, missing or detained, according to the Committee to Protect Journalists, a nonprofit that “defend[s] the right of journalists to report the news safely and without fear of reprisal.”
