New York Times 'by far' had the worse Israel-Hamas coverage in US media, Jerusalem Post editor says

The Jerusalem Post Editor-in-Chief Zvika Klein slammed the American news media for its coverage of the Israel-Hamas war, particularly The New York Times, in an interview with Fox News Digital.

Klein recalled American journalists' coverage as being "great" in the immediate aftermath of the Oct. 7 terrorist attack, emphasizing the tragedy the Jewish state endured. But it wasn't long after that the "Palestinian narrative became a lot more prominent."

"In the liberal media, it's been pretty bad," Klein said.

On which news organization in America he thought was the worst offender, he told Fox News Digital it was "by far" The New York Times.

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The Jerusalem Post editor-in-chief Zvika Klein spoke with Fox News Digital about the American media's coverage of the Israel-Hamas war.  (Noam Galai/Getty Images)

"On CNN, at least you had, you had the personal interest stories, you had released hostages, hostage families. The New York Times was systematically just a very, very anti-Israel. Like, dramatically more, I would say, than any other outlet," Klein said.

The New York Times was frequently criticized for several stories it published over the course of the war, including mistakes that seemed to only flow in one direction. 

The paper was among the outlets that peddled the false narrative pushed by the Hamas-controlled Gaza Health Ministry that over 500 civilians were killed by an Israeli bombing of a Gaza hospital just days after Oct. 7, running the headline "Israeli Strike Kills Hundreds in Hospital, Palestinians Say."  What actually happened was an explosion in the hospital's parking lot stemming from a misfired rocket fired by Hamas ally Islamic Jihad, resulting in a death toll a tiny fraction of what Hamas had first alleged.

The Times later admitted it had relied "too heavily" on claims by Hamas.

More recently, the Gray Lady drew backlash for plastering a grim image of a malnourished infant on its front page, but was later forced to admit that the child has a genetic disorder.

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Mohammed Zakaria al-Mutawaq appears severally malnourished on The New York Times front cover in July, though the paper omitted that the 18-month-old boy has a genetic disorder. (New York Times)

Klein cited "progressives," who overwhelmingly rallied behind the anti-Israel cause, as being a factor in the liberal media's coverage of the war and constantly framing Israel as being the "oppressor."

Klein conceded, however, that Israel had been losing the "propaganda war" and that it "failed" with its messaging on the world stage. The country has weathered intense criticism around the globe over the past two years for its prosecution of the conflict, with Israel facing accusations of war crimes and even genocide.

"We're not in a good place. It could have been managed better," Klein said. "People are concerned about the fact that there's so much negativity towards Israel. It's a real problem."

On whether he thinks Israel will regain the global support it once had, Klein replied, "I don't see it bouncing back so fast. It's going to take a while."

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Throughout the war, there had been a debate among political pundits on whether anti-Zionism equates to antisemitism. To Klein, the answer was clear. 

"Anti-Zionism is antisemitism because anti-Zionism means you don't believe in the right for Jews to have their own country, their own state," Klein said. "You could be critical of Israel, because I would say almost every Israeli is critical of Israel. We're not shy to say what we think, and speak out. But anti-Zionism is definitely antisemitism."

He continued, "And in the past, people would hide behind anti-Israel sentiments and not, you know, show their true colors, but now people will just say — I don't know if they would say I'm an antisemite, but they'd say I'm against Jews. You know, we see that now, and it's very concerning."

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The New York Times defended its reporting in a statement to Fox News Digital. 

"The New York Times helps people understand complex and politicized issues with on-the-ground, fact-based reporting of the region - that is free from outside interests," the statement said.