(Headline USA) The Associated Press has instructed its reporters and other outlets that use its styleguide not to refer to Hamas as a terrorist organization, according to the Washington Free Beacon.
In its “Israel–Hamas Topical Guide,” the news outlet claimed that the words “terrorism” and “terrorist” have “become politicized” and are “often … applied inconsistently.” Reporters should therefore avoid “using the terms for specific actions or groups, other than in direct quotations,” the guide says.
Hamas is classified as a terrorist organization by dozens of countries, including the U.S. and the European Union. Its most recent attack on Israel included acts of terrorism, such as the kidnapping of women and children and the killing of civilians.
But journalists should instead refer to Hamas as “militants,” according to the Associated Press.
“Terms such as Hamas fighters, attackers or combatants are also acceptable depending on the context,” the guide states.
The guidance comes just days after other leftist publications, including the New York Times, issued corrections after they were caught parroting Hamas propaganda. The Times admitted in a recent editors’ note that its coverage of a hospital explosion in Gaza “relied too heavily on claims” made by Hamas.
“The Times’s initial accounts attributed the claim of Israeli responsibility to Palestinian officials, and noted that the Israeli military said it was investigating the blast,” the note, published Monday, reads.
Early coverage “did not make clear that those claims could not immediately be verified,” the Times added.
The Times stopped short of an apology, but said editors should have been more careful with the way the explosion was represented.
“Given the sensitive nature of the news during a widening conflict, and the prominent promotion it received, Times editors should have taken more care with the initial presentation, and been more explicit about what information could be verified,” the note reads.
