Writing yesterday about the recent revision of casualties claimed by the so-called Gaza Health Ministry or “Palestinian health authorities” (as the Wall Street Journal denominates them), I commented that the lies aren’t really news — they have been exposed as such by observant analysts for a while now — and they extend to the absolute number of alleged deaths, not only the proportion of combatants to civilians. I added that John Spencer has made the latter point his specialty. Spencer is chair of urban warfare studies at West Point’s Modern War Institute and codirector of MWI’s Urban Warfare Project.
Just after I posted my comments the New York Post published Spencer’s column “The lies behind the Gaza casualty figures and the thousands of names removed without explanation.” Spencer writes (link in original):
According to the independent analysis group Honest Reporting, the Hamas-run Gaza Health Ministry recently updated its casualty list, quietly removing thousands of names without explanation. Notably, the revised list also dropped over a thousand children listed, sharply altering the previously reported demographic ratios that had been quickly seized upon by critics of Israeli military operations.
This stark revision — largely overlooked by major media outlets — exemplifies a broader problem: the uncritical acceptance and use of questionable statistics to judge the legality and morality of military operations, most notably in Gaza.
Despite the clear political control and questionable methodology behind Hamas casualty figures, political leaders and most international media outlets have cited Gaza Health Ministry (GHM) statistics without question or caveat.
Spencer’s observation about “most international media outlets” applies widely. I have served up the news pages of the Wall Street Journal as an egregious example because they are belied by the paper’s own editorial pages. The Journal’s news pages have even adopted the AP’s practice of referring to Hamas and other such genocidal terrorists as “militants.” How militant can you get?
You have to wonder if the purpose of these media outlets is not to obscure reality rather than report it, or at some point you have to conclude at some point that this is the case.
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