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anat schwartz
To Remove 'Cloud of Doubt,' Journalism Professors Urge Review of NYT Story on Oct. 7 Sexual Violence
Nothing can "reverse the damage done to Palestine and to Palestinians," said the professors, "but the Times could still reverse some of the damage it has done to itself with its silence."
Apr 29, 2024
A front-page New York Times story that Israel used to galvanize public support for its U.S.-backed assault on Gaza must be subject to an independent review, said more than 50 journalism professors in a letter to the newspaper on Monday, as growing protests signified widespread outrage over the destruction that followed the bombshell article.
The professors, many of whom worked as full-time journalists before turning to academia, wrote to Timespublisher A.G. Sulzberger, executive editor Joe Kahn, and international editor Philip Pan, calling for a "thorough and independent review" into the article "'Screams Without Words': Sexual Violence on Oct. 7."
The letter urged the newspaper to form a commission made up of journalism experts to examine the "reporting, editing, and publishing processes" for the story.
The article came under scrutiny shortly after it was published, having been reported by not only international correspondent Jeffrey Gettleman but also two inexperienced freelancers based in Israel. One, Anat Schwartz, is a "former air force intelligence official" with whom the Times cut ties after it was revealed that she had "liked" a social media post calling for Gaza to be turned into a "slaughterhouse."
"It appears that extraordinary trust was invested in these individuals andthe Times would benefit from publicly explaining the circumstances that justified such unusual reliance on freelancers for such an important story," wrote the professors, including Mohamad Bazzi of New York University, Shahan Mufti of University of Richmond, and Jeff Cohen, who retired from Ithaca College.
Mufti joined Northwestern University assistant professor Steven Thrasher in gathering the signatures, and told The Washington Post that after "serious consideration and deliberation," the academics "came to the conclusion that this is necessary."
In addition to questions that have been raised about Schwartz's and Sella's experience and bias, the professors pointed to the newspaper's acknowledgment on March 26 that "new video evidence 'undercut' some important details" in "Screams Without Words," as well as Gettleman's comment suggesting he did not view the information in the story as hard "evidence."
"Can the paper 'establish' fact if its own reporter does not consider his information 'evidence'?" asked the professors.
In March, a spokesperson for Kibbutz Be'eri toldThe Intercept that victims of the Hamas-led attack on southern Israel were not sexually assaulted, and the family of one woman who was a key figure in "Screams Without Words" has denied the report's graphic details of sexual abuse were true.
The Intercept also reported that in reporting on the alleged sexual assaults, Schwartz relied on interviews with a rescue group that was "documented to have mishandled evidence and spread multiple false stories about the events of October 7, including debunked allegations of Hamas operatives beheading babies."
Al Jazeera journalist Laila Al-Arian called Monday's letter a "major development" and urged the Times to "do the right thing."
The methods used by Schwartz, The Interceptnoted earlier this month, were the building blocks for a story that "instantly served as a powerful reference in a mounting campaign waged by Israel and its supporters" to excuse Israel's assault on Gaza.
"The impact of The New York Times story is impossible to fathom," the professors wrote on Monday. "This is wartime and in the minds of many people, the Times' story fueled the fire at a pivotal moment when there might have been an opportunity to contain it before, as the International Court of Justice has ruled, the situation devolved into the 'plausible' realm of genocide. Considering these grave circumstances, we believe that the Times must waste no time in extending an invitation for an independent review."
The article, said one signatory, Sandy Tolan of the University of Southern California, was published "as the death toll mounted in Gaza, and criticism was beginning to focus more on Israel."
"Being cognizant of the potential damages of and consequences of the timing," Tolan told the Post, "given that it didn't appear to be as well-reported as it should have been, there's all the more reason why an external review is appropriate."
The signatories pointed out that there is significant precedent for newspapers conducting independent reviews of articles that have raised questions about bias and veracity.
"If an independent review finds that the Times did nothing gravely wrong, then it will be a win not just for the Times but for all journalism," the professors wrote. "In the worst case, if an investigation does find remarkable errors or negligence in the way the newsroom operated, nothing that the Times would do in response could ever reverse the damage done to Palestine and to Palestinians but the Times could still reverse some of the damage it has done to itself with its silence."
"Doing nothing, however," they added, "and allowing a cloud of doubt to hang over this historically consequential story will ensure that all the journalism that The New York Times produces in the course of this conflict will remain under a dark shadow."
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NYT 'Reviewing' Israeli Reporter Who Liked Gaza 'Slaughterhouse' Post
"This is honestly veering on journalistic malpractice and The New York Times owes its readers an explanation," said one editor.
Feb 26, 2024
Higher-ups at The New York Times have confirmed Sunday that they are looking into Anat Schwartz, who contributed to widely criticized reporting about Hamas' alleged sexual violence on October 7, after it came to light over recent days that the Israeli freelancer liked a social media post calling for Israel to turn the Gaza Strip "into a slaughterhouse" and other content.
"We are aware that a freelance journalist in Israel who has worked with the Times has 'liked' several social media posts," Danielle Rhodes Ha, a spokesperson for the newspaper, toldThe Daily Beast. "Those 'likes' are unacceptable violations of our company policy. We are currently reviewing the matter."
Confirmation of the review came after the popular account @zei_squirrel on X, formerly Twitter, highlighted Friday that Schwartz had liked the hateful "slaughterhouse" message from editor and radio presenter David Mizrahy Verthaim and other posts circulating misinformation about the October Hamas-led attack.
Esha Krishnaswamy, host of the podcast Historic.ly, who also began digging into Schwartz's online activity and history, said Saturday on X that she "has reactivated her account. But she has purged it of her previous genocidal 'likes.'"
The newspaper's social media policy states in part that journalists "must not express partisan opinions, promote political views, endorse candidates, make offensive comments, or do anything else that undercuts the Times' journalistic reputation," and "should be especially mindful of appearing to take sides on issues that the Times is seeking to cover objectively."
A filmmaker whose LinkedIn identifies her as working at the Israeli Public Broadcasting Corporation (Kan), Schwartz contributed to Times reporting from November to January, focusing on the Hamas attack and Israel's retaliation in Gaza—which has killed over 30,000 Palestinians and is being investigated at the International Court of Justice as genocide.
Schwartz has bylines on multiple pieces about accusations that Hamas militants committed sexual violence during the attack on Israel. She repeatedly collaborated with Times international correspondent Jeffrey Gettleman and Adam Sella, who has written dozens of articles for the paper since mid-October and is reportedly her nephew.
The Times had to add a correction to a December report by the trio, clarifying that Israeli police "are relying mainly on witness testimony, not on autopsies or forensic evidence." Another report by Schwartz, Sella, and Gettleman—'Screams Without Words': How Hamas Weaponized Sexual Violence on Oct. 7—appeared on the front page of the print edition on Sunday, December 31.
Then, citing newsroom sources, The Interceptreported last month that the Times "pulled a high-profile episode of its podcast 'The Daily' about sexual violence perpetrated by Hamas on October 7 amid a furious internal debate about the strength of the paper's original reporting on the subject."
A newspaper spokesperson, Charlie Stadtlander, told the outlet at the time that "as a general matter of policy, we do not comment on the specifics of what may or may not publish in The New York Times or our audio programs."
The Intercept's Ryan Grim said Sunday that sources told him the Times "is now cutting ties" with Schwartz. He also pointed out that the paper's podcast hasn't put out an episode related to their reporting.
As attention on Schwartz grew over the weekend, multiple other U.S. journalists weighed in on social media.
"I sometimes joke 'it's another good day not to be The New York Times public editor' but the organization could *really* use one right now to investigate on behalf of the readers," said Margaret Sullivan, who held the role for four years.
Philadelphia Inquirer columnist Will Bunch wrote that "as a veteran journalist, I know there are a lot of award-winning reporters who would kill to get their byline in the NYT. But a filmmaker with ZERO experience shows up and gets on the front page covering the world's most controversial story? Something here is not right."
The Times—like other U.S. dailies—has long been accused of anti-Palestinian bias, criticism that has ramped up in response to the paper's coverage of Israel's four-month attack on Gaza.
Jazmine Hughes was forced to resign as a New York Times Magazine staff writer in November for violating its public protest policy by signing an open letter condemning Israel's genocide in Gaza. That same month, Jamie Lauren Keiles, a contributor who self-identifies as a "religiously observant Jew," also signed the letter and said that he would no longer write for the publication.
In October 2022, Hosam Salem, a Palestinian freelance photojournalist, announced on social media that The New York Times terminated his contract over posts in which he "expressed support for the Palestinian resistance against the Israeli occupation."
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