Jewish Chronicle spared investigation over ‘fabricated' Gaza articles

Yahoo

08-04-2025

The Jewish Chronicle has been spared an investigation by the press watchdog after it was accused of publishing a series of fabricated articles about the war in Gaza.
The Independent Press Standards Organisation (IPSO) has decided not to launch an investigation into the world's oldest Jewish newspaper despite concerns about editorial standards.
However, the regulator said it would continue to monitor the title and asked bosses to submit regular reports containing any concerns.
It comes after the Jewish Chronicle was caught up in a scandal over articles by Elon Perry, a UK-based Israeli writer, about the Gaza conflict.
The newspaper published a series of stories by Mr Perry that purported to reveal details of Israeli military operations.
This included a story in September claiming a document had been uncovered showing that Yahya Sinwar, the former leader of Hamas who was killed last year, was planning to escape to Iran with several hostages taken during the October 7 attacks.
While the story was promoted by some parts of the Israeli media, as well as members of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's family, it was quickly dismissed by other Israeli news outlets as a 'wild fabrication', while the IDF denied that any such document existed.
Further reporting by Israeli media raised doubts over Mr Perry's CV, including claims about his journalistic background and his 15-year tenure as a professor at Tel Aviv University.
Following an internal investigation, the Jewish Chronicle took down all articles by Mr Perry.
At the time, it said: 'The Jewish Chronicle maintains the highest journalistic standards in a highly contested information landscape and we deeply regret the chain of events that led to this point.
'We apologise to our loyal readers and have reviewed our internal processes so that this will not be repeated.'
The controversy prompted the resignation of a number of high-profile columnists, including Jonathan Freedland, David Aaronovitch, Hadley Freeman and David Baddiel, who criticised what they deemed a shift in the newspaper's political stance under the leadership of editor Jake Wallis Simons.
Mr Wallis Simons stepped down as editor in February and was replaced by David Schwammenthal, a former Dow Jones and Wall Street Journal reporter.
The row also fuelled questions over the ownership of the Jewish Chronicle. Formerly owned by the Kessler Foundation, the title was bought in 2021 by a consortium led by Robbie Gibb, the former BBC executive and adviser to Theresa May, but the identity of its backers is unknown. The newspaper last year said it planned to convert into a charitable trust.
IPSO, which was formed in 2014 in the wake of the Leveson Inquiry, said it had begun monitoring the Jewish Chronicle in 2020 after a pattern of upheld complaints raised concerns about editorial standards and delays in dealing with complaints.
It said the newspaper's compliance improved following the appointment of a managing editor to handle complaints in-house, with no complaints upheld in 2024.
However, fresh concerns were raised in September in the wake of the scandal involving Mr Perry, which led to the watchdog holding meetings with senior management, including chief executive Jo Bucci, Mr Wallis Simons and Mr Schwammenthal.
The newspaper blamed the issues in part on staff absences and set out a number of reforms, including hiring additional newsroom staff and rolling out extra training for journalists.
IPSO said it had decided that a formal standards investigation was not necessary. However, the watchdog will continue to monitor editorial processes at the newspaper.
Lord Faulks, IPSO chairman, said: 'This was a concerning incident, and IPSO examined closely what happened and the actions the Jewish Chronicle has taken to prevent any recurrence.
'The publication's senior leadership team has engaged seriously and meaningfully with IPSO as we investigated. We will continue to work with them to ensure that the changes made are lasting and effective.'
The Jewish Chronicle has been contacted for comment.
Coverage of the conflict in Gaza has proved controversial and the Jewish Chronicle is not the only outlet to fall foul in its reporting.
Earlier this year, the BBC pulled a documentary about Gaza after it emerged that the programme's 13-year-old narrator was the son of a Hamas official.
Lisa Nandy, the Culture Secretary, summoned BBC director general Tim Davie and chairman Samir Shah to an urgent meeting over the film, while regulator Ofcom warned it could intervene.
The BBC has apologised and admitted to 'serious flaws' in the production process.
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