Study claims US news outlets served as 'megaphones' for Hamas in Gaza war

Fox News

3 days ago

EXCLUSIVE: A new study by the Network Contagion Research Institute (NCRI) alleges that major U.S. and European news outlets served as uncritical megaphones for Hamas-linked narratives during the war with Israel in Gaza, amplifying claims that ultimately undermined a U.S.-backed food relief operation while shielding the terrorist group from scrutiny.
The 102-page report, titled "The 4th Estate Sale: How American and European Media Became an Uncritical Mouthpiece for a Designated Foreign Terror Organization" concludes that outlets including MSNBC, CNN, The Washington Post, and Reuters published or promoted unverified claims sourced from the Gaza Health Ministry without disclosing that it is controlled by Hamas, a U.S.-designated foreign terrorist organization.
These narratives, according to the study, falsely blamed the U.S.-based Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF) for deadly incidents and fed conspiracy theories that spread across global media and social networks.
"We need to audit the media," a senior researcher at NCRI and lead author of the study who wished to remain anonymous told Fox News Digital. "What we found is not just bias — it's the laundering of information warfare. When a terrorist-linked health ministry makes a claim, and that claim becomes the basis for international headlines without independent verification or source transparency, that is not journalism. That is narrative laundering, and it puts real people at risk."AS US-BACKED GROUP DELIVERS 70 MILLION MEALS, UN AND NGOS FIGHT TO DISCREDIT GAZA AID RIVAL
Rev. Johnnie Moore, president of the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation, told Fox News Digital that the report validates what he and his team have been enduring on the ground since launching aid operations in early 2024.
"On one level, I wasn't surprised by the findings because I've been experiencing the effect of these lies for weeks," Moore said. "But — on the other hand — I was shocked by the sheer scale of it all. Let's be clear: media outlets in the United States, the UK, and in continental Europe are literally doing the work of terrorists. They have become the default press secretaries for designated terrorist organizations. As absurd as that sounds, that's exactly what has happened."
According to GHF, the group has delivered over 70 million meals to Gazan civilians since May 2024, without a single aid truck being looted. The NCRI report cites this as a direct threat to Hamas's control over Gaza's traditional aid economy, which has long relied on systems that the terror group can exploit, divert and weaponize.US-BACKED GAZA AID GROUP LAUNCHES BOLD NEW SYSTEM TO DELIVER FOOD DIRECTLY TO FAMILIES
"They write papers and letters and sign documents, and yet we're doing it," GHF interim executive director John Acree said in response to NGO criticism. He implored those groups to "please, come. Come and help us."
"We believe Hamas made over one billion dollars last year just from manipulating the system of aid managed by the United Nations and others," Moore said. "They take free food, then sell it. They hoard it for their fighters. They use it to recruit. So when we came in and disrupted that pipeline, Hamas saw us as a threat to their business model and their control."
According to NCRI, "every time the GHF distributed aid, antisemitic and conspiratorial online narratives increased in intensity", including claims the group was feeding Palestinians drug-laced food. These spikes in disinformation, the report says, often coincided with milestones like new site openings or meal delivery totals, suggesting a coordinated effort to discredit the operation online.
The study documents a pattern in which major media platforms published or aired claims that were later found to be incorrect, often without public correction or transparency. In one widely circulated example, CNN posted on June 1, 2025: "At least 31 Palestinians were killed amid chaotic scenes near an aid site run by a US-backed private foundation in Gaza, according to the Palestinian Ministry of Health."
The NCRI's study had this to say about their report: "CNN blamed the IDF and the US-backed GHF for the deaths of over 30 civilians based solely on the Hamas Health Ministry's word. The CNN tweet, which went viral and garnered nearly half a million views, did not include context about the health ministry's terror ties, nor did it indicate the unverified nature of the claim beyond stating that CNN could not independently confirm the details."
The report further notes: "CNN later updated its story, citing an Israeli denial and including more context, but the viral post remained unchanged. This illustrates the speed at which misleading narratives can spread — and the slow, often inadequate pace of correction."
In response to Fox News Digital's inquiry, CNN stated: "There was never any doubt that the aid center in question was a GHF aid site, and we did not 'associate the GHF' with the incident. The shootings occurred along the approach route to the aid distribution site, approximately 800 meters from it, and involved people walking there to get aid — a point which no one disputes."
CNN added that their reporting relied on multiple sources, including eyewitnesses and background confirmation from an Israeli official, and that the story was labeled as developing and updated according to standard editorial practices.
In its later updates, CNN stated that it "cannot independently verify who was responsible for the shooting," noting that the international media does not have access to Gaza.CNN later added Israel's denial to its full story, quoting the IDF: "Findings from an initial inquiry indicate that the IDF did not fire at civilians while they were near or within the humanitarian aid distribution site and that reports to this effect are false." However, this denial was not included in CNN's original viral tweet, which only cited the Gaza Health Ministry. It appeared later in the same thread and was eventually added to the full article.
In an exclusive statement to Fox News Digital, the IDF confirmed that it allows the U.S.-based Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF) to operate independently within distribution zones, adding that forces have implemented safety upgrades including fencing, signage, and new access routes to minimize friction with civilians.
The NCRI report also singles out MSNBC last month for amplifying unverified claims: "MSNBC aired a segment alleging that Israeli forces fired on a crowd near a food distribution site affiliated with GHF, citing the Gaza Health Ministry's claims. At no point in the segment was the health ministry identified as being run by Hamas."
The clip that aired on MSNBC's "Morning Joe" remains online with "clarification," not correction, added in the description. NCRI analysts noted that "MSNBC aired no comparable editorial scrutiny of the Hamas-run ministry." MSNBC later referenced the broader controversy in a follow-up segment the next morning on June 20.
NCRI also flagged a Reuters report as an example of misidentification in headline summaries. The report included references to an unnamed private foundation, which NCRI claims contributed to "confusion, misattribution, and reputational harm."
A Reuters spokesperson told Fox News Digital: "An advisory issued to update the headline of this story misnamed the organization that was listed on the report. We regret the error in the advisory. The report we reviewed bears the name Gaza Humanitarian Foundation, not Global Humanitarian Foundation. We stand by our reporting."
By contrast, the NCRI study highlighted The Washington Post's social media activity as a prominent example of how unverified claims can rapidly spread. According to the report, "On June 1, the Washington Post tweeted: 'At least 30 people were killed in northern Gaza while waiting for food aid trucks to arrive, the Gaza Health Ministry said.'" The tweet did not mention Hamas or the ministry's affiliation with the group.
"The tweet quickly went viral, garnering more than 2.4 million views in under 24 hours," NCRI noted. It was subsequently "amplified by numerous prominent influencers" and even cited by "at least two foreign government officials as a rationale to impose sanctions on the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation."
The NCRI study states that "The tweet was never corrected or contextually clarified by the Washington Post or its social media editors." However, following inquiries and public scrutiny, The Washington Post deleted the tweet and issued a correction on X.
"The article failed to make clear if attributing the deaths to Israel was the position of the Gaza health ministry or a fact verified by The Post," the outlet wrote. "The early versions fell short of Post standards of fairness and should not have been published in that form."
Fox News Digital has reached out to The Washington Post for further comment but has not received a response as of publication.
Both the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) and the U.S. State Department issued statements to Fox News Digital affirming support for GHF, while criticizing those who have undermined it.
"A track record of distributing over 68 million meals to date all while preventing Hamas looting is absolutely incredible and should be commended and supported," said a State Department spokesperson on background. "We call on other aid agencies and the UN to participate in this secure aid delivery system."
The spokesperson continued: "The fact of the matter is, many of these NGOs and the UN fail to protect their aid deliveries, using phrases like 'self-distribution' to describe Hamas robbing from them. Yet they take time to attack the one system that is securely delivering critical aid to Palestinians in Gaza. The attacks against GHF are unacceptable — perhaps they should support the only system that is working instead of criticizing from the sidelines."
The IDF, in a separate on-background statement, said it "allows the American civilian organization GHF to distribute aid to Gaza residents independently, and operates in proximity to the new distribution zones to enable the distribution alongside the continuation of IDF operational activities."
"Following incidents in which harm to civilians who arrived at distribution facilities was reported, thorough examinations were conducted in the Southern Command and instructions were issued to forces in the field," the IDF stated.
Yet those measures were mostly absent from the reporting in many U.S. media outlets, which instead portrayed GHF as operating under Israeli military control, which was an intentional distortion, Moore claims.
"The relationship is intentionally misrepresented. They want to present us as part of the IDF, which we aren't," he said.
Moore also accused the UN of stonewalling GHF for political reasons.
"We actually want to work with the UN to help more people, and we've extended our hand to them from the beginning," Moore said. "But the UN is behaving like a mafia. They're organizing opposition against us, in effect joining forces with Hamas because there's no difference in their policies. They've never boycotted Hamas, but they've boycotted us."
Earlier this month, UNRWA Commissioner-General Philippe Lazzarini called for the "end to the so-called Gaza Humanitarian Foundation," labeling the program "an abomination" that "provides nothing but starvation and gunfire." His remarks came in an open letter signed by more than 230 NGOs including Amnesty International, Save the Children and the Norwegian Refugee Council, which calls for a return to the traditional UN-led aid system.
Moore added that the UN refused to condemn Hamas for the killing of 12 of GHF's local Gazan aid workers.
"They similarly didn't issue a statement when two Americans were hit by a Hamas grenade a few days ago. It's an absolute scandal and an insult to the United States," he said.
At the time of publication, the United Nations did not return Fox News Digital's request for comment.
Asked what keeps his team going in the face of such hostility, Moore said, "Our team believes in the mission entirely, and they get strength every day from the Gazans we serve, who are so grateful.
"We see something every day we haven't seen in the Gaza Strip in a long time: smiles. The people need us and rely on us. We have to show up for them."
An NCRI senior researcher agreed, but warned that the reputational cost of ignoring this media pattern goes far beyond one aid group.