If evidence still is needed of why readers are turned off by reporters placing their own judgment and opinions ahead of the facts, one need go no further than Jerusalem bureau chief Ethan Bronner’s July 13 article in the New York Times on the findings of an Israeli inquiry into the deadly raid on a Gaza-bound ship on May 31 (“Israeli Military Finds Flotilla Killings Justified” page A4).
Bronner, in his piece, waits until the very end before reporting the reasons why the inquiry found the killings justified. And these conclusions just happen to reflect essential findings that previously received scant attention.
In his second paragraph, Bronner mentions that “65 Turkish Islamic militants armed with metal sticks and knives were on the flotilla’s main ship, and had vowed to fight any effort by the Israeli Navy to board.” Well, we knew that already. The main question was: Did they initiate a fierce attack on Israeli commandos as they rappelled down from their helicopter to the main deck? The inquiry answers that question. But Bronner holds off mentioning it.
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Comatose NYT readers will probably skip that story anyhow, it doesn’t fit their narrative.