When Columbia University student Mohsen Mahdawi was arrested by U.S. immigration authorities last week, the New York Times and other mainstream media described him as a “Palestinian activist”—ignoring his support for the U.S.-designated terror group Hamas or his participation in illegal protest activities on the group’s behalf.

Indeed, such downplaying of Hamas’s criminal role in the current Gaza war appears to be a conscious strategy by many media when covering the conflict—such as stories on aid distribution, battles in and around hospitals, death counts, and lawbreaking on U.S. college campuses. We have to ask, “Why”?

What seems clear is that if “progressive” editorial staff at major media were to acknowledge the terror group’s cruel, murderous and criminal behavior, it would taint their preferred Gaza narrative. These journalists promote a storyline in which the Palestinians and their supporters are the “good guys,” while Israel and its supporters wear black hats. Honest news reporting on Hamas—which openly acknowledges its determination to kill Jews and destroy the Jewish state—discredits their agenda, so legacy media “cleanse” their stories to avoid mentioning them.

Media that downplay Hamas when covering the Gaza war are essentially providing cover for and abetting terrorist enemies of Israel and the U.S.—the very definition of a treasonous “Fifth Column.” It’s as if journalists covering World War II whitewashed the role of the Nazis, or simply failed to mention them.

Mainstream media conceal Hamas’s role in commandeering humanitarian aid. When reporting on the humanitarian situation in Gaza, media outlets such as BBC, NBC and NPR fail to disclose Hamas’s theft of aid, only mentioning the terrorist group in other contexts, such as their refusal to extend the ceasefire that expired on March 1^st.

Instead, media blame Israel and its supporters for the worsening humanitarian situation in Gaza. The Guardian, for instance, accused “far-right figures” in the Israeli government of halting aid. CNN blamed the Trump Administration, saying that pressure the Biden Administration put on Israel to allow humanitarian aid into Gaza “has all but vanished under the Trump Administration.”

Legacy media downplay Hamas’s criminal use of hospitals as military bases. Throughout the war in Gaza, the IDF has been forced to attack several hospitals in the Gaza Strip, because Hamas uses them as bases to store weapons, direct terrorist operations, and even hold hostages they kidnapped during the October 7^th massacre. But the media bury this inconvenient detail, often mentioning it simply as an unconfirmed Israeli accusation.

For example, after the IDF attacked a Hamas command-and-control center in Al-Ahli Hospital in Gaza City, CNN published an article saying the IDF “had struck ‘a command-and-control center used by Hamas in an attack without offering proof.” Similarly, an NBC article absurdly stated, “The Israeli military said that the compound was used by terrorists ‘to plan and execute terror attacks,’ without providing evidence”—as if facts provided by the world’s most moral army are inherently suspect.

In fact, whenever the IDF attacks a Hamas base concealed inside a hospital, it makes a point of collecting evidence and taking photos and videos of that evidence for all to see. A reporter need only search online to see this evidence. Furthermore, the White House has said its intelligence sources support Israel’s claim that Hamas uses Gaza’s hospitals as military bases. In short, the evidence is there, but the media omit it because it doesn’t fit their narrative.

The media parrot Hamas’s bogus death counts. Since the war in Gaza began, the media have published death counts, citing “Gaza health authorities” or “officials” as their source. For instance, last week, Reuters published an article stating that “more than 50,900 Palestinians have been killed in the Israeli offensive, according to local health authorities.”

What the media often don’t tell you is that these “health authorities” are controlled by Hamas. Moreover, numerous studies have shown that Hamas’s death counts are nonsense. For example, the Telegraph recently revealed that Hamas removed thousands of names from its March 2025 casualty list, and admitted that 72% of the victims aged 13-55 were men. They originally claimed that 70% of casualties were women and children. The media know full well that Hamas inflates the number of civilian casualties to smear Israel, yet reporters continue to use these numbers, shamelessly helping Hamas win the public relations war.

Media hide support for Hamas among “pro-Palestinian” activists. The media want you to believe that militants making university campuses unsafe for Jews are simply peaceful activists advocating Palestinian rights. A closer look shows these people are not pro-Palestinian, but are more accurately pro-Hamas.

For instance, after student radical Mohsen Mahdawi was detained by U.S. immigration authorities, the media represented him as an innocent victim of persecution by the Trump Administration and diabolical allies. CBS News even implied the Administration’s decision to pursue his deportation was inspired by a “deport list” provided by the pro-Israel movement, Betar USA.

What CBS and other media outlets fail to mention is Mahdawi’s support for Hamas. Indeed, he said he “can empathize” with Hamas over its October 7^th massacre and has publicly called for the destruction of Israel. The Washington Free Beacon noted that just last year, Mahdawi honored a commander in the Al-Aqsa Martyrs’ Brigade, another U.S.-designated terror group that participated in the October 7^th slaughter alongside Hamas. Apparently, many legacy media support the aims of such radical visa-holders.

The media give similar treatment to Mahmoud Khalil, another Columbia University student, due for expulsion by immigration authorities. FLAME covered his pro-Hamas misdeeds here.

Imagine if mainstream media covering WWII whitewashed the role of the Nazis. Such media would have been condemned and disowned by the American public. No wonder today’s mainstream media suffer record-low credibility and diminishing market share.

Yet, many Americans still blindly rely on mainstream media to provide facts on the conflict in Gaza. Obviously, their trust is being betrayed. Rather than facts, they’re fed a false narrative depicting the Palestinians, and even Hamas itself, as downtrodden lovers of freedom oppressed by evil Israel.

Please make the point when speaking with family, friends, colleagues—or in letters to the editor—that any media source whitewashing Hamas terror is guilty of opposing American interests and betraying Israel, one of the U.S.’s most loyal allies. In short, such coverage of the Gaza war openly supports the “bad guys.”

If you agree we need to spread this truth, please use your email browser to forward this Hotline issue to fellow lovers of Israel—and encourage them to join us by subscribing to the Hotline at no charge.

Best regards,
James Sinkinson, President
Facts and Logic About the Middle East (FLAME)

P.S.      I’m sure you’d agree: If your enemy says they want to kill you and take your land, you’d be smart to believe them. If you try to make peace, but they refuse all your offers and continue to make murderous threats, it’s time to  eliminate this enemy. Israel has faced exactly this danger with the Palestinians—yet continued to hope for peace . . . until Hamas’s October 7 massacre and kidnappings. Finally, Israel and many lovers of Israel are facing reality. They’ve concluded their futile dreams of peace must end. They must finally defeat their Palestinian enemies—starting with Hamas and other jihadi terrorists. I hope you’ll agree that we supporters of the Israel-U.S. relationship need to speak out. FLAME’s new hasbarah—explanatory message—“End of the Palestinian Lie”—describes how Israel and the West have for 77 years bought the myth that the Palestinians want peace. It details the many offers of land for peace Israel, the U.N. and the U.S. have made to give Palestinians their own state—all refused. Finally, it explains why Israel must adopt a bold new strategy—disarming, disabling and defeating Hamas and all other terror groups that attack Israeli civilians. Please review this convincing, fact-based editorial, which FLAME intends to publish to millions—in leading social media, as well as in the Washington Post, Wall Street Journal, New York Post, Chicago Tribune, Tampa Bay Times, Denver Post and Los Angeles Times. This piece will also be sent to all members of Congress, the President and Vice President. If you agree that this kind of public relations effort on Israel’s behalf is critical, I urge you to support us with a donation.

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