MEDIAWATCH: My complaint to the BSA: Fact checking Jack Tame’s Q+A interview with the Israeli Ambassador
Dear BSA and TVNZ
To say last weeks Q+A interview with the Israeli Ambassador was the worst ‘journalism’ TVNZ ever produced doesn’t;t go far enough.
I love Jack Tame, on any given Sunday he presents one of the best TV current affairs shows in the game and I believe he is one of our best interviewers, but even the best can have a terrible day at the office, so terrible I am compelled to complain to the BSA directly.
As a blacklisted from the mainstream media political blogger, I despise the BSA, a panel of media lepers judging a beauty contest, but Jack’s interview was so bad it demands a complaint.
Fact checking this interview thorough the lens of Palestinian Youth Aotearoa is the best way to understand how egregious this interview was:
An incorrect death toll
Yaakoby and Tame both repeated an incorrect death toll for Israelis on 7 October 2023 that has been debunked. Both noted 1,400 people were “butchered” by Hamas. However, the real death toll is closer to 1,139 according to The Guardian, Agence France-Presse, and Al Jazeera, amongst other media outlets. Even with this significant difference of about 20%, the discussion completely ignored the large percentage of those deaths that were reportedly caused by friendly fire by Israeli Defence Forces on their own people (need sources for this).
False accounts of atrocities
During the longform interview, the ambassador promoted factually incorrect allegations that have been debunked due to a lack of evidence, such as instances of decapitation and gang rape. Yaakoby simultaneously denied the death toll of Palestinians which has been verified by many reputable organisations such as the United Nations (UN), the United States of America and independent observers, such as HRW. No one on the TVNZ team challenged these inaccuracies.
Dehumanising statements unchallenged
Tame did not challenge the dehumanising sentiments shared by the Ambassador, when he referred to fighters as beasts, and said that the deaths of 13,000 children was a fair price if Israel achieved its goals. Yaakoby went on to say that Hamas was democratically elected, to support his stance that any number of Palestinians killed is acceptable to secure Israel. We reject the idea that there is any justification for murdering 13,000 children and would like to see this narrative undergo a lot more scrutiny in our local media.
Lack of reference to international law
Tame failed to challenge the Ambassador on claims regarding Israel’s compliance with international law. Specifically, Israel not having the right to defend itself against a territory it occupies, attacking schools and hospitals, and the nature of illegal Israeli settlement expansion.
Dismissal of ICJ Ruling
The suggestion by the Ambassador that the International Court of Justice’s (ICJ) ruling that genocide was “plausible” in Gaza was essentially due to the fact that genocide is always plausible, not because Israel was potentially committing genocide. This was another harmful and unfounded statement that went unchallenged.
Lack of questioning on war crimes
Documented evidence of war crimes by Israel – massacres of civilians, medical facilities attacked, paramedics and white flag holders killed, and food and medicines embargoed – went without adequate challenge. Independent observers have verified these crimes.
Lack of factual evidence
Tame allowed the Ambassador to support his claims by stating he has “read reports” or “seen articles” without citing his sources. The way this interview was conducted does not abide by the BSA principles of fairness and balance, nor did Tame exercise journalistic integrity or preparedness.
The two state solution
The Ambassador failed to speak of any viable two state solution, and insisted that increasing settlements in East Jerusalem will not impact peace. The ambassador neglected to address ongoing settler violence across the West Bank as well as efforts by settler groups to purchase land in Gaza. Successive UNSC resolutions and ICJ rulings since 1967 have made it clear that Israel’s occupation of the Palestinian Territories and its settlement expansion are illegal.
The Ambassador went on to suggest that Palestine cannot be recognised as a state, because they first need to have clearly defined borders – something Israel continues to deny them, including through continued settlement building.
Q+A leaving these assertions unchallenged , perpetuates a lack of accountability by Israel in global political discourse.
Critique of NZ foreign policy and position on international security
The Ambassador was critical of New Zealand’s designation of only the military wing of Hezbollah as a terrorist entity, and suggested New Zealand should designate the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) of Iran as a terrorist entity. The IRGC is a state military and, like the Israel Defense Forces (IDF), cannot be designated as a terrorist group under NZ law. This shows a misunderstanding of New Zealand legislation and an unreasonable expectation in a public conversation.
This interview was nothing more than false propaganda and criticism of NZ foreign policy by the Ambassador of a country currently committing an ethnic cleansing war crime.
I love Jack, but sweet Jesus this was an interview that History will judge our journalism on and that judgment will be scathing.
At a time when News is under attack, at a time when misinformation and disinformation are the enemies of Fourth Estate journalism, this Q+A interview fell far short of the obligations of a Public Broadcaster.
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Like the dean of Columbia U who crumbled under a McCarthyist type grilling, Jack Tame may have been hesitant over challenging the Israeli ambassador out of fear of losing his job. A very reasonable fear in the light of all the redundancies at TVNZ
A valid point. From memory Tame did attempt to hold the Ambassador morally accountable for, many would agree, the unreasonable actions of the IDF, and for the position of the Israeli govt, but didn’t find much traction. Was Jack Tame simply gutless, as a good many assert, or outwitted by a wily soldier come diplomat, or were the expectations of his employer out of align with his own conscience? The latter I suspect. Next week it seems we’ll get the other side of the story.
We expect police officers to resist corruption.
We expect accountants not to collaborate in fraud.
We have a right to expect the likes of Jack Tame not to spread blood libels against Palestine, on behalf of pedophiles like Ran Yaakoby. If he was frightened of calling out the lies of the babyraper Yaakoby, he should have refused to talk to him.
Al-Shifa Hospitals mass graves.
The IDF lays siege to the hospital letting no one in or out.
Reports emerge of snipers shooting anyone trying to escape.
Al -Shifa announces due to lack of space to bury the dead they are digging a mass grave on the grounds.
IDF enters the hospital and there are reports of summary executions.
IDF opens the grave with bulldozers unsuccessfully looking for the bodies of any Israeli hostages.
IDF shoots dead 2 alleged Hamas fighters on the hospital grounds while in bed asleep.
Discovery of a mass grave with people tied up and still connected to medical equipment despite an acute shortage.
Israel: Nothing to see here, it wasn’t us and no we don’t consent to an independent investigation which will conclusively prove the timeline.
Well, next week we’ll get the Palestine perspective it seems. Hopefully the interview goes well, a right of reply to the alleged Israeli propoganda but also the actions of Hamas held to account.
Pat & Jonzie you are absolutely reading the room.
Another point, what the hell is with the flags? I see this has been raised elsewhere too, but yeah totally weird. Jack Tame is not the govt representive of NZ spokesperson here.