The inevitable fog of war has descended on the Israel-Hamas conflict, but faster and with more deadly consequences than in the past. And news media, under intense pressure to push out breaking news as quickly as possible, is grappling with contradictory information from the war zone, and accusations of misinformation from critics.
The deadly explosion at Al-Ahli Arab hospital in Gaza on Tuesday night quickly provided a case study in how real-time reporting from unverified sources can lead to serious consequences. Hamas claimed that an Israeli air strike on the hospital led to the loss of 500 lives, and news organizations prematurely pointed the finger at Israel as the source of the explosion.