CNN staff disgruntled over Gaza coverage, charge pro-Israel bias

CNN staff, including well-renowned Christiane Amanpour, criticized the network’s coverage of the Israel-Hamas war, accusing the network of holding an Israeli bias. These views were exposed in a leak of an internal meeting in mid-February, which has since embroiled the network in controversy.

In a recording obtained by The Intercept, a meeting at CNN’s London Bureau on February 13 revealed discontent among employees, who questioned network executives about potential bias in reporting on the ongoing Israel-Hamas war since its outbreak on October 7.

Senior executives, including CNN Worldwide CEO and Editor-in-Chief Mark Thompson, alongside CNN International General Manager and CNN US Executive Editor, were present in the meeting.

The senior CNN executives responded to employee discontent by acknowledging concerns and defending CNN’s existing operations. They particularly emphasized the challenges of deploying journalists and accessing Gaza amidst the ongoing conflict.

CNN staff complain of "hostile environment"

Staff members raised concerns about the treatment of Arab journalists, describing it as a "hostile environment," with complaints regarding silencing Palestinian and Arab voices while amplifying Israeli ones. An example of this is internal staffer criticism that CNN coverage focuses on Israeli narratives and the destruction of tunnels rather than Palestinian civilians. According to reports, some CNN journalists feel pressured to cover the war from a certain angle and feel the lack of freedom to tell stories that they want, leading them to avoid taking assignments in Israel.

Prominent CNN news anchor Christiane Amanpour expressed reservations about the network's reporting protocols, alleging double standards in conflict coverage. She also highlighted the journalists on the ground and called for more journalists to report from within Gaza.

Coverage going through Israel

Another issue highlighted by staff was CNN’s protocol for routing coverage through its Jerusalem bureau. Reports from The Intercept suggest that this approach slows down reporting on Gaza and filters information through Jerusalem-based journalists, who are subject to Israel’s military censor. Much of CNN’s reporting from Israel or Gaza must be cleared for publication by the Jerusalem bureau.

In the report, Thompson, CEO and Editor-in-Chief, has described the difficulties in reporting on the ongoing Israel-Hamas war, but has been quoted that there is general satisfaction with the network's coverage, especially when considering the political polarization attributed to the war.