In September, the Jewish Chronicle was forced to retract a series of articles which contained fabricated quotes from Israeli officials. The articles, submitted by a freelance reporter named Elon Perry, included explosive revelations suggesting that hostages were to be smuggled to Iran and Yemen and were sourced from a document supposedly discovered in Gaza.
Jewish Chronicle fabricated quotes scandal
The Israeli army, however, stated that it had no knowledge of such a document, and several Israeli outlets began to question Perry’s identity and professional background.
The Israeli +972 website (which, along with Haaretz, stands out for its independent reporting among Israel’s media) questioned his claims of having served as a commando during Operation Entebbe and being a professor at Tel Aviv University for 15 years, as there appear to be no records confirming these assertions.
Four high-profile columnists, Jonathan Freedland, David Aaronovitch, David Baddiel and Hadley Freeman, announced that they would no longer write for the paper. Another contributor, Colin Shindler, who is an academic, subsequently resigned. In a letter to the editor, Jake Wallis Simons, he wrote:
“During your editorship, the JC has become sensationalist and unbalanced in its coverage. The Elon Parry incident was an accident waiting to happen.”
What role has Robbie Gibb played?
Focus has now shifted to the role of Robbie Gibb, Theresa May’s former spin doctor and a BBC board member. He was reappointed as a non-executive director for a second four-year term in March 2024.
In 2021, the Jewish Chronicle was bought by a consortium, and Gibb was listed as the ‘sole person with significant control’ at Companies House. We now know that, after the new owners took control, Gibb made a habit of calling into the office early on print days to check what stories were topping the news list and offering a view.
Gibb said that the new owners wanted more views “well to the right of the Tory party”. Gibb also interviewed candidates for a senior editorial job and appointed Wallis Simons. Gibb resigned as a director of the Jewish Chronicle in August – the reason for the resignation is not known – and there is silence from the Jewish Chronicle about who really owns it.
The BBC’s new chair, Samir Shah, has said the BBC’s next far-ranging inquiry into its own standards is almost certain to be a review of its reporting of the war in Gaza. That will be overseen by the five-person editorial guidelines and standards committee. Gibb is a member of this committee, an appointment which some at the BBC think is “absolutely monstrous”.
Gibb could save Shah any embarrassment by resigning from the editorial guidance and standards committee. But his ongoing interference in BBC appointments, such as trying to fix who should chair the BBC regulator, Ofcom, does raise the question of whether he is a fit and proper person to be a BBC director.
Article first published in Media North: Campaign for Press and Broadcasting Freedom (North). For more from Media North, and to subscribe to their newsletter, visit their website.
