Fact Checkers Draw a Yellow Card

Backspin/Honest Reporting
06 December 09

Here's another reason not to believe everything you read: Recent reports that Zinedine Zidane was visiting Gaza as a goodwill ambassador for UNICEF were a hoax.

As the Jerusalem Post writes, this is a problem not just for the French soccer star and UNICEF, but for Israel and journalism as well:

This is extremely worrying for all concerned: UNICEF, UNDP, Zidane, the children of Gaza who expected a visit from a soccer legend and Israel.

And it is also troubling that so many journalists fell for it.

The quotes, which were so widely reported, specifically criticized Israel without blaming Hamas or any other Palestinian groups for the conflict.

They implied that Zidane, whose parents are Algerian-born Muslims, is willing to use his fame to slam Israel.
It appears that someone, or some organization, made a decision to create the entire story in order to smear Israel and garner support for the Palestinian cause.

And what did Zidane allegedly say that was so widely quoted?

"I will make every effort to give Gaza residents great big smiles on their faces. Gazans have suffered serious losses, damage, and injuries due to Israeli acts of violence."

Related reading: A Failure to Fact Check

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