‘Literally Fake News’: CBS Told News Staff To Avoid Referring To Jerusalem ‘As Being In Israel’

Journalists at CBS News were warned to “be careful” when writing about the Israel-Gaza war in August, including avoiding referring to Jerusalem as Israel’s capital, The Free Press reported on Wednesday.

Despite Congress recognizing Jerusalem as Israel’s capital in 1995 when it passed the Jerusalem Embassy Act and former President Donald Trump moving the U.S. embassy to the city in 2018, CBS News Senior Director of Standards Mark Memmott reportedly sent an email to employees, telling them, “Do not refer to [Jerusalem] as being in Israel.”

“Yes, the U.S. embassy is there and the Trump administration recognized it as being Israel’s capital. But its status is disputed,” Memmott’s email added. “The status of Jerusalem goes to the heart of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. Israel regards Jerusalem as its ‘eternal and undivided’ capital, while the Palestinians claim East Jerusalem—occupied by Israel in the 1967 Middle East war—as the capital of a future state.”

The Israeli Knesset and the homes of the Israeli prime minister and president are all located in Jerusalem, The Free Press noted.

The report comes as CBS News faces backlash for editing Vice President Kamala Harris’ “60 Minutes” in a way that appeared to make the discussion less damaging for the Democratic nominee. The edit led to former President Donald Trump calling for an “investigation” into the news program saying, “I’ve never seen this before, but the producers of 60 Minutes sliced and diced (‘cut and pasted’) Lyin’ Kamala’s answers to questions, which were virtually incoherent, over and over again.”

CBS News also forced one of its anchors, Tony Dokoupil, to meet with the network’s “Race and Culture Unit” to discuss his tone, phrasing, and body language after he interviewed leftist author Ta-Nehisi Coates about his new anti-Israel book, according to the New York Post.

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“Why leave out that Israel is surrounded by countries that want to eliminate it? Why leave out that Israel deals with terror groups that want to eliminate it?” Dokoupil asked Coates. The interview reportedly angered CBS News staffers, and Dokupil said he “regretted putting his colleagues in that position especially the ones overseas and in danger.”

Daily Wire Editor Emeritus Ben Shapiro blasted CBS News on Thursday, writing on X, “CBS News this week: 1. They diced the ’60 Minutes’ interview with Kamala to cover for her incoherence. 2. After Tony Dokoupil asked actual questions of race grifter Ta-Nehisi Coates, the insane Lefties of the newsroom rebelled. 3. Apology by the brass. 4. CBS News tells its staff to pretend that Jerusalem is not in Israel. Yes, they’re fake news. Literally fake news.”

CBS News this week:
1. They diced the "60 Minutes" interview with Kamala to cover for her incoherence.
2. After Tony Dokoupil asked actual questions of race grifter Ta-Nehisi Coates, the insane Lefties of the newsroom rebelled.
3. Apology by the brass.
4. CBS News tells its staff…

— Ben Shapiro (@benshapiro) October 10, 2024