What to do when every news outlet seems to lie?

You can find the truth, and it’s not so hard either.

Check from the bottom up (Except from rotter.net/enews/news.php):

21:55 17/04	Jpost	Hezbollah’s drones and missiles may become increasingly effective
18:55 17/04	Arutz 7	IDF estimates: Drone strike retaliation to elimination of senior Hezbollah commanders
18:25 17/04	Times Of Israel		14 troops, 4 civilians wounded in Hezbollah drone attack on northern border town
18:00 17/04	World Israel News		WATCH: Hezbollah drones strike Bedouin community center
18:00 17/04	Jpost		Drone hits community center in Galilee, 18 soldiers wounded
18:00 17/04	Arutz 7		IDF: Six soldiers severely injured, two moderately, six lightly in drone attack
17:50 17/04	Jpost		Hezbollah claims to target IDF base with Burkan missile
17:15 17/04	Jewish Press		18 Wounded in Hezbollah Kamikaze Attack on Northernֲ Israeli Bedouin Village
16:55 17/04	Jewish Press		18 Wounded in Hezbollah Attack on Northernֲ Israeli Bedouin Village
16:30 17/04	Times Of Israel		18 hurt, 1 critically, as Hezbollah drone hits community center in northern Israel
15:00 17/04	Jewish Press		6 Wounded by Hezbollah Drone Strike in Northernֲ Israel
14:55 17/04	Jpost		Drone hits community center and vehicle in Galilee, seven wounded
14:40 17/04	Jpost		Missile hits community center and vehicle in Galilee, six wounded
14:30 17/04	Arutz 7		Hezbollah takes responsibility for rocket fire which injured seven in northern Israel
14:00 17/04	Arutz 7		Sirens sound in Arab al-Aramshe in northern Israel
13:55 17/04	Arutz 7		Six injured after rocket lands in northern Israel
13:45 17/04	Jpost		Hezbollah claims to target IDF base with ‘Burkan’ missile
13:25 17/04	Arutz 7		Rocket lands in northern Israel, causing injuries
09:55 17/04	Arutz 7		IDF: Several launches crossed from Lebanon into Israeli territory, no injuries
08:30 17/04	Arutz 7		Hezbollah claims responsibility for missile launch towards northern Israel

My Analysis

First (bottom of the list), we see reports by Arutz7. I always take them with a grain of salt because they often are so rash that factualness suffers.

In general, it pays not to believe everything in early reports.

Then comes the JPost with a claim by Chezbollah. Terrorists are not to be believed anyway. But it claims the target was an IDF base. Things start making sense. The North is mostly evacuated so how else could people have been hurt?

Arutz7 comes with more details, but it’s too early to read their reports.

Then comes the time that three outlets report. Time to look into it.

Then, the Times of Israel joins. Normally, they are not the first to report but really, the first to check because they seriously prioritize fact-checking. They may have a slight left-wing bend, but that gets neutralized when you also read reports slightly from the right.

The next reports from a right-wing source claim an attack on a Bedouin village, and even a kamikaze attack (see below).

Then, the (slightly from the right) Jerusalem Post clarifies a missile hit an IDF base.

The much more to the right Arutz7, together with the JPost, clarify 10 minutes later that the wounded are soldiers, hurt by a drone attack. Here Arutz7 was spot-on.

Then comes the Trump-fake-news WIN channel, always only reporting what suits their chauvinist worldview.

Then, I read my first report by the JPost. It shares that “14 IDF soldiers were wounded by two Hezbollah drones and two anti-tank missiles at and around a community center in Arab al-Aramshe, a Bedouin village in the northern Galilee.” At the end they warn: This is a developing story.

By now, there is a new, second TOI report. It opens with: “Fourteen soldiers and four civilians were wounded as an explosive drone fired from Lebanon struck a community center in the northern border town of Arab al-Aramshe on Wednesday, medics and the military said.”

So, we see that it had two sources. Further down, they specify that it was Hezbollah that claimed it used guided missiles and explosive-laden drones.

[I’m pleased they don’t use “kamikaze drones” anymore after I wrote to them (and on my blog) that we don’t call bullets or rockets kamikaze. Other outlets I wrote don’t care and name it whatever they want.]

Then comes an IDF-estimate what motivated Hezbollah. I know already. It’s hatred, and their pretext is unimportant.

Then comes an analysis by Seth J. Frantzman. I always try to read those as I find he’s generally well-informed and goes where no brain went before.

Lastly, there follow reports of counter-attacks for deterrence by the IDF; those will hold no information I need.

You see: I read 3 of the 20+ reports and am solidly informed. It is possible.

—

For more background information, see my newest e-book and softcover.

About the Author

MM is a prolific and creative writer and thinker, previously a daily blog contributor to the TOI. He often makes his readers laugh, mad, or assume he's nuts—close to perfect blogging. He's proud that his analytical short comments are removed both from left-wing and right-wing news sites. None of his content is generated by the new bore on the block, AI. * As a frontier thinker, he sees things many don't yet. He's half a prophet. Half. Let's not exaggerate. Or not at all because he doesn't claim G^d talks to him. He gives him good ideas—that's all. MM doesn't believe that people observe and think in a vacuum. He, therefore, wanted a broad bio that readers interested can track a bit what (lack of) backgrounds, experiences, and educations contribute to his visions. * This year, he will prioritize getting his unpublished books published rather than just blog posts. Next year, he hopes to focus on activism against human extinction. To find less-recent posts on a subject XXX among his over 2000 archived ones, go to the right-top corner of a Times of Israel page, click on the search icon and search "zuiden, XXX". One can find a second, wilder blog, to which one may subscribe too, here: https://mmvanzuiden.wordpress.com/ or by clicking on the globe icon next to his picture on top. * Like most of his readers, he believes in being friendly, respectful, and loyal. However, if you think those are his absolute top priorities, you might end up disappointed. His first loyalty is to the truth. He will try to stay within the limits of democratic and Jewish law, but he won't lie to support opinions or people when don't deserve that. (Yet, we all make honest mistakes, which is just fine and does not justify losing support.) He admits that he sometimes exaggerates to make a point, which could have him come across as nasty, while in actuality, he's quite a lovely person to interact with. He holds - how Dutch - that a strong opinion doesn't imply intolerance of other views. * Sometimes he's misunderstood because his wide and diverse field of vision seldomly fits any specialist's box. But that's exactly what some love about him. He has written a lot about Psychology (including Sexuality and Abuse), Medicine (including physical immortality), Science (including basic statistics), Politics (Israel, the US, and the Netherlands, Activism - more than leftwing or rightwing, he hopes to highlight reality), Oppression and Liberation (intersectionally, for young people, the elderly, non-Whites, women, workers, Jews, LGBTQIA+, foreigners and anyone else who's dehumanized or exploited), Integrity, Philosophy, Jews (Judaism, Zionism, Holocaust and Jewish Liberation), the Climate Crisis, Ecology and Veganism, Affairs from the news, or the Torah Portion of the Week, or new insights that suddenly befell him. * Chronologically, his most influential teachers are his parents, Nico (natan) van Zuiden and Betty (beisye) Nieweg, Wim Kan, Mozart, Harvey Jackins, Marshal Rosenberg, Reb Shlomo Carlebach, and, lehavdil bein chayim lechayim, Rabbi Dr. Natan Lopes Cardozo, Rav Zev Leff, and Rav Meir Lubin. This short list doesn't mean to disrespect others who taught him a lot or a little. One of his rabbis calls him Mr. Innovation [Ish haChidushim]. Yet, his originalities seem to root deeply in traditional Judaism, though they may grow in unexpected directions. In fact, he claims he's modernizing nothing. Rather, mainly basing himself on the basic Hebrew Torah text, he tries to rediscover classical Jewish thought almost lost in thousands of years of stifling Gentile domination and Jewish assimilation. (He pleads for a close reading of the Torah instead of going by rough assumptions of what it would probably mean and before fleeing to Commentaries.) This, in all aspects of life, but prominently in the areas of Free Will, Activism, Homosexuality for men, and Redemption. * He hopes that his words will inspire and inform, and disturb the comfortable and comfort the disturbed. He aims to bring a fresh perspective rather than harp on the obvious and familiar. When he can, he loves to write encyclopedic overviews. He doesn't expect his readers to agree. Rather, original minds should be disputed. In short, his main political positions are among others: anti-Trumpism, for Zionism, Intersectionality, non-violence, anti those who abuse democratic liberties, anti the fake ME peace process, for original-Orthodoxy, pro-Science, pro-Free Will, anti-blaming-the-victim, and for down-to-earth, classical optimism, and happiness. Read his blog on how he attempts to bridge any tensions between those ideas or fields. * He is a fetal survivor of the pharmaceutical industry (https://diethylstilbestrol.co.uk/studies/des-and-psychological-health/), born in 1953 to his parents who were Dutch-Jewish Holocaust survivors who met in the largest concentration camp in the Netherlands, Westerbork. He grew up a humble listener. It took him decades to become a speaker too, and decades more to admit to being a genius. But his humility was his to keep. And so was his honesty. Bullies and con artists almost instantaneously envy and hate him. He hopes to bring new things and not just preach to the choir. * He holds a BA in medicine (University of Amsterdam) – is half a doctor. He practices Re-evaluation Co-counseling since 1977, is not an official teacher anymore, and became a friendly, powerful therapist. He became a social activist, became religious, made Aliyah, and raised three wonderful kids. Previously, for decades, he was known to the Jerusalem Post readers as a frequent letter writer. For a couple of years, he was active in hasbara to the Dutch-speaking public. He wrote an unpublished tome about Jewish Free Will. He's a strict vegan since 2008. He's an Orthodox Jew but not a rabbi. * His writing has been made possible by an allowance for second-generation Holocaust survivors from the Netherlands. It has been his dream since he was 38 to try to make a difference by teaching through writing. He had three times 9-out-of-10 for Dutch at his high school finals but is spending his days communicating in English and Hebrew - how ironic. G-d must have a fine sense of humor. In case you wonder - yes, he is a bit dyslectic. If you're a native English speaker and wonder why you should read from people whose English is only their second language, consider the advantage of having an original peek outside of your cultural bubble. * To send any personal reaction to him, scroll to the top of the blog post and click Contact Me. * His newest books you may find here: https://www.amazon.com/s?i=stripbooks&rh=p_27%3AMoshe-Mordechai%2FMaurits+van+Zuiden&s=relevancerank&text=Moshe-Mordechai%2FMaurits+van+Zuiden&ref=dp_byline_sr_book_1