New York Times Clarifies Article After Backlash Over October 7 Wording
The New York Times removed a sentence from an article by Jerusalem correspondent Isabel Kershner after facing severe backlash over wording implying Israelis' victimhood on October 7 was a matter of perception.
The New York Times faced severe criticism following a remark in an article about the film "The Net", which stated that Israelis still largely view themselves as victims of October 7. The sentence appeared in a piece by Jerusalem correspondent Isabel Kershner, published on Monday, which addressed the controversy surrounding the film. On Wednesday evening, the newspaper issued a clarification on the matter and announced that it had removed the sentence from the article.
Criticism and Public Outrage
"No words for this abomination," tweeted CNN commentator Scott Jennings on X, alongside a screenshot of the highlighted excerpt. The post quickly garnered hundreds of angry replies and hundreds of thousands of views. In the same article, Kershner linked the reactions to the film with the upcoming third anniversary of the October 7, 2023 terror attack and the upcoming elections in Israel, claiming that both events further fueled the backlash against the film. Israelis are deeply divided over how to apportion responsibility for the political, military, and intelligence failures that preceded the attack and the war, she wrote.
No words for this abomination. — Scott Jennings (@ScottJenningsKY) September 16, 2026
Clarification and Apology
Following the widespread public backlash on social media, the New York Times published an editors' note and removed the controversial sentence. "Due to an editing error, an earlier version of this article included a sentence that was intended to convey Israelis' perceptions regarding the government's military response to the Oct. 7 terror attack, but it mistakenly implied that Israelis' experience as victims of terrorism is a matter of perception," the note read. "It has been removed from the article."
