Watch our video report, detailing how news networks are relying on defense industry consultants to explain the war in Gaza.
Video Transcript:
In the days after Hamas’ attack on Israel, MSNBC had for a moment “quietly taken three of its Muslim broadcasters out of the anchor’s chair since Hamas’s attack on Israel,” according to the online news outlet Semafor. By contrast, the network has repeatedly brought on Jeremy Bash to contextualize the ongoing war to viewers — despite his longtime public support for Israel.
Bash has defended Israel’s response to the October 7 attack, “a reaction that has involved thousands of bombs, and cutting off food, water, fuel, and electricity to Gaza.”
At no point did MSNBC mention that Bash, who served as chief of staff at the Central Intelligence Agency and the Department of Defense in the Obama administration, leads a consulting firm that has reportedly worked for defense contracting giant Raytheon, which supplies missiles for Israel’s Iron Dome defense system.
The episode is part of a broader, recurring pattern in corporate TV news. In recent weeks, MSNBC, NBC, CNN, and Fox News, have regularly invited on former defense officials-turned-industry consultants to explain the conflict between Israel and Palestine without ever mentioning to viewers that these analysts may represent clients with a financial stake in the matters being discussed.
