PBS senior correspondent Judy Woodruff has apologized after inaccurately reporting that former President Trump attempted to dissuade Israel from pursuing a cease-fire in the Gaza conflict.
During a broadcast from the Democratic National Convention in Chicago, Woodruff referenced a claim that Trump had urged Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to avoid a cease-fire, suggesting it would benefit the Harris campaign.
She added, “Who knows whether that will come about or not, but I have to think that the Harris campaign would like for President Biden to do what presidents do, which is work on that one.”
Woodruff faced criticism online for disseminating information that had already been disproven. In response, she clarified her error on X (formerly Twitter), stating, “This was not based on my original reporting; I was citing reports I had read from Axios and Reuters about a supposed conversation between Trump and Netanyahu. I repeated this information on air because I had not seen subsequent reporting that refuted it. I regret this mistake and apologize.”
Netanyahu’s office has strongly denied Woodruff’s claims, calling them a “complete lie.” The Axios article Woodruff referenced, published on August 14, mentioned a conversation between Trump and Netanyahu but did not suggest Trump had urged Netanyahu to delay a cease-fire. Following the initial report, Netanyahu’s office issued a denial, and both Axios and Reuters updated their stories to reflect this denial before Woodruff’s broadcast.