CBS News executives cautioned their journalists against referring to Hamas members as “terrorists” in a memo issued the day after the October 7 Hamas attack on Israel, according to the Free Press. It’s the latest embarrassment for the news organization, which is in turmoil amid a daily drip of disclosures about institutionalized anti-Israel bias as well as anti-Trump bias.  

Thursday night, the Free Press published an excerpt of an email sent to reporters on October 8, 2023, with the subject, “Standards guidance: Israeli-Palestinian Conflict.”  

“Reporting on this weekend’s violence in Israel and Gaza requires a closer look at the language we use when describing events,” the email stated. “For instance, the U.S. government considers Hamas a terrorist organization; however, suggesting an individual is a ‘terrorist’ may be inaccurate depending on the facts.”

The email also noted there are disagreements over whether the attack was “justified” in response to “Israeli occupation of their lands.” The message then said there are  “others” who “believe this to be an unprovoked attack on Israel and, as such, Israel has every right to defend itself.”

A source with knowledge of the situation confirmed the guidance to the Sun. They said the goal of the guidance is to avoid generalizations about people in Gaza, such as labeling a doctor or nurse with the Hamas-run Gaza Health Ministry a terrorist without information they engaged in terrorism.

However, even the left-leaning Council on Foreign Relations notes Hamas has “put in place authoritarian institutions” that leave little room for flexibility or the ability to operate independently. Those who step out of line can face harsh punishments. 

Additionally, the Israel Defense Forces have released video footage as evidence that Hamas has used civilian infrastructure such as hospitals as “command and control” centers and even possibly to hold hostages from the October 7 attack. 

CBS News did not comment on the guidance. 

On Wednesday, the Free Press reported that a CBS News’ standards executive instructed news employees not to say that Jerusalem is the capital of Israel as it notes, “Palestinians claim East Jerusalem—occupied by Israel in the 1967 Middle East war—as the capital of a future state.”

The network’s standards for covering Israel are only furthering outrage around the storied news division.

The CEO of the Foundation for Defense of Democracies, Mark Dubowitz, wrote on X, “Hamas is designated by most Western countries as a terrorist organization. But, according to CBS, if you’re a member of Hamas, a terrorist organization, and you commit a terrorist attack, you’re not a terrorist.  This is contrary to U.S. law and to common sense.”

Stop Antisemitism’s account on X called the guidance “absolutely nauseating.”

CBS News is also being criticized over its editing of Vice President Harris’ pre-taped interview with “60 Minutes,” which aired on Monday. 

While it is common for networks to edit pre-taped interviews for reasons such as time constraints, the editing of the interview with the vice president is drawing scrutiny due to her history of struggling to make crisp, coherent points while speaking extemporaneously. 

During the interview, Ms. Harris was asked why Prime Minister Netanyahu does not seem to be heeding the warnings or wishes of American officials.

In a preview excerpt broadcast by the CBS News’s “Face the Nation” on Sunday, she responded, “The work that we have done has resulted in a number of movements in that region by Israel that were very much prompted by, or a result of, many things, including our advocacy for what needs to happen in the region.”

However, in the version of the interview that aired on Monday night, she answered the question more coherently, saying, “We are not going to stop pursuing what is necessary for the United States to be clear about where we stand on the need for this war to end.”

A third edit also surfaced, which included yet another answer from Ms. Harris, with a portion that did not air on TV. In the third version, the vice president spoke about America’s efforts to help Israel defend itself from attacks from Iran. She said it is America’s “imperative to do what we can to allow Israel to defend itself against those types of attacks.”

Ms. Harris vowed that America would continue to pressure Israel to reach a ceasefire agreement with Hamas. 

President Trump has called the decision to edit the “60 Minutes” interview the “Greatest Fraud in Broadcast History,” suggesting they were made to help the Democrats, which he said should cost the network its broadcast license. 

The chairwoman of the Federal Communications Commission, Jessica Rosenworcel, criticized Trump’s comments and said they amounted to “threats against free speech.”

The Harris campaign has also responded to Trump’s comments by saying it does not “control CBS’s production decisions.”