UK Telegraph Corrects Error on Western Wall, Temple Mount
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by Adam Levick
Israeli soldiers pray at the Western Wall. Photo: Wikipedia.
We’re not normally in the business of comparing the quality and editorial judgment of British papers, but the speed in which The Telegraph corrected a false claim regarding the Western Wall in Jerusalem is worth noting.
An Oct. 23 story in The Telegraph by Dina Rickman titled ‘Meet the Women of the Wall: Israel’s answer to Pussy Riot‘ included the following passage:
The Western Wall might be the holiest site in the Jewish world, but not all Jews can worship there as they wish…
We contacted Telegraph editors and alerted them to the mistake.
We demonstrated that the Temple Mount (where the Second Temple stood) is in fact the holiest site in Judaism, while the Western Wall (The Kotel) is merely the holiest site where Jews are currently permitted to pray.
We forwarded them information relating to other news sites that corrected their original claims that the Western Wall was the holiest site (many of which were prompted by CAMERA), as well as a 2008 BBC correction to their false claim.
Within hours, Telegraph editors responded to my complaint, informing me that they agreed with my concerns and had already corrected the piece accordingly. It now reads as follows:
The Western Wall might be the holiest site in the Jewish world where Jews are permitted to pray, but not all Jews can worship there as they wish…
This quick revision stands in stark contrast to the stonewalling and obfuscations we encountered when filing a similar complaint to the Guardian over Harriet Sherwood’s false claim regarding the Western Wall back in June.
Here’s Sherwood’s erroneous claim, which still hasn’t been amended.
During his three days in the Holy Land, he is scheduled to visit the Church of the Holy Sepulchre, believed to be the site of Jesus’s crucifixion and resurrection; the Western Wall, the most revered site in Judaism…
Telegraph editors should be commended for their prompt revision – a quick, decisive editorial decision (based on historically undeniable facts), which should certainly be emulated at other British dailies.
Adam Levick is the managing editor of CiF Watch, an affiliate of the Committee for Accuracy in Middle East Reporting in America (CAMERA).
