After calling Israeli journalist Anat Schwartz in for an investigation after she liked a series of pro-Israel posts on social media networks following October 7, including one that called for the transformation of Gaza "into a slaughterhouse" if the hostages held by Hamas are harmed, the New York Times dismissed her on Sunday.
Schwartz liked a tweet by Walla journalist David Mizrahy Verthaim on October 7, which, according to the newspaper, constitutes a violation of company policy.
"We are aware that a freelance journalist in Israel who has worked with The Times has 'liked' several social media posts. Those 'likes' are unacceptable violations of our company policy. We are currently reviewing the matter," the newspaper told Ynet.
After liking several other pro-Israeli posts on social media, the freelance journalist was called in to discuss the continuation of her employment at the American news outlet. The New York Times explained that, despite the fact that many of Schwartz’s likes were done before her employment, and despite her being an “excellent reporter,” her conduct on social media remained constant and so the newspaper had no choice but to enforce its policy on her.
The New York Times policy regarding the conduct of its employees on social media warns that a post or like must not "express partisan views, promote political views, support candidates, make offensive comments or do anything else that undermines the journalistic reputation of The Times."
Schwartz began writing for the newspaper in November and focused mainly on the reactions of the Israeli public to the October 7 attack and the war that followed. She is also a filmmaker and in 2008 served as an assistant director to Ari Folman in the film "Waltz with Bashir," which won a Golden Globe Award and the César Award.
Since the investigation into the sexual assaults was published, Schwartz has been a target for pro-Palestinian media and network activists who monitored her history on the networks and discovered that she had liked various pro-Israel posts, such as the one in question by Verthaim posted on the day of the massacre, which allegedly caused her to violate the New York Times policy.
Israeli advocacy groups expressed their concern that the outlet’s move will aid deniers of Hamas’ attack to claim the New York Times’ report on sexual crimes on October 7 was not credible.
The newspaper's investigation, which lasted two months, revealed difficult details about sexual assaults during October 7 and revealed that the sexual assaults were not an isolated incident, but rather that a widespread pattern of sexual violence took place on the day of the attack. The investigation is based on videos, photos, GPS data and interviews with more than 150 people, including eyewitnesses, medical personnel, soldiers and counselors for victims of sexual assault. The investigation identified seven different places where women and girls were raped or sexually assaulted.
Schwartz began writing for the newspaper in November and focused mainly on the reactions of the Israeli public to the October 7 attack and the war that followed. She is also a filmmaker and in 2008 served as an assistant director to Ari Folman in the film "Waltz with Bashir," which won the Golden Globe Award and the César Award.
Since the investigation into Hamas’s sexual crimes was published, Schwartz served as a target for media outlets and pro-Palestinian activists who monitored her history on social media and found she had liked various pro-Israeli posts, which allegedly led to her violation of The New York Times’ policy.
Journalists and activists of the pro-Palestinian network approached the New York Times and called for her to be suspended. They also publicly wondered: "What would happen if The Times suddenly hired a Palestinian filmmaker with no journalistic background, who recently publicly 'liked' posts that called for 'throwing Israeli Jews into the sea,' to participate in writing some of its' most sensitive and controversial reports?'