Reuters retracts award for Palestinian over pro-Hitler, pro-terror comments

"The Thomson Reuters Foundation and the Kurt Schork Memorial Fund stand opposed to hate speech of any description," the foundation wrote in a statement.

OCTOBER 18, 2022 18:11

Updated: OCTOBER 18, 2022 20:46

Thomson Reuters Building in Canary Wharf, London. (photo credit: Wikimedia Commons) — Thomson Reuters Building in Canary Wharf, London.

(photo credit: Wikimedia Commons)

The Thomson Reuters Foundation rescinded its bestowal of a Kurt Schork Award in International Journalism on Palestinian freelance journalist Shatha Hammad after discovering old social media posts in which she praised Adolf Hitler.

In 2014, Hammad posted a comment on Facebook that said “Me and Hitler are friends. We have influence over each other and share the same ideology, such as the extermination of the Jews.”

In a post the same year, Hammad described the terrorists that killed five Israelis in a terrorist attack as "martyrs."

Hammad's comments glorifying Hitler and terrorism were initially exposed by media watchdog HonestReporting, which said that there were dozens of such comments.

"Her work was set to be promoted via a major social media marketing campaign, and given the credibility of an international platform as guest speaker on a panel moderated by CNN’s Christiane Amanpour," HonestReporting CEO Jacki Alexander said. "Let’s be clear: this is not about denying a Palestinian journalist an award. This is about relegating unrepentant antisemites to the fringes of society and not rewarding them with international recognition.Antisemitism is on the rise globally, and Shatha Hammad’s language only serves to incite more violence against Jews."

We have ... taken this unusual step in order to protect the integrity of the Kurt Schork Awards, established to recognise and celebrate the courageous and brilliant reporting of conflict, corruption and injustice from journalists around the world, who risk their lives daily to speak truth to power."
Thomson Reuters Foundation

Hammad's accomplishments and pitfalls

Hammad is based in the West Bank and works as a freelance correspondent for Middle East Eye (MEE), a London-based online news website covering events in the Middle East and North Africa. Her articles primarily cover the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and are placed in MEE’s “Occupation” category on their website.

Meet Shatha Hammad, a Palestinian journalist with Al Jazeera & Middle East Eye. She just won a @Reuters award. She also loves Hitler & glorifies terrorism.Award judges: @MeeraSelva1 @angusreuters @lindseyhilsumAdvisors: @SamanthaJPower @amanpourCeremony: Oct. 26-27, London https://t.co/eiubltgVmb pic.twitter.com/DLLc7uJaLF
— Hillel Neuer (@HillelNeuer) October 16, 2022

“The Thomson Reuters Foundation and the Kurt Schork Memorial Fund stand opposed to hate speech of any description,” the foundation wrote in a statement. “We have therefore taken this unusual step in order to protect the integrity of the Kurt Schork Awards, established to recognize and celebrate the courageous and brilliant reporting of conflict, corruption and injustice from journalists around the world, who risk their lives daily to speak truth to power.”

At the One World Media Awards in June 2020, Hammad won the New Voice Award, recognizing an individual under the age of 32 who has made a “substantial contribution to international journalism during the year.”

The Kurt Schork Awards in International Journalism are named for American freelance journalist Kurt Schork, who was killed in Sierra Leone on assignment for Reuters in 2000.