The Associated Press loses business from Gannett and McClatchy, "Zone of Interest" director Jonathan Glazer faces growing backlash, ESPN inks a deal to retain college football playoff rights, George Lucas backs Bob Iger, Donald Trump sues ABC News and George Stephanopoulos, TikTok's trouble thickens, Taylor Swift smashes the Disney+ concert film record, and more. But first, the A1.

The Graves in Gaza

CNN Photo Illustration/Mahmud Hams/AFP/Getty Images

The Israeli military is evading questions and calls for accountability over the killing of journalists tasked with covering the country's brutal and protracted war with Hamas.

Since the October 7 terrorist attacks, at least 95 journalists — 90 of whom are Palestinian — have been killed in the region, according to the Committee to Protect Journalists, which has been tracking the mounting death toll. The non-profit said it is the deadliest conflict for journalists it has recorded since it started collecting data in 1992.

But Israel Defense Forces has rarely provided specific answers about the circumstances that have led to the killing of journalists. Instead, the IDF has issued vague statements that reiterate their forces do not intentionally target journalists or that the matter is under investigation.

However, with journalists facing extraordinary danger in the field as they attempt to bear witness to the ugly war on behalf of the world, such statements are insufficient. And, over the past week, a pair of new reports have raised significant questions for the IDF about two separate instances that led to the killing of journalists.

The United Nations finalized a report last week about the killing of Reuters journalist Issam Abdallah in southern Lebanon, concluding that the attack was from an Israeli tank that had fired at a group of "clearly identifiable journalists," a violation of international law. CNN also reported, based on video from the scene, that the journalists were wearing body armor clearly labeled "PRESS."

In response to the U.N. report, the IDF said it "does not deliberately shoot at civilians, including journalists." And it reiterated its support for a free press. But Reuters editor-in-chief Alessandra Galloni has demanded Israel more thoroughly explain its actions and hold those responsible accountable. So far, that has yet to occur.

On Tuesday, The Washington Post published a report raising serious questions about a separate attack, a January 7 missile strike that claimed the lives of two Al Jazeera journalists and two freelancers. The IDF initially said that it "identified and struck a terrorist who operated an aircraft that posed a threat to IDF troops."

But the aircraft in question was a consumer-grade drone, The WaPo reported. And the newspaper obtained and reviewed the footage taken from the drone, which it posted in its entirety online, which revealed "no Israeli soldiers, aircraft or other military equipment" were visible. The WaPo, which spoke to 14 witnesses and colleagues of the slain journalists, also asked two analysts to review satellite imagery covering a 1.2 mile radius of the area, which was captured on the day of the attack. Neither expert saw evidence of military activity and it is unclear how the drone ever posed a "threat" to IDF personnel. 

When The WaPo asked the IDF about its findings, however, a spokesperson would only say, "We have nothing more to add."

Outside such lethal incidents, the Israeli military has also come under increased scrutiny for its general treatment of journalists in the region.

Al Jazeera said Monday that IDF forces detained one of its correspondents, Ismail al-Ghoul, for 12 hours before releasing him. The Qatari-funded network said in a blistering statement that al-Ghoul was reporting from Al-Shifa Hospital when he was arrested by Israeli forces, "severely beaten" and detained with other journalists. When the reporter was released, he accused Israeli forces of destroying his broadcast equipment and subjecting other members of the press to appalling conditions.

"He said the journalists were stripped of their clothes and forced to lie on their stomachs as they were blindfolded and their hands tied," Al Jazeera reported. "Israeli soldiers would open fire to scare them if there was any movement, al-Ghoul said."

On Tuesday morning, after checking in with the IDF multiple times, I finally received a comment from a military spokesperson.

"We are not aware of the detention of a man named Ismail Al-Ghoul," the IDF spokesperson said. 

When I asked the IDF spokesperson whether they would acknowledge having detained any journalists at the hospital, I received a statement that did not answer the question. I asked again if the IDF detained journalists, but received no reply.

Suffice to say that such responses don't reflect well on the Israeli military. Obviously, operating in a war zone is extraordinarily difficult. But, as press advocates and news organizations have repeatedly stressed, the targeting of journalists and mistreatment of those who risk their lives to report from the conflict is unacceptable.

"Attacks on journalists are also attacks on truth," underscored an open letter signed last month by three dozen news leaders, including the heads of CNN, the Associated Press, The New York Times, and BBC News. 

Journalists are dying in record numbers covering the war. And with each death, the world sees a little less from the war-torn region. It is incumbent on Israel, which is responsible for the conduct of its military forces, to fully explain its actions when a member of the press is killed.

So far, however, the IDF has been less than forthcoming.

CNN Photo Illustration/Chris Pizzello/AP

Zone of Controversy: When will Jonathan Glazer break his silence? The "Zone of Interest" director is facing swelling backlash after his controversial acceptance speech at the Oscars. Glazer, who is Jewish, said that he stood onstage as a man who refutes his "Jewishness and the Holocaust being hijacked by an occupation which has led to conflict for so many innocent people." Since delivering the speech, which did receive some applause at the Dolby Theatre, Glazer has faced criticism. "Zone of Interest" executive producer Danny Cohen said he "fundamentally disagree[s]" with Glazer's speech. And, more recently, hundreds of Hollywood actors, producers, and industry workers have signed a petition condemning his remarks. The NYT's Marc Tracy has more here.

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The Disassociated Press: The two largest newspaper chains in the country are dramatically scaling back their relationship with the Associated Press, a pair of seismic moves that will impact how millions of people across the U.S. receive their news. Gannett, which operates USA Today and 200 other outlets, said Tuesday that it will stop using the AP's content next week, arguing it will give the company "the opportunity to redeploy more dollars toward our teams." Meanwhile, McClatchy said in an internal announcement that it will not publish AP content after March 31, resulting in the company "no longer pay millions for content that serves less than 1 percent of our readers." The NYT's Benjamin Mullin and Katie Robertson have details here.

► The AP told me that the loss of Gannett and McClatchy's business "would not have a material impact on our overall revenue." But, the spokesperson added, "We are disappointed in this news from Gannett and McClatchy, as conversations with both news organizations have been productive and are ongoing. We remain hopeful Gannett and McClatchy will continue to support the AP beyond the end of their membership terms. We appreciate that these are difficult decisions to make and deeply understand the challenges the news industry faces. At the same time, this would be a disservice to news consumers across the U.S. who would no longer see fact-based journalism from the AP." 

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Suing Stephanopoulos: He's done it again. Donald Trump filed yet another lawsuit against the news media late Monday, accusing ABC News and George Stephanopoulos of defamation over assertions the anchor made in a combative interview. In a "This Week" interview earlier this month, Stephanopoulos pressed Republican Rep. Nancy Mace, a rape survivor, over her continued support of Trump after a jury found he sexually abused E. Jean Carroll in 1996. Stephanopoulos asserted multiple times in the interview with Mace that Trump had "raped" Carroll. While a federal jury last year found that Trump had sexually abused Carroll, the jury did not find that she proved he had raped her. Dismissing a countersuit months later, however, the judge in the case concluded that the claim Trump raped Carroll was "substantially true." ABC News declined to comment on the lawsuit. That said, it goes without saying that Trump has a lengthy history filing meritless lawsuits against the press, which he regularly demonizes. Here's my full story.

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TikTok's Trouble Thickens: Democratic Sen. Mark Warner, the chair of the Senate Select Committee, continued to sound the alarm about TikTok, in an interview published Tuesday with NPR's Ari Shapiro. Shapiro asked Warner if there is any evidence to suggest China is meddling in TikTok, to which the senator replied, "I can tell you this: you don't get 352 votes in the House of Representatives unless you've got a convincing case." Warner also said that he wants to "make sure there's continuity of service" if legislation forcing a divesture is passed and that a deadline of six months might not be an immovable deadline. Check out the full interview here.

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Swift's Streaming Success: Bob Iger's move to secure Taylor Swift's "Eras Tour" as a Disney+ exclusive is driving eyeballs to the streamer. The debut of the concert film on Disney+ broke the record for the platform's most-watched music film ever. The hit-movie, which also smashed box office records for the genre, logged a staggering 4.6 million views and 16.2 million hours on Disney+, according to the streamer's numbers. The Wrap's Loree Seitz and Jose Alejandro Bastidas have more here.