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Media Channel 4

Channel 4 News falsely identified Westminster attacker

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By John Glenday, Reporter

March 23, 2017 | 2 min read

Channel 4 News has been left red-faced after its senior home affairs correspondent, Simon Israel, sensationally broke the news that the prime suspect in yesterday’s Westminster terror attack was Trevor Brooks aka Abu Izzadeen – only for it to subsequently emerge that he is currently serving time at Her Majesty’s pleasure.

The embarrassing faux pas came after Israel repeated unsubstantiated claims made by a single unnamed source, forcing the reporter into a swift reversal by admitting that ‘It may be that we’re not as certain about identity of the attacker as we thought.’

Upon further investigation Israel conceded his error in a tweet, admonishing himself to his followers:

The gaffe has immediate repercussions for Channel 4+1 with panicked schedulers pulling the programme off air to avoid sowing further confusion amongst the public, displaying a static ‘We are temporarily unable to show the scheduled content on +1 at this moment’ test card in its stead.

In a statement Channel 4 News has said it is ‘currently looking into’ the matter.

Israel’s initial comments were widely reported with BBC politics reporter Andrew Neil re-tweeting the claims, prompting much soul searching amongst journalists about the need to avoid rushing to conclusions even in the fast-paced environment of a live terrorist incident.

Media Channel 4

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