WOODTV8 story on the BringThemHomeNow event in Grand Rapids was rife with misinformation and omissions

Last Thursday, there was an event in Rosa Parks Circle that centered on the hostages that Hamas took on October 7. 

The only local news agency that covered the event was WOODTV8. In channel 8’s coverage they state:

Multiple people who support Israel spoke out at Thursday’s demonstration at Rosa Parks Circle. Yellow balloons and photos of children, teenagers and adults were put on display. Organizers said the people on the posters are those who have been kidnapped and held hostage by Hamas.

Those who attended the demonstration said that this was not a Pro-Israel or Pro-Palestine event. “If this makes me look pro-Israel, that doesn’t mean I am anti-Palestinian. I’m pro-people. If we don’t stand up to terrible things that’s happened, that started this, if we think that’s OK, for any reason, if that is ever justified, then it’s only a matter of time before somebody uses that on us,” Franson said.

The channel 8 story misses a few key elements and never challenges or questions what this event was really all about. First, it is worth noting that the woman who was interviewed by channel 8, Jennifer Franson, is the founder of the group iCI Nation, a group that supports cops, which GRIID has reported on numerous times.

Second, for Franson to say that this wasn’t a pro-Israel event is ridiculous, when there were numerous people at the event with Israeli flags. 

Third, there is no mention of the fact that the resources used by the organizers on Thursday, which focused on the hostages taken by Hamas on October 7, are from the group BringTheHomeNow. If one looks at the website or the Facebook page of BringThemHomeNow, it is clear that they are a pro-Israel entity.

Fourth, during the WOODTV8 comments from their reporter, she refers to Hamas as, “a Palestine terrorist group that controls the Gaza Strip.” This is the language that the US State Department uses, along with the Biden Administration. However, calling Hamas a terrorist group is an over simplification. One could certainly call what Hamas did an act of terrorism on October 7, but the reality is that Palestinians have lived under occupation for decades, a reality that is almost always ignored in US news coverage. In addition, Palestinians voted for Hamas, which means that simply saying they “control the Gaza Strip” is also an inaccurate statement. 

Fifth, at the end of the written piece from channel 8, it states: “I don’t think this is just a one-people issue,” Franson added. “To talk about the hostages, really focuses on the humanitarian effort of any group, that we value life, and that doesn’t matter what side.”

If this was only a humanitarian effort then why did the group that held the event on Thursday not talk about all of the Palestinian civilians that have been killed (roughly 11,000) since Israel’s retaliation for the Hamas attack on October 7. And why didn’t the group call for a ceasefire, which would only improve the chances of Hamas releasing the hostages. The continued Israeli aerial and ground assault in Gaza and the West Bank, with US diplomatic and weapons support, will not help the chances of releasing the hostages being held by Hamas. 

For me, this event held in Grand Rapids last Thursday was clearly a Pro-Israel event, that only focused on Israeli lives, which used resources provided by a national Pro-Israel organization, and the only person interviewed in the story is the founder of a Kent County pro-cop organization. Lastly, it is worth noting that WOODTV8. or any other local news agency, did not cover the admittedly Pro-Palestinian vigil/City Commission action on Tuesday.