Veteran journalist Judy Woodruff issued an apology on Wednesday for statements she made during PBS’ Democratic national convention coverage regarding former President Donald Trump and the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. Woodruff had mentioned a story she read in Axios and Reuters alleging that Trump had advised Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to delay peace negotiations until after the U.S. election, suggesting it could benefit Democrat Kamala Harris’ campaign.
However, Woodruff acknowledged in a post on X that she had not been aware of subsequent reports denying the claims made in the original story by both the Trump campaign and Israel. She admitted that her comments were not based on any original reporting of her own and expressed regret for the error.
Woodruff, known for her extensive career in journalism with previous roles at CNN and NBC News, served as the host of PBS’ “NewsHour” from 2013 to 2022 before transitioning to a reporting project.
