Reporters on Monday fell for a fake "White House" document that supposedly showed President Donald Trump making unusual demands of his Israeli hosts during his trip abroad.
The Twitter account Rogue White House Senior Advisor on Friday shared what it claimed was Trump's demands ahead of a trip to Israel, including roughly a metric ton of sugary and non-kosher junk food.
Pres has a lot of demands for his Middle East trip. pic.twitter.com/EcRfcQ4Y7W
— Rogue WH Snr Advisor (@RogueSNRadvisor) May 19, 2017
While the account's motive remains unclear, its shtick is to share shocking and outlandish "insider" stories about Trump while providing no evidence. The account has never provided verification that it is actually run by a White House staffer.
Some elements of the purported demands were obvious jokes. The demand that microwaves remain unplugged was a mocking reference to White House advisor Kellyanne Conway's bizarre comment that the appliance could be used for spying, and the request for electoral maps to be posted on each walls mocked Trump's tendency to allude to his victory.
Nonetheless, Jerusalem Post journalist Anna Ahronheim saw the image and believed it was legitimate.
The catering requirements for #TrumpInIsrael seem kinda OCD: 6 boxes of Double Stuffed @Oreo cookies---unwrapped & stacked in rows of 8... pic.twitter.com/tBTQVluc09
— Anna Ahronheim (@AAhronheim) May 22, 2017
@Oreo Also:5 maps of Electoral college victory, framed & hung throughout suite.Really can't get over his yuuuggee "victory" can he? #TrumpInIsrael
— Anna Ahronheim (@AAhronheim) May 22, 2017
Other reporters at the Jerusalem Post, Business Insider, the Nation, NBC News, the Washington Post, and Mother Jones soon shared Ahronheim's tweet.
Do they need to don their tinfoil hats or something before plugging in the microwaves? https://t.co/5FddidRDPu
— Joshua Holland (@JoshuaHol) May 22, 2017
This is like Home Alone II https://t.co/uRbJWJqrJe
— Sam Petulla (@spetulla) May 22, 2017
Oh boy do I have a lot to say here. First, he's asking for bacon. Bacon! King David is strictly kosher - where will they put the bacon? https://t.co/yAzytqofSQ
— Amy Spiro (@AmySpiro) May 22, 2017
There are also, of course, requirements for printed framed maps of his electoral victory in the suite. I mean OMG. https://t.co/yAzytqofSQ
— Amy Spiro (@AmySpiro) May 22, 2017
That’s a lot of sweets. Also, 8 Hungry Man dinners? https://t.co/hwLl7X02oL
— Christopher Woody (@chrstphr_woody) May 22, 2017
Weird -- I make exactly the same demands when I travel: THE KRAFT AMERICAN SINGLES MUST BE UNWRAPPED!!! https://t.co/6Dyn32s7lZ
— Ron Charles (@RonCharles) May 22, 2017
Traveling to the Middle East and Europe and bring loaves of white bread???? #TrumpInIsrael https://t.co/FByPd0CiVV
— Gary Weiss (@gary_weiss) May 22, 2017
This would explain Trump's weight problem. 4 tubs Cool Whip?? https://t.co/eDUbNN2Q7a
— Stephanie Mencimer (@smencimer) May 22, 2017
One of the reporters to retweet Ahronheim was Glenn Kessler, editor of the Washington Post's Fact-Checker blog. Kessler deleted his retweet when the error was pointed out and began correcting the record.
@Daggla @AAhronheim @Oreo No.
— Glenn Kessler (@GlennKesslerWP) May 22, 2017
Eventually, Ahronheim tweeted out a correction.
Sigh, sorry to disappoint but @LahavHarkov says this came from a fake twitter account a few days ago. It seemed too good to be true. https://t.co/jRlJj5Ziv0
— Anna Ahronheim (@AAhronheim) May 22, 2017