Daughter of billionaire LA Times owner berates her own father’s newspaper for running advert for Israeli tourism
Nika Soon-Shiong, daughter of billionaire LA Times owner Patrick Soon-Shiong, publicly criticised her father's publication for running an Israeli tourism advertisement that omits Palestinian territories and the occupied Golan Heights. The 33-year-old pro-Palestine activist and publisher of independent news site Drop Site News sparked significant online backlash, highlighting ethical questions around sponsored content in major news outlets.
The advertisement, titled "Israel: Land of Creation" and funded by Israel's Ministry of Tourism, was placed by LA Times Studios, a branded content division separate from the newspaper's editorial operations. A LA Times journalist clarified that the newsroom had no input in the sponsored content, describing Studios as a "separate company" despite both being part of the same media group, revealing tensions between commercial and editorial interests.
- LA Times owner's daughter criticised Israeli tourism advert in the paper
- The ad's map omitted Palestinian territories and occupied Golan Heights
- Journalist noted sponsored content arm operates separately from editorial
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Patrick Soon-Shiong is a billionaire investor who owns the Los Angeles Times, one of the United States' most prominent newspapers. The LA Times has experienced various ownership changes and financial pressures in recent years, like many major publications.
News organisations often operate separate commercial divisions that produce sponsored advertisements and content, kept organisationally distinct from their editorial newsroom where journalists work. These divisions, sometimes called "studios" or "branded content" sections, generate revenue through paid advertising whilst appearing within the publication alongside regular news.
Questions about which advertisements major newspapers accept raise fundamental issues around editorial independence and how global events are represented. Such advertising reaches large audiences and influences public perception, which is why news organisations' decisions on advertising attract significant scrutiny.
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The case for
News organisations have a responsibility to maintain credibility and institutional integrity across all operations, including advertising divisions. Even if legally separate, branded content divisions remain part of the same institution in the public's view, and running an advertisement that omits significant territories could undermine the outlet's broader mission of balanced, informative coverage. The reputational cost of appearing to amplify a politically contested geographic representation outweighs the commercial benefit of a single sponsored campaign.
The case against
Advertising and editorial must maintain distinct operational and ethical standards, with commercial content subject to different rules than journalism. News organisations depend on diverse revenue sources to function as independent institutions, and excessive curation of advertising based on political considerations risks threatening financial viability or establishing precedent for inappropriate scrutiny of advertisers' views. Tourism promotions are standard commercial practice rather than journalism, and editorial independence is properly protected through clear separation of the newsroom from what advertisements run.