Assalaamu alaykum. Sometimes a Muslim person comes on the news and reports a particular incident. Some people believe it, saying that we have to presume that a Muslim is truthful and innocent. Others do not believe it, saying that we have to verify any piece of news that comes to us. At other times, different Muslim groups differ in how they report and interpret current events, and each seems sure of his opinion. What is the correct way to deal with these types of situations? May Allah reward you.

All perfect praise be to Allaah, The Lord of the Worlds. I testify that there is none worthy of worship except Allaah, and that Muhammad is His slave and Messenger.

The Islamic methodology in conveying the news and receiving them is verification and investigation, and a person should not tell anything that he hears without making sure about its authenticity. Allaah says (what means): {O you who have believed, if there comes to you a disobedient one with information, investigate, lest you harm a people out of ignorance and become, over what you have done, regretful.}[Quran 49:6]

The more the person who transmits the news is far from abiding by the religion, the more what he says becomes doubtful and the more it becomes emphatic to verify what he says.

It is also an obligation to verify the news received from a non-Muslim or a dissolute person. As regards a just Muslim, then in principle we accept his news unless there is an indication that requires verifying his news first.

Abu Hurayrah narrated that the Prophet said, “It is enough a lie for a person to convey everything that he hears.” [Muslim]

Shaykh Ibn ‘Uthaymeen said, “It means that if a person conveys everything that he hears without verifying the information, then he will be prone to lie, and this is a fact. Some people come to you and say: such and such has happened, and if you investigate (the matter), you will find that it is not true, or a person comes to you and says: So and so said such and such, and if you investigate (the matter), you will find that he did not say so.” 

Accordingly, a person should not convey something unless he is sure of its authenticity from reliable sources so that he will not be exposed to lying.

It is important to point out that not accepting news as true does not necessitate considering it a lie and rejecting it, but there is a state between accepting the information as true and considering it a lie, which is investigating the news – before accepting it or conveying it – until its state is clarified whether it is the truth or it is a lie.

Allaah Knows best.