The Washington Post started to dismiss the threat of Khorasan soon after the U.S. conducted airstrikes. On September 24, the Post wrote that “U.S. intelligence does not see the Khorasan group as a distinct al-Qaeda unit but as a somewhat amorphous collection of foreign fighters ‘nested’ with Jabhat al-Nusra and the broader spectrum of militant groups.” Ali Bakran, whom the Post describes as the commander of the “more moderate” Free Syrian Army-linked brigade, said that he had “first heard of the Khorasani five months ago, in reference to foreign fighters from Afghanistan who had arrived to join Jabhat al-Nusra.”Karen DeYoung, Greg Miller and Loveday Miller, “U.S. Strikes in Syria Against Al-Qaeda’s Khorasan Group Kill One of Its Leaders,” The Washington Post, September 24, 2014, http://www.washingtonpost.com/world/national-security/us-strikes-in-syria-against-al-qaedas-khorasan-group-kill-one-of-its-leaders/2014/09/24/3049aa80-442c-11e4-b47c-f5889e061e5f_story.html.

The Post then went on to paint the Obama administration’s characterization of Khorasan as deceptive. As the Post wrote, “Among some analysts, there's anger at what they see as a misleading use of the term [Khorasan].”Adam Taylor, “The Strange Story Behind the ‘Khorasan’ Group’s Name, The Washington Post, September 25, 2014, http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/worldviews/wp/2014/09/25/the-strange-story-behind-the-khorasan-groups-name/. The Post quoted one historian saying that the U.S. “‘blew up this story’ to justify its attacks on Jabhat al-Nusra.”Adam Taylor, “The Strange Story Behind the ‘Khorasan’ Group’s Name, The Washington Post, September 25, 2014, http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/worldviews/wp/2014/09/25/the-strange-story-behind-the-khorasan-groups-name/. The article went on to say that because the U.S. did not disclose details of the bomb threat, a “sense of distrust is amplified by conflicting reports about the threat posed by the group.” The article concluded that “the lack of specificity is concerning – and there are signs that those in Syria are not buying it.” It ended on a quote from the leader whom the Post had earlier described as “more moderate.” Barkan defended al-Qaeda’s formal affiliate in Syria, saying, “why are [the United States] striking [the al-Nusra Front]? Nusra are from the people—they are the people.”

On September 28, the International Business Times published an article with a new angle, headlined, “Khorasan Demystified: Nothing Terrifying About This Group.” The article accused the U.S. of “fear mongering” the public, considering that the group is, according to analyst Aron Lund, “simply Jabhat al-Nusra and al Qaeda, trying to leverage their Syria apparatus for international strikes.”Johnlee Varghese, “Khorasan Demystified: Nothing Terrifying About this Group,” International Business Times, September 28, 2014, http://www.ibtimes.co.in/khorasan-demystified-nothing-terrifying-about-this-group-610155. Lund put the blame squarely on the media, saying that “many papers are getting it wrong, as if this were a new group on the ground, even on part with ISIS,” although the ISIS comparison was initiated not by the press, but by U.S. officials. Lund claimed that the “only” newsworthy aspect of Khorasan “is that some veteran al Qaeda leaders have relocated to Syria and are planning to work with al Nusra, to launch international attacks.”Johnlee Varghese, “Khorasan Demystified: Nothing Terrifying About this Group,” International Business Times, September 28, 2014, http://www.ibtimes.co.in/khorasan-demystified-nothing-terrifying-about-this-group-610155.

On September 29, the Huffington Post published an article titled, “Glenn Greenwald: Media Way Overhyped Khorasan Group Threat.”Jack Mirkinson, “Glenn Greenwald: Media Way Overhyped Khorasan Group Threat,” Huffington Post, September 29, 2014, http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2014/09/29/glenn-greenwald-media-khorasan-group_n_5899628.html. The outlet aligned with The Intercept’s article “The Fake Terror Threat Used to Justify Bombing in Syria.”Glenn Greenwald and Murtaza Hussain, “The Fake Terror Threat Used to Justify Bombing in Syria,” Intercept, September 28, 2014, https://firstlook.org/theintercept/2014/09/28/u-s-officials-invented-terror-group-justify-bombing-syria/. The Huffington Post lauded The Intercept’s article, saying it “lambasted the media's handling of this apparently sudden new threat to the world.”Jack Mirkinson, “Glenn Greenwald: Media Way Overhyped Khorasan Group Threat,” Huffington Post, September 29, 2014, http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2014/09/29/glenn-greenwald-media-khorasan-group_n_5899628.html.