Ever since I can remember, I have been fascinated with the media. As a student of media communications, I spent hours exploring not only how the industry works but also one of the deeper quandaries regarding mass communication: How does the media best serve the public? With funding from the government, which allows it to uphold quality standards but makes it vulnerable to political pressure? Or within an open, commercial market, freeing it from any government pressure but placing it under threat from cheap populism and personal interests?
Today, these questions are no longer theoretical; they are being asked by Israeli legislators who are vying to change the country’s entire media landscape, and by Israeli journalists and foreign media who fear the far-reaching consequences. As for the latter, they are deeply concerned about what the future might hold for them personally and for their entire profession, as well as for the very essence of Israeli democracy.
In this edition, The Jerusalem Report’s Knesset correspondent Keshet Neev and I sat down with the man at the center of the storm: Communications Minister Shlomo Karhi. He laid out the rationale behind the proposed reforms and explains why he believes they are necessary.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s former media spokesman Omer Dostari – now with the Misgav Institute – also weighs in, advocating for the changes as a way to dismantle monopolies and modernize outdated regulations.
Offering a sharply different perspective, Professor Hanan Melcer, president of the Israeli Council of Press, and Ilana Dayan, anchor of Israel’s top investigative program, Uvda (Fact), both warn that the proposals could undermine Israel’s democratic character if implemented.
Former government minister and IDF spokesman Nachman Shai, now the dean of Hebrew Union College, addresses another looming shake-up: the defense minister’s plans to shut down Army Radio.
Jehudi Weinberger Basha speaks with three prominent Israeli journalists about how the changes may reshape the profession. At the same time, Dana Ben-Shimon profiles Arab-Israeli journalist Mohammad Majadli, whose dual identity serves to bridge Israel’s Jewish and Arab societies.
Jerusalem Post culture writer Hannah Brown examines how defunding public television could damage Israel’s vibrant documentary scene, and Jerusalem Report staff writer Chani Kaplan turns the lens on photojournalism with a feature on the Local Testimony competition, which honors the year’s best news images.
On the international stage, Samuel J. Hyde of the Jewish People Policy Institute explores why Israel so often dominates global headlines. His colleagues Robert Neufeld and Shlomo Breznik offer a comparative analysis of how major international outlets covered the Israel-Iran war in June.
Security issues round out the edition: Dr. Eric R. Mandel calls for a deeper military partnership between Israel and the United States; former Knesset member and Arab affairs expert Ruth Wasserman Lande examines the region’s intensifying information wars; former IDF international spokesman Jonathan Conricus outlines the strategic implications of Israel’s recognition of Somaliland; and Andrew Fox of the Henry Jackson Society presents new research arguing that the fighting in Gaza constituted urban warfare – not genocide as Israel’s critics claim.
We close on a lighter note with Jay Garfinkel’s “Capturing Israel” column, and Rachel Gutman’s review of British journalist Jonathan Freedland’s latest novel.
Hoping you find all the articles here informative and thought-provoking.