Israel’s Public Relations Problem
Last week’s Israeli naval action served as a reminder of the fallacy of demilitarization. An Iranian civilian vessel laden with advanced weaponry was intercepted as it made its way from Iran through Syria and Turkey to Egypt. Its ultimate aim: Hamas-led Gaza. For each ship intercepted by Israel (and Egypt, which has aided in interception but may, in the future, become a supplier of weapons to Gaza and the Palestinian Authority), there is an Iranian shipment that gets through. And, should a Palestinian state become a reality, there would be no way for Israel to legally intercept shipments of weapons from neighboring states and beyond, arriving either by sea or by air.
An armed Palestinian state would be an unequivocal strategic threat to the state of Israel. It would threaten major Israeli population centers, its international airport (Ben Gurion), and its power stations — all of which are within range of artillery fire, not to mention the sophisticated missiles the new state would rush to acquire.
And so, it is tragically uncanny that a technologically sophisticated Israel has neglected to mount a robust public relations campaign through a worldwide satellite TV channel station. Such neglect represents gross negligence on the part of the successive Israeli governments. Israel has the facilities: TV studios, qualified broadcasters, and technical personnel who know how to create and operate a satellite TV. And Israel enjoys the money to bankroll such an operation. What it lacks is the will to take action. Israel’s well-being depends on arming itself with a global communications weapon like Al-Jazeera.
An Israeli, pro-Zionist, Al-Jazeera-like channel would help Israel overcome the biased reporting of European and most American channels, and would reach households in Europe as well as the U.S. with a clear and undiluted message as to the dangers a Palestinian state would pose to Israel, Jordan, and the region.
Utilizing satellite technology would allow Israel’s 7 million people to match the Arab/Muslim world propaganda, even with its vast resources and 350 million people. As Israel is being savaged and delegitimized in the media, on campus, and in international institutions, Israel must fight back — not with government press releases, speeches, conferences, or meetings with world leaders, but by bringing its message to ordinary citizens worldwide.
Everyone knows that Israel could have done a better Job, but isnt it time that people like yourself started pointing the finger at the real reasons for the global embrace of the Arab/Muslim/Palestinian narrative v. the Jewish/Israel narrative.
Israel screamed murder very loudly adfter the brutal killings of the Fogel family, aside from Fox news the massacre went unreported on TV except to condemn the Israeli response. The latest arms smuggling attempt by the Iranians and Palestinians went under reported and without condemnation in the media. Obama and his fancy pants Europussies condemn the Jerusalem Bus bombing without condemning or even naming the perpetrators?????
In short the westeern media globally must start comming to terms that it is waving the banner of the Arab narrative v. the Jewish narrative and in many instances is purely anti Jew and anti Israel.
Pick a bone with the NYT,Washington post BBC why must you always blame the Jews!!!!
Firstly, there is NO nation on planet earth which has clearer title to its land than Israel.Not merely because the League of Nations, the UN and others ‘granted’ Jews a ‘right’ for its rebirth, but most intrinsically, Jewish historical and biblical title goes back thousands of yrs.Yrs in which Jews have had a continual presence, and where the PA ‘people’ have only been created in the 1960′s under the godfather of modern terror,Arafat.Within these short decades, Arafat-an Egyptian, for heaven sake!-and Abbas, holding Jordanian citizenship-for heavens sake-and his people, mostly a conglomeration of Syrians, Jordanians,Egyptians have managed to gain access to Israel’s heartland.
How did they feat of magic come to pass(with the help of worldwide anti-zionists/anti-semites too) and why did Israel’s leaders allow it?
The reasons are too multifaceted to enumerate here,but the readers can access many sources on their own which tells the horrific story.
Suffice it to say, terrorized leaders have proven, without a shadow of a doubt, that terror pays.What also has been demonstrated is that the most accomplished people in the world in medicine, science, technology, economics, and most major fields, are also the absolute dumbest people when it comes to PR, a case which should ! have been so easy to prove that a grade schooler could have done so!
Not to put a too fine point on this, but besiegement has taken its toll and we will soon fight to the death, reaping its whirlwind.This is due to the above, and it is this besieged mentality which has led to delusions of appeasement, starting with, and heightened by, the Oslo Peace (Death) Accords, and every other insane ‘agreement’ which followed its incarnation.
Yeah, I agree – a satellite network would be an excellent idea. It would require a fairly sizeable investment (Israel doesn’t have the oil wealth that has funded similar vanity projects in the middle east – those channels are not and never will be profitable) so that’s one obstacle.
Over all though, I do agree that Israel has been losing the PR war and this has led to many of the problems it faces today. Perhaps a cheaper option would be to launch a heavily publicized online network though this may not have the same impact.
Israel has had a public relations problem in varying degrees for 63 years now; and will continue to have one and survive for another 63 years. Long live the Jewish State the region’s hated City on the Hill!
Many people have suspected that a state would be declared on the West Bank for many years. It is not inevitable but close to it and Israel is in a very difficult situation in exerting military control over a territory they are not exerting sovereignty over and which has uncertain status.
Try and make the best of it. On the plus side, much of the complaining the Palestinian Arabs make will be defanged in the eyes of the world. No doubt the PA’s will simply move on and agitate in exactly the same fashion for the right of return and other issues but their main goal will be seen to have been achieved in the eyes of the West and any violence emanating from a new Palestinian State will not be looked at with sympathy by the West.
Israel will have in fact been relieved of a great burden. One can argue that Israel is simply changing one burden for another but the status quo is untenable and without an end game and maybe moving on into the future, however uncertain, is preferable to guaranteed strife and hostility.
No one is forgetting that Israel is fully capable of defending itself and if there is the slightest chance of chopping away at the ostensible reasons for so much Islamic violence then any continued violence on the part of Islam in this matter will have little credibility.
The West is more pragmatic than is Islam about this matter and they are not going to hold Palestinian hands in the name of the PA’s getting every single thing they want – they just won’t. There is what is reasonable and attainable and real and there is fantasy. The West has indulged PA fantasies up to a point and one may well find other Islamic nations saying shut up already as they are not so stupid that they don’t realize that they too have suffered and are threatened by this continued strife.
One could easily argue that the thousands dead in Iraq and Afghanistan are part of the cycle of violence that has emerged from the Israeli/PA deadlock. Prepare for the worst and hope for the best and trust that the U.N. won’t push this any further than it has. Diminishing returns is a real phenomenon and the PA’s could find themselves on the outs if they get a state and push too hard for more, especially if it involves violence.
It actually makes me ill to think how much money will be given over to a state if one is declared and attains fruition but hopefully there will be strings attached involving saber rattling.
Although it is true there are elements in the West working to help the PA’s, there are also certainly other elements that are getting genuinely sick of Islamic demands for attention and respect they do nothing to earn other than by doing the equivalent of shouting and claiming things as theirs that they in reality have nothing to do with.
One has only to read comments in the middle eastern press about Islam already being some kind of guardians of democracy due to street protests to realize how unhinged this society is and how arrogant. Arrogance and oil will only get a culture so far and to date the only things emanating from the middle east have an entirely negative aspect to them.
What is even one thing that anyone can name that Islam brings to the table that makes this world a better place to live? Then think of the negative things Islam brings to the table globally and one can easily see that the PA’s and Islam in general are treading on very thin ice. No matter how left leaning liberals in colleges agitate and connive, the fact is that Afghanistan and Iraq were certain warnings to muslims to knock off the crazy stuff. Not every one runs scared like they do in Madrid and in case a Palestinian state is declared, then the public relations battle you claim Israel has lost will decidedly turn in its favor. Not every one is in love with mental cases who clock around the rock and think they’re better than every single person in the world and that that world revolves around them.
Some people are now conjecturing that the Libyan “No Fly Zone” kinetic action is a test run for what the West will use against Israel when it tries to counter mortars and rockets from the West Bank Palestinian state.
Imagine, the nearest West Bank “hamlets” on the hills overlooking Israel’s Ben Gurion airport are only some 5 miles away.
you seem to be one of the few intelligent people commenting regularly at pjmedia. i’ve always tried to point out that it is not that jews have no right to “Judea” and “Samaria” — they have roughly the same right to that land as Serbia has to Muslim Kosovo. The problem from zionist perspective is that exercising that right would doom any chance of Israel remaining a Jewish state.
palestinian rejectionism of a Jewish state in the Middle East is both more understandable and more USEFUL for the Palestinians than Israeli rejectionsm is for the Jews. This is because in this neck of the world, Pals are the losers, the one’s who were driven off their lands or left, and the longer they remain under Israeli rule, while breeding prolifically and remaining politically intransigent, the more pressure there will be for Israel to annex the West Bank and Gaza and become a non-Jewish majority state. Israeli rejectionists who insist on holding on to “Judea” and “Samaria” are ironically the biggest threat to Zionism, since such land grabbing creates facts on the ground that make a two state solution — the only way to preserve Jewish majority state in the long run — impossible. The alternative endgame proposed by the non-Kahanist Jewish right — to grab and annex as much of the West Bank as possible through settlement activity, and then somehow force Jordan to take the rest, and force Egypt to take Gaza, is a non-starter for a variety of reasons.
Indeed, Mr. Puder, anything Israel can do to break through the left-wing media static would be helpful. But it wouldn’t solve the problem. You write in this conrext, “What it lacks is the will to take action.”
There, I think, you have the real source of Israel’s problem. But not regarding satelites and media. They need their Merkavas on a live feed to Damascus. Israelis need to start downlinking bombs on Hezbollah. Get the 72 virgins to guest-host “Good Morning Gaza”. Broadcast some whupass. Solve the problem once and for all.
“All Palestinian leaders, including the current chairman of the Palestinian Liberation Organization and (disputed) president of the Palestinian Authority, Mahmoud Abbas, have refused to state their recognition of Israel as the Jewish state.”
This is all the proof you need that the Palestinians are determined to destroy Israel. There will be no “co-existing” here, only the never-ending Palestinian quest to wipe Israel off the map. And you know what? With Obama in the White House, that just might happen. The Obama administration has made no bones about the fact that it supports the Palestinians over the Israelis and the Israeli Prime Minister has been insulted by Obama on several occasions. We obviously know where Obama stands on Palestinian statehood, regardless how this effects Israel.
The Israelis could try a news channel, like Al Jazeera. But always remember that Al Jazeera is preaching to the choir. The people who watch it generally are NOT supporters of Israel and, if anything, are anti-semitic as well. Let’s not forget that Al Jazeera also has an anti-American/anti-Western agenda. So I don’t think a lot of supporters of Israel (or even potential supporters) go to Al Jazeera for their news.
Israel should make bigger inroads on the Internet. More news web sites, more political web sites, more tourism web sites, more advertising on big web sites, anything to get attention. You will be reaching a younger generation of Americans who will support Israel in the future. The people who only rely on the old TV media (like the network news) for their information probably could care less about Israel and probably wouldn’t be influenced by an Israeli news channel that would be on cable anyway. Nope, Israel should start dominating the Internet. If it can do that, it will literally reach the entire world, and quickly too.
Seems Hilary Clinton prefers Al Jazeera
Even Secretary of State Hillary Clinton was compelled recently to concede that al-Jazeera English (AJE) provides “real news” coverage and actual on-the-ground journalism, unlike its American counterparts,
Israel’s failure on the PR front; to simply communicate no more than the reality on the ground; almost amounts to treason or treasonous behaviour by its Information Department.
One of the simplest and most obvious debacles is the complete failure to expose the al Dura fraud.
The only reason this has been (partially) exposed is due to the untiring efforts of foreigners, who, one might add, have been severely hampered from presenting the truth by Israeli authorities.
I have seen such wilful disregard of the enemy’s propaganda before and it has always led to a slow but inexorable defeat.
Establishing a satellite channel is one I had not thought of but it is an absolutely brilliant idea.
Fail to communicate, and the jackboot fascist image that one’s enemies try to pin on one, begin to stick.
Satellite technology? Look at the English speaking Haaretz and JPost.
The fist one is the branch of AL Jasira,the second looks at the American Jewish bloggers and contributors for the opinion.
For the satellite tecnology one must have courage to tell the truth.
Israelis are notoriously poor communicators. Deliberate serial war loser and defence minister Ehud Barak was on Fox News last week and was pretty incoherent. It is unbelievable how poor his English skills are as he allegedly has an advanced degree from Stanford. (can this be true or is it a fraudulent claim?)
Bibi is slightly better as he was schooled in the States and understands his international audience better, but unfortunately he has proved weak and quivering in the face of President Hussein’s implacable hostility to Israel (and all other USA allies).
The terror state will be declared in September, it’s now up to Israel to put some proper leaders in place – the right should unite and stop quibbling about how many angels can dance on a matzo ball and get together, religious and secular, to save the country from this impending disaster.
A plague on France, the UK and all the other hypocrites who voted to condemn Israel’s right to build housing for her own people.
For Joseph Puder’s suggestion to be implemented, it would require a set of independent journalists, not under the discipline of a single party or historical narrative. The Jews of Israel are not unified, any more than American Jews are. There is so much embedded antisemitism here and everywhere that many successful Jews do not wish to expose, lest their assimilated status be jeopardized. I write these words with apprehension and sorrow, but that is the way it is. Still, the attempt must be undertaken and I hope that a pluralistic media outlet can be established.
I should have added that the U.S. is not necessarily a reliable ally of Israel. See this popular essay of mine: http://clarespark.com/2009/09/11/oil-politics-and-obamas-view-of-israeli-history/.
Beyond the unrecognized, embedded antisemitism here and everywhere, there is the question of national interest. I and many others stand with Israel, but in the end, Israel stands alone against every antimodern, antidemocratic state in the world.
Israel faces the insurmountable problem that a great many of those in high places and low that it is trying to persuade are – though not antisemites – shall we say, distrustful of Jews. This is learned at mother’s knee and can rarely be overcome.
Israel has a problem with getting its message out and it is this:
The leftists in America and Israel don’t give a damn about America and Israel. The leftists control the messaging from ALL the major western mass media.
America and Israel have no sense of themselves, because they are torn between trying to remain open societies and fighting against organized slander, distortion, and a virulent leftist strain trying to tear them both (and each) to shreds.
Any news outlet that Israel created to defend itself would be treated as Fox News is treated here. The truth would get out, but it would be brutalized and attacked daily from the left, relentlessly…and painted as an evil outlier in the “real news” world.
Leftism has a chokehold on America and Israel’s image. And they are squeezing the truth to death.
You know, I agree with everything you said in your post. Nevertheless, Fox has, in fact very high ratings. Sure, you say that’s “its choir” that is tuning in.
Fine. But I have the distinct impression that Fox, whether CNN, CBS, ABC, etc like it or not, does have some influence on fence-sitters and other niche groups who simply have never had the opportunity to hear those types of arguments before with the exception of Domestic Conservatism on AM radio. But pro-Israel news is really something that only Fox has brought to the fore in this country.
E.g. Beck, while at times wild and out of control, is often not, and in those moments “of clarity” (if you will), when he chooses to “teach history,” and when that history has to do with Israel, Beck is a very influential guy — sort of an updated Ross Perot if you’d like. Many people truly learn from Beck (and Fox) in those shows about Israel and the threats she endures.
I could be wrong. This is merely my opinion.
I think that your response to this is the closest to being correct, unfortunately.
I am not so sure that Israel has not done everything it can on the PR front. Always room for improvement.
Given the revulsion that much of the world has for the very idea of a Jewish state as opposed to any other, no surprise there. You could have built Israel anywhere in the middle of the ocean and that ‘issue’ would still exist.
Existential issues still revolve around the idea that if you can keep it it will be yours.
I think Israel would very much like an end. No response now except more missiles and bombs. So response is better missiles and bombs. Crappy assed war this is. Who makes better falafel?
Outside of the Middle East, there the revulsion to Israel as a Jewish state is minimal and marginalized, provided the borders of that state are roughly similar to the pre-1967 borders. It is true that more Israelis are able to accept such a compromise than Arabs are, but the fact is that you don’t get to choose your enemies. If I were Israeli I would support one final effort at negotiations, and that failing, unilaterally implement the “clinton parameters” for final status, offered at Taba in 2000. Then build a wall around those borders. Then offer to open trade and employment opportunities through any entity that emerges in west bank and gaza and is willing to accept the same. World opposition to such actions would be minimal.
‘What we have here is a failure to communicate.’
Excuse me, Mr. Puder, but what we have here is the intentional failure to acknowledge Israel’s right to exist as a Jewish state.
Throughout history there has been hardly as obvious a right as the Jewish right to the Jewish homeland.
Yes, truth should prevail over lies, but anti-Israel propaganda has been spread for so long and with such intensity, the best PR would have minimal effect over minds already predisposed against that nation.
Truth must be told and it will continue to be told for its sake only. Still Israel’s best defense lies elsewhere.
They wouldn’t need a lot of original content. Just 24/7 streaming of vile, anitsemitic broadcasts from al Jazeera, al Manar and al Aqsa (Hamas) TV. Sadly, they’d get a lot of fans who just enjoyed the programming.
Of course such a unilateral declaration would finally tell the “refugees” that they are totally screwed. Israel would not even need to give them the cash they had formerly offered. I wonder how their arab ‘hosts’ will look at that.
Anyway I do not think it needs to be a disaster. It might be the only move Abbas has left Wiki has shown that he probably cannot negotiate because he cant sell the neccessary compromises.
One response, if this is the way Abbas is determined to go would be to:
1) complete the IDF withdrawal, now near done anyway
2) consolidate the settlements they want to keep and annex them formally
3) vote yes recognizing the Palestinian state. Make a nice flowery speech to go with it.
5) Palestinians holding Israeli residency cards may be offered Israeli citizenship if they check out OK. Otherwise they are subject to deportation.
4) Explain to Abbas that as Oslo no longer applies water, tourism, transportation and trade arrangements will now need to be renegotiated. Such arrangements tied to the recognition of formal borders acceptable to the State of Israel.
5) Also any attack coming from Gaza will be considered not just as a Hamas attack but a military provocation from the Palestinian state and dealt with accordingly.
There are other implications I am sure. A declaration like this would be a despiration move. Palestinians will end up with much less than if they had negotiated.
I think an Israeli global satellite channel is an excellent idea. It should have been created years ago. It should be in english and arabic. And don’t be surprised if its biggest following grew to be in arabic, due to the muslim obsession, whether it be attraction-repulsion or envy-hatred with the Israeli “other”. Finally, israel would be able to reach beyond the world’s biased media and talk directly to viewers with reports that arabs never hear about the terrorism directed at israelis, but also about israel’s intellectual and artistic accomplishments in well written documentaries and intelligent and balanced talk shows that included israeli arabs who are not hostile to their fellow israelis unlike the hateful knesset members who represent them. It could take excerpts of the lies telecast on arab television and contrast it with the facts of what actually happened. It could show israeli films and tv series with english or arabic subtitles. There are vast numbers of arabs who don’t own computers, who are nearly or completely illiterate, but who do have access to television. I think this could be a powerful tool to contradict and undermine what is spewed on al jazeera and the other hate channels. It could start the process of re-educating the “arab street”. In the same way, in english, it could begin to re-educate the “global street”. And for those who say the internet is a more modern way to do this, then download this material there too!
Israel has this problem because too many Jews are willing to sell their race down the river. They and we also have the same problem in that we are totally unwilling to be brutal in attacking the Leftists, the subversives.
The communication system is in the hands of the Leftists. Simply take it away from them. Buy them out, even if you must pay too much. It is money very well spent. The Old Media still has power, because of all the people who get their news only from that source. Seize that power, and the Left will die, just completely disintegrate. They cannot exist without their propaganda machine. They simply cannot.
To say, in effect, that we get such a bad press because our enemies tell lies about us, or won’t accept the truth about us, or any excuse whatsoever, is just plain stupid and pathetic.
Of course the enemies of Israel will not recognise your rights or your decency. They will, in fact, do everything they can to demonise you!
The job of the PR department is to successfully counter that psychological warfare!
The emphasis is on: successfully.
The biggest problem of course, was Israel, under intense U.S. pressure, agreeing to Oslo PHONY peace agreement and all of the other PHONY peace agreements.
The Muslims fully intend to commit a Second Holocaust of the Jewish people.
By submitting to global jihad and offering to surrender BIBLICAL Jewish Land to the Palestinian Authority Muslim terrorist organization (the militarily strategic high ground of Judea and Samaria-absolutely vital to Israel’s defense), Israeli leaders made it appear that Israel does not really belong to Jews! You can’t get worse public relations than that.
Ladies and Gentlemen -
A Palestinian State would have a “Return Address” in the event things get out of hand. “States” are sometimes conquered and disappear. To Abu Mazzen, be careful what you wish for, verry careful.
Dr. Shalit