Israel’s PR - Cont.

I have been decrying the state of Israel's PR for a very long time (see, for example, this article , and this article).

A letter I received from an Australian reader, Dr David Bornstein, highlights the latest in a series of many opportunities missed by pro-Israel advocates. Dr Bornstein writes:

With the controlled explosion of the 600kg-device captured by the IDF last week, Israel wasted another opportunity for positive media attention from the world.

All we saw was a 10 sec bite of the explosion itself. No real lasting impact.
TV loves visual images, and what can surpass explosions?

Israel should be inviting the world press to each and every controlled explosion of every device captured. Let journalists get as close as they want before the detonation, to show the public the magnitude of the charge, and then withdraw for the explosion itself. In the meantime, Netanyahu, Gissin or Dore Gold could have been in front of the unexploded device explaining precisely what Israel is up against, and why the army has to remain in the Judea and Samaria.

It is vital that the world be made to see that the problem is militant Islam, and the Palestinian Arabs in particular. Everything else is a sideshow. Israel must also invite foreign journalists into the hot areas exactly, as the
Palestinian Arabs do, and it is vital that Israel provide Jewish film crews and studio backup for foreign correspondents. The Palestinians do this all the time, and so far with devastatingly effective results.

The press is frustrated with Israel, and so even if they start out “neutral”, they soon hammer the Palestinian line because of the assistance received from the PA. This unfortunate situation is compounded by the fact that video clips coming from the Palestinian side are biassed in the extreme. Arab film crews
will not capture anything prejudicial to “their” side, such as their own people celebrating an attack. Similarly, Palestinian video clips never show the Arabs shooting at troops, only Israeli "aggression". Even now, when metal workshops are destroyed, you do not really see or hear about the rockets that were being produced in these facilities, you just see destroyed buildings and what appears to be damaged machine tools.

If you have any contacts with Israeli authorities, please pass this message on. Perhaps we should also start a letter writing campaign to the Israeli government and consular officials.

I fully support Dr Bornstein’s view and call for action. As he advises, I will pass this letter on to the Israeli legation in Ottawa, and I request that the US readers pass it on to the Israeli legations in their country. I find the Israeli inaction on the PR front to be a major source of frustration, and one that will ultimately undermine Israel’s military efforts.

Ink saves blood, so please do your share in contacting the Israeli authorities.



Contributed by Joseph Alexander Norland, with thanks to Dr Bornstein.