In a preliminary analysis of newspaper coverage from the first two days of the military operation in Gaza it appears that once again, as in the Second Lebanon War, the media has been banging the drums of war, presenting what appear to be Israel’s military achievements with enthusiasm and euphoria.  Keshev’s investigation shows that newspapers have excitedly given prominence to justifications for the operation and downplayed the enormous damage that has been inflicted on civilians. The military operations have been described euphorically as “direct hits” on centers of terror while Palestinian casualties, aside from women and children, have been prominently depicted, using editorial devices, as terror activists, without corroboration for this allegation in the reporting.

In the first two days of the fighting few criticisms were voiced about the outbreak of hostilities and these were usually relegated to the opinion columns.  Coverage from the first two days of the fighting included racist incitement against Arabs and suggestions that the threat posed to the state by the Arab population in Israel has intensified.  

At the same time, Keshev has also found that the newspapers have learned at least one important lesson from the Second Lebanon War.  Coverage of the earlier conflict gave the impression that the war had clear objectives and that it would end only when those objectives were completely achieved. This time, the press warned against getting carried away with unrealistic objectives and discussed the point at which it would be advisable for Israel to end the military campaign.

Keshev, which consistently monitors Israeli media coverage, hopes that these preliminary findings will provoke a discussion among the public and in the media about the media’s conduct during the current confrontation.

The Executive Director of Keshev, Yizhar Be’er, said: “During the Second Lebanon War the media refrained from presenting critical points of view and alternatives that could have argued against the mistakes made by the leaders.  It is not too soon to demand that editors and managers, reporters and analysts in the Israel media uphold their professional and civic responsibilities, lest they repeat the failures in the coverage of the last war, with all their ramifications for the well-being and strength of Israeli society”.

For more information:

Yizhar Be’er, Executive Director

Tel. 050-5317531 or 02-6221126