MIDDLE EAST: Foreign reporters in lsrael are the butt of PR ministry's spoof videos

Record ID: 346237

  • Title: MIDDLE EAST: Foreign reporters in lsrael are the butt of PR ministry's spoof videos
  • Date: 4th March 2010
  • Summary: JERUSALEM (MARCH 1, 2010) (REUTERS) VARIOUS OF CHAIRMAN OF THE FOREIGN PRESS ASSOCIATION IN ISRAEL, CONNY MUS, SITTING AT DESK TYPING SOUNDBITE (English) CHAIRMAN OF THE FOREIGN PRESS ASSOCIATION IN ISRAEL, CONNY MUS, SAYING: "We are very concerned. Simply because of the fact that there is a campaign to heat the Israeli public even more than they were already against journalists by basically portraying us as being stupid, that we are responsible for the bad image Israel has abroad." MUS SITTING AT DESK TALKING TO REPORTER SOUNDBITE (English) CHAIRMAN OF THE FOREIGN PRESS ASSOCIATION IN ISRAEL, CONNY MUS, SAYING: "I don't agree that we are being portrayed as being biased, or anti-Israel, or pro-Palestinian. We are professional journalists doing our job and that is the tool we used to publicise this ridiculous campaign of the state of Israel, which in my opinion doesn't belong to a democratic state."
  • Embargoed: 19th March 2010 12:00
  • Keywords:
  • Topics: Domestic Politics
  • Reuters ID: LVAEV02SIF10QLYVF9XJTLRU5AML
  • Story Text: Foreign media coverage of Israel has been depicted as stupid and condescending in video spoofs on a new Israeli government website created to help Israel's image abroad, foreign journalists in Israel say.
    The apparent lampoon of foreign media appears to suggest that reporters working for European networks portray Israel as a backward country with only a propensity for war.
    Following the military offensive on the Gaza Strip last year, Israel is concerned that its image abroad is suffering. The website aims to advise Israelis travelling abroad on how to dispel common myths and misperceptions about their country.
    Some members of the foreign press corps in Israel see it as a heavy-handed swipe that could further tarnish the reputation of the foreign media in the eyes of the Israeli public who sees them as biased against Israel.
    "We are very concerned. Simply because of the fact that there is a campaign to heat the Israeli public even more than they were already against journalists by basically portraying us as being stupid, that we are responsible for the bad image Israel has abroad, " said Conny Muss, the Chairman of the Jerusalem-based Foreign Press Association (FPA), which includes nearly 500 members.
    "I don't agree that we are being portrayed as being biased, or anti-Israel, or pro-Palestinian. We are professional journalists doing our job and that is the tool we used to publicise this ridiculous campaign of the state of Israel, which in my opinion doesn't belong to a democratic state," he added.
    The satirical videos (at www.masbirim.co.il) do not address the issues many Israelis have with the foreign media, namely its perceived pro-Palestinian slant.
    In one short clip, a British TV reporter introduces the camel as a "typical Israeli animal, used by the Israelis to travel from place to place in the desert where they live".
    "It is the means of transport for water, merchandise and ammunition. It is even used by the Israeli cavalry," he says.
    In a second clip, a breathless anchorwoman in a French TV studio has breaking news of "the sounds of war" in Israel.
    "Our special envoys report shooting and heavy explosions across the country," she gasps, as Israel innocently celebrates its independence day with fireworks displays and fly-pasts.
    A third shows an Israeli barbecue, where a Spanish TV reporter in riding breeches informs her audience: "Most Israeli homes don't have electricity or gas, so they use ancient cooking methods, like meat roasted on charcoal".
    "Are you fed up with how we are being presented in the world?" asks a voice after each clip. Israel is misunderstood, it says. But volunteers can help correct that by being image ambassadors, countering anti-Israel prejudice.
    The website is the work of the revamped Ministry of Hasbara, a Hebrew word meaning explanation or publicity. The Ministry's title in English is the Ministry of Information and Diaspora."
    Yuli Edelstein, the Hasbara minister, told Reuters Television that the aim of the campaign is to explain everyday life in Israel and to correct its image abroad.
    "It's not a secret that the Israel's image in many countries abroad, unfortunately, leaves much to be desired. I think that as we don't have all the petro-dollars to invest in campaign as opposed to anti Israeli campaigns running all over, what we do have is wonderful Israelis and our friends all around the world that could tell the true story of Israel, that could explain that our life here, our everyday life, is not just the conflict and we are not just a piece of desert in the middle of nowhere. We are a flourishing country and flourishing economy and full of culture, universities and all the other things," Edelstein said.
    He further commented he doubted many foreign journalists would take offence.
    "I am pretty sure that the vast majority of foreign journalists have a sense of humour and even if they didn't like something about this or that promo, I can only say as an elected official that if I would get offended about every caricature presenting me in this or that way in the Israeli paper I won't make it even to, even to my sixtieth birthday," he said.
    He also noted the spoof videos were based on different types of popular television programmes, such as cooking, travel and lifestyle and had nothing to do with foreign news reporters.
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