Member of Knesset Nachman Shai wrote a letter to Vice President Tony Maddox, in charge of CNN International, Monday, in response to information he had received that the first local layoffs made by the cable news network were three Israeli citizens with journalistic roles, while non-Israelis, including Palestinian Authority office staff were not fired.
Demanding equality and the application of professional journalistic principles in the network's work in Israel, the former Israel Defense Forces spokesman wrote, "Exclusion ofIsraeli workersmay causea negativetrendtowards theinternational network'scoverage ofIsrael. As someoneinvolved in mediain the past, including arole as a memberof Knesset,I seewith great concernthedecision ofCNN, whichlooks like discrimination againstIsraeli civiliansin employmentversus non-Israelis."