State Comptroller Eliezer Goldberg issued his semi-annual report yesterday, focusing on the issues of Israeli public relations; lack of funding to the IDF's Ground Forces; protection of public figures; women in the IDF; waste in the Israel Broadcasting Authority; and more. The Comptroller found that there is no coordination amongst the several bodies involved in explaining Israel's position abroad. "The Foreign Ministry did not prepare for a situation of extensive warfare, and the foreign correspondents were neglected," Goldberg wrote. He added that public relations efforts directed towards the West were insufficient. "This causes great damage to the country's image and harms its vital interests," he added.
Arutz-7 spoke today with Shai Bazak, former press advisor to then-Prime Minister Netanyahu and an ex-consul for Israel in the United States. Bazak said that the problem is less in the lack of effort and more in the lack of coordination between bodies. He listed the Foreign Ministry, the Prime Minister's Office, the Government Press Office, and the IDF as units that are involved in trying to explain Israel's position, but noted that each has its own grasp on what points should be emphasized. He said that there should ideally be one body, headed by the Prime Minister himself, that determines the message to be disseminated throughout the world.
Bazak agreed that the problem is also in the content of the message:
"When our Foreign Ministry people or government ministers - chiefly the left-wing ones - sit across from Palestinian spokesmen in Iowa or Paris or wherever it may be, the Arab says something like, 'Look, all we want is to live in peace on our own land, but the Jews just want to steal our land, destroy our houses, and murder our children, just like the Nazis did, etc.' And then you hear the Israeli answer - and I've seen it many times: 'It's true that we're not always right, and we haven't been perfect, and we've hurt the Palestinians here and there, but we also have some rights, and we're willing to make some concessions, but not in everything, etc...' - After all this apologetics and lack of confidence in the justness of our cause, what do you expect the typical viewer to come away with?"
Arutz-7 spoke today with Shai Bazak, former press advisor to then-Prime Minister Netanyahu and an ex-consul for Israel in the United States. Bazak said that the problem is less in the lack of effort and more in the lack of coordination between bodies. He listed the Foreign Ministry, the Prime Minister's Office, the Government Press Office, and the IDF as units that are involved in trying to explain Israel's position, but noted that each has its own grasp on what points should be emphasized. He said that there should ideally be one body, headed by the Prime Minister himself, that determines the message to be disseminated throughout the world.
Bazak agreed that the problem is also in the content of the message:
"When our Foreign Ministry people or government ministers - chiefly the left-wing ones - sit across from Palestinian spokesmen in Iowa or Paris or wherever it may be, the Arab says something like, 'Look, all we want is to live in peace on our own land, but the Jews just want to steal our land, destroy our houses, and murder our children, just like the Nazis did, etc.' And then you hear the Israeli answer - and I've seen it many times: 'It's true that we're not always right, and we haven't been perfect, and we've hurt the Palestinians here and there, but we also have some rights, and we're willing to make some concessions, but not in everything, etc...' - After all this apologetics and lack of confidence in the justness of our cause, what do you expect the typical viewer to come away with?"