Reactions of disappointed listeners were collected today in Arutz-7's weekly B'Sheva newspaper. A sampling:
"I no longer turn on the radio at all, but sometimes I feel that I simply have to hear Arutz-7, so I ask the children to get me on to the internet, because I don't know how to do it. My challah dough doesn't come out right on Friday without Adir Zik... I've lost my oxygen." - Sarah Hatab, Moshav Berechya, east of Ashkelon
"At first, I couldn't understand what was going on: How could it be that a government based on right-wing parties dares to make a decision to prevent Arutz-7 from existing financially [a reference to the decision to support legislation that would prevent advertising on unlicensed stations]? How could it be that the government does not present legislation that would somehow enable Arutz-7 to broadcast? ..." - Aryeh Segal, Jerusalem
"This station was the soul of my life. I wake up in the morning and I love hearing the pleasant voice of Rabbi Begun, and then Rabbi Shwietza and the daily Mishna, then 'Yesh Sho'alim' [with Rabbi Melamed], then the clean Hebrew music, not full of garbage like the other stations. This was my lifeblood, and now I have to keep switching stations, hearing all the junk, and turning it off... My only hope is that just like Bilam's curse, this curse too will become a blessing." - Osnat Vashdi, Karnei Shomron
"The news on Arutz-7 is more accurate, and the first to know of attacks in the territories. The news announcers are sensitive and humane. I'm also very interested in all the programs on Jewish tradition, event though I'm not religious." - Irena Sandrovich, Haifa
"On Election Day, I served as Likud campaign coordinator in Bnei Brak... Many people refused my entreaties to vote for the Likud, and when I asked why, many told me that the reason is the closure of Arutz-7. Over and over I heard, in various ways, that the Likud government caused them great disappointment with the harassment of the station, leading to its closure... Some said that the Likud's silence all these years of the campaign against Arutz-7 shows that it consents to its closure, and that therefore the Likud can no longer be considered a nationalist movement. Others said that the Likud's lack of action to legalize Arutz-7 shows that it does not know how to rule, and that therefore it might be better to return the Likud to the opposition where it might be able to serve a purpose." - Mordechai Shechori, Bnei Brak
"We are attached to the station especially on Fridays, when we're all home. My husband and I work in the kitchen and listen to Arutz-7. All the preparations for Shabbat are accompanied by the special atmosphere that Arutz-7 gives. The children come home and hear the songs for Shabbat and the [Sabbath eve] programs. This is an atmosphere that no other station has." - Efrat Vanchotzker, Gan-Or
WorldNetDaily.com quoted an Israeli woman named Janet Kasten Friedman as saying that Arutz-7 was the "one oasis of sanity on the airwaves." She said that Arutz-7 is a stark contrast from Israeli state radio and the Israeli media, both Hebrew and English, which are "fueled by Labor party ideologues and 'intellectuals' who repeat the great lie 'land for peace' like a mantra." About Arutz-7, she said,
"The music is in Hebrew; the speech is cultured, talking rather than yelling; the programs include many Bible and Jewish Law classes; the reporters time their questions with enough time for the interviewee to answer; and they interview [right-wing] people... They also interview left wing speakers, asking them the hard questions that state radio ignores."
"I no longer turn on the radio at all, but sometimes I feel that I simply have to hear Arutz-7, so I ask the children to get me on to the internet, because I don't know how to do it. My challah dough doesn't come out right on Friday without Adir Zik... I've lost my oxygen." - Sarah Hatab, Moshav Berechya, east of Ashkelon
"At first, I couldn't understand what was going on: How could it be that a government based on right-wing parties dares to make a decision to prevent Arutz-7 from existing financially [a reference to the decision to support legislation that would prevent advertising on unlicensed stations]? How could it be that the government does not present legislation that would somehow enable Arutz-7 to broadcast? ..." - Aryeh Segal, Jerusalem
"This station was the soul of my life. I wake up in the morning and I love hearing the pleasant voice of Rabbi Begun, and then Rabbi Shwietza and the daily Mishna, then 'Yesh Sho'alim' [with Rabbi Melamed], then the clean Hebrew music, not full of garbage like the other stations. This was my lifeblood, and now I have to keep switching stations, hearing all the junk, and turning it off... My only hope is that just like Bilam's curse, this curse too will become a blessing." - Osnat Vashdi, Karnei Shomron
"The news on Arutz-7 is more accurate, and the first to know of attacks in the territories. The news announcers are sensitive and humane. I'm also very interested in all the programs on Jewish tradition, event though I'm not religious." - Irena Sandrovich, Haifa
"On Election Day, I served as Likud campaign coordinator in Bnei Brak... Many people refused my entreaties to vote for the Likud, and when I asked why, many told me that the reason is the closure of Arutz-7. Over and over I heard, in various ways, that the Likud government caused them great disappointment with the harassment of the station, leading to its closure... Some said that the Likud's silence all these years of the campaign against Arutz-7 shows that it consents to its closure, and that therefore the Likud can no longer be considered a nationalist movement. Others said that the Likud's lack of action to legalize Arutz-7 shows that it does not know how to rule, and that therefore it might be better to return the Likud to the opposition where it might be able to serve a purpose." - Mordechai Shechori, Bnei Brak
"We are attached to the station especially on Fridays, when we're all home. My husband and I work in the kitchen and listen to Arutz-7. All the preparations for Shabbat are accompanied by the special atmosphere that Arutz-7 gives. The children come home and hear the songs for Shabbat and the [Sabbath eve] programs. This is an atmosphere that no other station has." - Efrat Vanchotzker, Gan-Or
WorldNetDaily.com quoted an Israeli woman named Janet Kasten Friedman as saying that Arutz-7 was the "one oasis of sanity on the airwaves." She said that Arutz-7 is a stark contrast from Israeli state radio and the Israeli media, both Hebrew and English, which are "fueled by Labor party ideologues and 'intellectuals' who repeat the great lie 'land for peace' like a mantra." About Arutz-7, she said,
"The music is in Hebrew; the speech is cultured, talking rather than yelling; the programs include many Bible and Jewish Law classes; the reporters time their questions with enough time for the interviewee to answer; and they interview [right-wing] people... They also interview left wing speakers, asking them the hard questions that state radio ignores."