"I can't understand what they are trying to achieve by closing the corporation. Do you want to expand discourse? Establish more media outlets. Mr. Karai, do you want to strengthen other media outlets? Everything is fine, it's legitimate, not at the expense of something that already exists. In a democracy, you don't close down media outlets to resonate your message. We have no problem with other media outlets coming in and competing with us, but don't hurt us," says, excitedly, a representative of the broadcasting corporation's employees, the political commentator of Kan 11 and Kan Network 2, this is an official policy evening led by the newly appointed Minister of Communications Shlomo Karai - whose stated goal is to shut down the Israel Broadcasting Corporation.
Yoav Krakowski began his work at the Broadcasting Authority, as a reporter on Channel 2 of Kol Israel.
In February 1999, following the death of reporter Ilan Rua in southern Lebanon, he was appointed to replace him as reporter in the north for three years.
Over the years, he presented a variety of programs on Network B.
With the closure of the Israel Broadcasting Authority, Krakowski moved here to the Israel Broadcasting Corporation, where he serves as the political commentator for Channel 2 here and as a magazine reporter for "New Friday" mainly on political-public issues and Holocaust and history issues.
In a conversation on the podcast of the Israel Press Institute, Krakowski talks about the threats of closure and the professional mental support of the employees in the difficult situation that has arisen, about the preparation of the committee and the relationship with the new management, about the next steps of the struggle and the claims for diversity and representation in the various avenues of public broadcasting.
A small part of the conversation is presented here in the article.
Listen or watch the full conversation.
Yoav Krakowski in "Tik Tok" (Walla system, photography by Reuven Castro)
"The authority was a painful place, what do you want from the corporation"
"I completely disagree with you. If you take a very long series of exposures that were only in recent times here in the news - the corporation has unequivocally established an Israeli agenda"
There is something I've been trying to understand for a month now and can't.
Where do you think Communications Minister Karai is heading?
"I think he himself is not closed about it either. Broadly speaking, I think what the government wants is to control what they can. We have seen it in all kinds of places, including Miri Regev's immortal sentence 'What is the corporation worth if you don't control it'. So now they are trying to control in it, and in the budgets he has and to share according to what is convenient. I believe Minister Karai that he is against public broadcasting because he already submitted a private bill in this spirit in 2019 - which was not promoted at the time - which is his true position. He believes in this ideologically. I know that there are divisions in his party as well It's deeply on him. Does he really know how to realize it? Not yet. In the meantime, it seems that the goal is to take most of the production budget here from him."
And what is actually the problem that the entire market will benefit from the possibility of producing good content?
The corporation will be respected and will also apply for tenders.
"The main problem is that only 5 years ago, the 350 employees of the corporation who came from the Broadcasting Authority closed our workplace for two reasons: 1: The Authority was a burdensome place and they wanted to cancel the fee 2) They wanted to transfer the budget to external productions. Accordingly, the Netanyahu government established a corporation that employs the private market in a very professional way, with record views on digital and international awards.
The corporation chooses the productions in a clean way and chooses content that will reflect the diversity of the public."
But it is hard to ignore the problematic viewing figures, and the fact that your news department - which is another part that is more watched - has difficulty leading an agenda.
"I completely disagree with you.
If you take a very long list of exposures that were only recently in the news here - the corporation has unequivocally established an Israeli agenda.
By the way, one of the people who expressed opposition to the closure of the corporation is Finance Minister Smotrich, and he said this after his recordings were revealed at Michael Shemesh's in Khan 11. So I do not accept this statement.
"Network B is the balanced current affairs station in Israel on an enormous scale. We are in a situation where they may be trying to weaken the corporation because it is strong. Look at all the Israeli media - the corporation should be an influential body and be on as many platforms as possible, because it balances the commercial and economic forces of Powerful groups in the Israeli media.
"Listen to something, the Israel Broadcasting Authority's budget was large, in the area of NIS 900 million per year, today we with a budget of NIS 600 million are doing more!
Also in the field of productions at Kan 11, also at an educational channel that became the safest home for children in 2023, also at the Makhan channel - an outstanding channel that speaks to the Arab public not only superficially but also substantively.
More in Walla!
Cross-media show of force against Karai: "Stop your plan to destroy the broadcasting corporation"
To the full article
Unexpected support.
Finance Minister Smotrich
"Since 1996, Binyamin Netanyahu has had the view that public broadcasting had to undergo a change. This change was carried out by Binyamin Netanyahu and in 2017 the Broadcasting Authority - which he did not like at all - was closed, and a successful corporation was established."
And Netanyahu doesn't know all this?
"Since 1996, Binyamin Netanyahu has had the view that public broadcasting had to undergo a change. This change was carried out by Binyamin Netanyahu, and in 2017 the Broadcasting Authority, which he did not like very much, was closed, and a successful corporation was established, which is very thin in budget, very thin in employees, but produces and brings out a lot of himself, and makes a huge contribution to the market. I am very much in favor of commercial broadcasting. The public needs entertainment and that is very important. But the corporation is a compass and you see that there is a huge viewership for its products. Both on the big screen and digitally. Every work that comes out of here 11 has a huge success in The audience.
How coordinated are you with the management and the council?
"There is one board in the corporation, one council and one management, which for the first time since its establishment are all going together. You remember what the situation was between the management and the council two years ago, right? The first is D.W.). sectors. And these figures are only because there is a successful organization here that serves the public well."
The creators' demonstration against the closure of the corporation (photo: Walla! system, Sagi Ben Nonon)
until the screen goes dark
"Our goal is to make this struggle as sterile as possible. We will not recruit the workers at the expense of working hours for the demonstrations, we will not hide the curtain and play into the hands of those who want to silence us. The struggle will be effective and bring the public to us."
And if Karai's move progresses and matures into legislation, will you darken the screen?
"We believe that our actions speak for themselves, and we will continue to excel. At the moment we do not use a screen or a microphone. We received this corporation as a deposit from the state and we treat it with reverence, and we also protect it from our need to use these tools. Our goal is To make this struggle as sterile as possible. We will not recruit the workers at the expense of working hours for the demonstrations, we will not hide the screen and play into the hands of those who want to silence us. The struggle will be effective and bring the public to us."
Last week, a support conference was held for you by the creators' organizations, which was also attended by senior officials from the commercial television bodies, mainly from Meshet.
A similar conference of the journalists' organization will be held this week.
And I want to ask the exact opposite: maybe this wall-to-wall support and mobilization that you get from the media - maybe it actually creates the opposite feeling, of a monolithic media that is being pushed around?
"We really feel that the majority of the media is behind us. Did you see what Tamar Ish Shalom and Ila Hasson said last week? What Dana Weiss said at the Friday studio? I was at a conference organized by the creators and saw all the industry executives there. Senior journalists from all over the political spectrum are coming to another conference. Even on Channel 14 There are members - led by Yoram Cohen, the CEO who was the head of news on Channel 1 - who clearly called not to harm the corporation.
It crosses channels and crosses parties.
Even in Likud I have heard that there are quite a few voices that oppose this move, but I will not get into it because I do not want to engage in political lobbying in this conversation.
"It's quite simple: the public likes the corporation, even the international audience likes it. And I think the public expresses its opinion both on the apps and on the sign. It's true that we haven't passed Keshet and Reshet - but our numbers have improved a lot since the World Cup and clearly show it. And yet, I don't Marks the ratings as the main thing. What we are talking about in public broadcasting is not making a product dependent on ratings, but a good product that has importance and public value."
Support from Channel 14
HOT was an appetizer
It was an appetizer for the people who want to shut us down and gave them fuel.
This is not the time to get involved in this fight.
By the way, the law fully backs us up in this matter, just read the law."
There was one media organization that did not mobilize to help you.
Last week it was published in Vala!
Barangay about HOT's move to convince the Minister of Communications to eliminate the necessity of paying for your VOD content.
"I would be happy that these fights - which may have a place - at this point in time, a collegiality will be projected towards us that says, 'OK, we will carry out this fight after the place is on its feet.' This. By the way, the law fully backs us up in this matter, just read the law."
You have already gone through a similar process with the closure of the Broadcasting Authority.
Describe to me your personal feeling these days.
"The latest threats keep me awake. It's definitely post-trauma. There are people here who have gone through similar things at Channel 11 and other places. Half of the local employees are from the Broadcasting Authority. You see, we lived for 10 years in 2007-2017 under a question mark. Reform, not reform, reform signed that didn't materialize - and then the Lands Committee which led to the closure. And people didn't sleep at night. Half of the employees of the Broadcasting Authority found themselves at home, some of them my age, and some still haven't found a job. Do you understand how anxiety-provoking this is? People pay mortgages or have to pay rent , how can such a thing be done? At the time, the Broadcasting Authority was said to be ineffective. Here, no one claims that at all. The place is thin, and people come with creative joy. This is a true alarm. Unequivocal. You knew what, OK, they don't like the product? Think about the 950 employees and their families, and thousands more families in the second and third round of the productions."
What is the chance that in the end it will end in some kind of compromise?
"The corporation is so thin that any damage to it will be a real damage to the quality of the product."
Barangay
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