Itzik, the father of Israeli soldier Amit Bunzel, who fell in Gaza, cried out this week: "Turn off the TV. The channels sit in the evening and fill us with poison against each other. So that we will have a people, I beg, to shut down the TV."
Army Radio broadcaster Idan Kevler kicked him off the air this week. The vulnerable journalist used his power in front of a bereaved father simply because he said a few words that strayed from the mainstream. Kevler apologized and went to console him, but his conduct on the air was an M.S.L. to what Itzik cried out: The Israeli media is poisoning us.
The first poison is pettiness and the rift that is still divided, as if it were not October 7. They like to say that politicians, led by Netanyahu, live on polarization and rift. But the truth is that the media as a whole not only lives on the divide – it is its architect and guardian.
The second poison is the barbarian. Ex-sits in the studios and babbles themselves and ourselves to know, when they really have no idea what's going on inside, and it's doubtful they ever were. The third poison is the spirit induced by the studios—does it strengthen or weaken? Answer yourself.
Turn off the TV. Not because you want to ignore reality, but because you have to understand what the media provides us these days, and choose it carefully.
It's not that there isn't good content on channels. There are powerful interviews, stories of heroism, interviews with bereaved parents who strengthen an entire nation, and there are also some journalists who understand the magnitude of the responsibility on their shoulders.
But all these can be consumed on social networks, in an intelligent and controlled manner, one that preserves the soul and controls the threads of sanity, and not one that stares at the screen like a puppet on a string.
For many journalists, a custom has developed in recent years - to make the interviewee show emotion, to shed a tear, a moment of breakdown. And not only from the interviewee they want to squeeze a tear, but also from us, the viewers. Therefore, the voice will be dramatic, deep and slow, the questions will echo longing and fear, and the narration that follows will convey horror and drama.
"Itai had the opportunity to interview the brigade commander under fire," wrote a reservist about a journalist covering them. What are you afraid of?' Why not ask, 'What are you proud of?' During the three and a half weeks I've been inside Gaza, I haven't experienced or felt, or even thought, the word 'fear.' Until he came with me [the journalist], and for 50 minutes he mentioned the word maybe ten times."
In the crazy reality that has caught us since October 7, we don't need soldiers breaking down in front of the camera — we need them as they fight: lions. You don't have to squeeze their emotions to the core. We need tears, but ones that won't break us, but lift us up. Tears with power, not with tender heart.
We need lioness mothers and a strong home front. Not because we are Rambo, and not for the pose, but because we have no choice. Without this, we will not be able to defeat the absolute evil that sits in the tunnels in Gaza and tricks us and our feelings.
For many journalists, a custom has developed in recent years - to make the interviewee show emotion, to shed a tear, a moment of breakdown. And not only from the interviewee they want to squeeze a tear, but also from us, the viewers. Therefore, the voice will be dramatic, deep and slow, the questions will echo longing and fear, and the narration that follows will convey horror and drama
A good word goes to the media's conduct vis-à-vis Hamas' propaganda. She doesn't dance to his tune, and she doesn't broadcast the abductee videos he produces. But this is a case that is not indicative of the rule, unfortunately. For example - the corporation, which produces countless content every day. On the app's home page, digital content about the abductees appears: "Far away", "Frightened butterfly", "At home without pistachio". What is it good for? How does this benefit the release of the abductees or the spirit of the people? This is, even if unintentionally, psychological warfare against Israeli citizens.
Therefore, there is no choice but to join the bereaved father's call: Shut down the TV. It's just not worth it. The commentators aren't worth it, the lyrical-winning ex-ones aren't worth it, the dramas aren't worth it. That's not what we need these days.
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