The weather in Eilat was a balmy 85 degrees under cloudless skies last week, but at the 12th annual Eilat Journalists’ Conference, the temperature rose sharply as Israel’s leading scribes conducted their customary raucous debates, on and off stage

It didn’t take long to experience a dose of tribalism — taken from the title of one of the dozen panel discussions that took place during the two days I spent at the journalism parley in Eilat.

A conference representative was stationed at the entrance to each conference hall to answer questions and direct panelists and audience members. As I approached the door to the panel discussion on fake news at the Kings BC Hall at Herod’s Boutique Hotel, a representative halted me at the door: “The chareidi panel is down the corridor, in the Queen’s Hall.”

I assured her that I could distinguish between kings and queens and that I had arrived at the proper destination. A little humor always goes a long way to resolve a misunderstanding, slight as it was. But the attempt at misdirection also confirms an inherent bias that is a prelude to today’s shoddy reporting. We saw a startling example the same week, when two Israeli media outlets reported that chareidim had become violent on a tardy El Al flight, basing their initial reports on a smartphone video whose audio was subsequently doctored in the studio, and “substantiated” by two social media postings.

See political strategist Lior Chorev’s quote in section two of this article on fake news to understand how easy it is to mislead today’s lazy, biased journalists.

In all fairness, the Tel Aviv Journalists’ Association — the formal name of the group that organizes this annual conference — aims for balance. Sometimes their aim is off. The pool of journalists from which to choose is still overwhelmingly leftist, despite the inclusion of prominent panelists from Israel’s up-and-coming right-wing and pro-Netanyahu media outlets, such as Israel Hayom and Channel 20. That influence has made itself felt, and while there are still some hard-core lefties who will never change their views, you will hear in section three from liberal panelists who at least grudgingly admitted that Israel’s standing in the world has climbed a few notches during Netanyahu’s recent term.

Since science has not yet advanced sufficiently to allow me to be in more than one place at a time, I could only attend four of the twelve sessions held during my stay in Eilat. I present a condensed version of the debates here, with the titles of the presentations slightly altered for clarity in English. Let the machlokes begin!

Tribalism — Israeli style

The Issue Israelis are still debating President Reuven Rivlin’s controversial comments at the 2015 Herzliya conference, contending that Israel is home to four distinct groups — chareidim, national-religious, secular, and Arabs — whose “mutual ignorance and lack of a common language merely increase the tension, fear, hostility, and the competitiveness between them” a dynamic that Rivlin contended could be destructive.

Why it matters Even in the darkest days following the assassination of Prime Minister Rabin, no matter how vitriolic the conversation turned between the political left and right, a consensus emerged that the state must avoid a milchemet achim, or civil war, at all costs. Rivlin’s comments took on a new relevance, after Israel’s recent municipal elections, when candidates in many cities accentuated these divisions for their own political gain.

Ben Dror Yemini, political columnist, Yedioth Ahronoth

“I didn’t like what Rivlin said then and I don’t like it any more now. It’s not all black and white. Every group, including the left, right, and chareidim, has shades of gray. We all have our disagreements, but they’re legitimate disagreements. It’s damaging to label that as tribalism.”

Professor Nitsa Kasir, vice chair, The Haredi Institute for Public Affairs

“I don’t like the term because it has negative economic connotations. We’ve had tribalism here for 70 years and people aren’t going to change. What we must do is find the advantages that each group has to offer, invest in them, and develop them so they can thrive.”

Shaul Yahalom, former MK (1992–2006) from the National-Religious Party

“What Rivlin said was spot on. We do have tribes, and tribalism is one of the cornerstones of our religion. The problem starts when people draw conclusions from such categorizations, and make choices, such as ‘we’re not going to visit settlements or buy products from them,’ when in fact it was the state, in the most democratic fashion, who sent people to live there.”

Panel's Point of Friction

At one point in the debate, Tamar Asraf, spokesperson for Yesha’s Mateh Binyamin branch, squared off against Zuheir Bahlul, who resigned as a Knesset Member to protest passage of Israel’s Nationality Law

Asraf: “I’ve tried on numerous occasions to make meetings with Arab groups and have always been spurned. I challenge you to take the initiative and set up such meetings.”

Bahlul: “We will never meet with settlers for one simple reason. They’re occupying our land, living on it and controlling it.”

the moderator's candid admission

The media’s job is to fan the flames of controversy.

—Rina Matzliach

Fact or Fake? Post-Truth Politics

The Dictionary Definition Post-truth politics is a situation in which people are more likely to accept an argument based on their emotions and beliefs, rather than rely on facts.

Why It's Problematic Just Facts, a New Jersey-based research and education institute, noted that before the US midterm elections, former first lady Michelle Obama declared at a get-out-the-vote rally in Las Vegas that people don’t have to be informed in order to vote. All they need is to “be a citizen,” “have opinions,” and want “a say in what happens.” James Madison, the father of the US Constitution and primary author of the Bill of Rights, held an opposing view. He stressed that voters “must arm themselves with the power that knowledge gives” or risk producing a government that is a “farce or a tragedy or perhaps both.”

Lior Chorev, political strategist and one-time advisor to former prime minister Ehud Olmert

“Some 65% of the news that’s aired originates on social networks, and not with reporters, and no one is fact-checking any of this.”

Eitan Cabel, MK Zionist Union and chair of the Knesset Economic Affairs Committee

“I was an aide to Shimon Peres 20 years ago. You think we didn’t have political trickery back then? We had other tools and we used them. What is new is that the world of content has changed. There are too many news platforms that transform fake news into something real.”

Yaron Avraham, political reporter, Channels 12 and 13

“I don’t see this as apocalyptic. It’s good that the people sharing this stage don’t dominate the media anymore. I disagree with the notion that fake news controls us and that we can’t differentiate between fact and fake. Consumers can decide where they want to get their news from and make a judgment on whether it’s true and how to process it.”

fake scare tactics

Today, for a cost of NIS 1,000, I can send an SMS to 1,000,000 Israelis that there’s a security alert and they will all park their cars on the side of the road and scamper to the nearest shelter.

—Lior Chorev, political strategist

Israel: Pariah or Power?

The Issue Prime Minister Netanyahu insists that under his leadership, Israel’s standing in the world is better than ever. Ask him, and he will cite the US embassy move to Jerusalem, tick off a list of nations that have renewed or intensified diplomatic and economic relations (including several Sunni Muslim nations) as proof. Opponents point to a stagnant peace process, a still-boisterous BDS movement, and increasingly rough relations with US Jews as proof that Israel is still diplomatically isolated.

Why It’s Important Elections will take place in Israel no later than one year from now, and the status of Israel’s foreign relations will be a major campaign issue between the right and the left. In addition, when facing up to existential military threats as well as classical and new forms of anti-Semitism, Israel needs to know who it can count on and who it should count out.

Dr. Dror Eydar, Israel Hayom columnist and ambassador-designate to Italy

“I traveled to India with Netanyahu and saw citizens lined up on both sides of the road for miles to greet us. Why did Prime Minister Modi accord us such honor? To him, Israel is not a small, isolated country of eight million people. He views Israel as the leading representative of 2.2 billion people in the Judeo-Christian world.”

Rotem Danon, editor in chief of The Liberal, a monthly magazine

“Many of these right-wing governments, like Poland and Hungary, are anti-Semitic. They’re not friends. Trump gave us a lot with the embassy move but I consider him a temporary glitch in American democracy. Netanyahu is an elder statesman at a time when other world leaders are under siege. Bibi knows how to play this to the hilt, but it’s unlikely to last.”

Ilil Shahar, news editor, Army Radio

“There are three worldviews of Israel. One is held by Africa, South America, and Southeast Asia, who could care less about the Palestinian conflict. They’re interested in Israeli cyber, high tech, and irrigation. The second is held by the growing number of right-wing governments who are natural supporters. A third view, from more liberal countries, see Israel as becoming less democratic and less liberal. In raw numbers, we have more supporters. The issue is how to weigh the importance of each group.”

Most Heated Exchange

Moderator Arad Nir, head of Channel 2 foreign news desk

“I don’t care about the US embassy move. I’m bothered by the 60 Palestinians killed last week in Gaza. I’m bothered more by 4.5 million disenfranchised Palestinians, who we’re responsible for, and who have no capability of running their own lives.”

Dr. Dror Eydar

“It’s our land. Our forefathers are buried there. The Palestinians took it and turned it into a criminal enterprise. We’ve tried your brand of pacifism for 70 years, and none of that makes an impression on them.”

Does Kahlon Hold A Strong Hand?

The Man Moshe Kahlon is one of many coalition members sharing an uneasy relationship with Netanyahu. Kahlon, a Likud defector, formed his own party (Kulanu) before the last election, winning ten seats. He was named finance minister, and has toiled with some measure of success, to bring Israel’s sky-high apartment process down to earth.

Why He's A Threat Once Bayit Yehudi’s Naftali Bennett and Ayelet Shaked folded when Netanyahu refused to give into Bennett’s demand for the defense portfolio, all eyes in Eilat shifted to Kahlon, who at least was politically crafty enough not to point an unloaded gun at Bibi’s head. However, Kahlon has “subtly” pointed out that the current 61-member coalition is too unstable to last. Pundits have taken this a veiled threat that Kahlon can topple Bibi at any time.

Nechemia Strassler, business commentator, Ha’aretz

“Kahlon is the only coalition member who wants to advance elections now because he knows 2019 is going to be a bad year for the economy. He wants to get the elections over with as soon as possible before the news gets worse.”

Rotem Danon, editor in chief of The Liberal, a monthly magazine

“Kahlon knows how to navigate the political turf. In his first two years, he did a lot of good things, but we haven’t seen the big drop in apartment prices that he promised. He’s only polling between six to eight seats, so I don’t see him pushing for new elections.”

Liat Ron, commentator Radio Tzafon and Globes

“Kahlon is a man who cares. I remember when Israelis on the border with Hezbollah had no warning system. I was covering Kahlon in New York when he was on the phone to make sure the money was transferred to fund the system. But the [NIS] 500 million Kahlon just agreed to transfer to the south barely protects them from death. It’s nothing more than electoral bribery so that the residents don’t demonstrate with cries of ‘Bibi Go Home.’ ”

The Session's Best Quote

What should Kahlon have done if he really wanted to lower apartment prices? Buy a large metal chain, like the ones used on shipping docks, bring it to the offices of the Israel Lands Authority [which controls more than 90% of Israel’s available land], chain the entrance shut, hand out retirement packages to all the workers, and distribute the land to all of us. Prices would fall and corruption would end.

—Nechemia Strassler

(Originally featured in Mishpacha, Issue 737)