Here's a sad consideration on the eve of Yom Ha'atzmaut, Israeli Independence Day: Hasbara (Israel advocacy) is beginning to contradict the business plan for American Jewry and for Aliyah (immigration to Israel). American Jewry's calculated over-reaction to last Sunday's "60 Minutes" story -- following on Israeli Ambassador Michael Oren's own MIS-calculated over-reaction -- is just the latest example. (I posted the interview clip yesterday, along with my own readout).
About "60 Minutes": The security barrier that now runs along the West Bank may be both effective and justified, and relatively benign for the barbarous Middle East, but its negative impact on Palestinian daily life is unmistakable. The demographic shifts among Christian communities in the West Bank and Jerusalem are complex and yet equally unmistakable.
My guess is, had Ambassador Oren known that reporter Bob Simon was going to catch him out, he might have prepared more carefully for the "60 Minutes" interview. But it was just one network show, airing the same night HBO was premiering "Veep" and AMC unleashed yet another gripping episode of "Mad Men". In other words, it's a garden-variety negative story about Israel that can be pushed down the Google ladder by a whole slew of good news, and also by whatever other bad news inevitably comes our way.
This week offered a welcome opportunity to boost Israel. And yet, rather than focusing on the infinite range of positive Israel stories, American Jewish organizations have responded by doubling down on Ambassador Oren's stumbling block.
Rather than trying to inspire confidence and move beyond the latest inevitable "bad" press, our Jewish establishment has chosen to inspire fear and resentment -- calling for a full frontal assault on CBS News. The premise seems to be that 60 Minutes needs to be censured, so that the next time Ambassador Oren won't even have to call CBS management -- they'll already be so scared, as will other media outlets -- that they won't dare to broadcast such an unfair story.
There are at least three problems with this approach. First, it won't work. Second, it will backfire by drawing further attention to the premise of the story -- that the Jewish State is causing the decline of Christians in the birthplace of Christianity. Third, galvanizing American Jewry behind such a cause will reinforce the siege mentality in our community, and bolster those who maintain that Israel's biggest problem is bad press.
And here's a bonus question: Is anti-media frenzy all just to defend beleaguered Israel from unfair attack, or is it also a way to fill an otherwise boring public agenda?
Telling young Jews that "60 Minutes" is the enemy seems like a bad way to encourage them to move to Israel. If the goal of the Aliyah movement is to bring in new Israelis who otherwise aren't considering Aliyah -- who aren't already committed Zionists -- it might help to actually improve political conditions on the ground and demonstrate there's transparency and openness to criticism here in the States -- both fair and otherwise.
But blaming CBS News? As we say on Twitter, #goodluckwiththat.
interesting post, shai! thanks for the perspective!
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