Israel wages war against its own public broadcaster

Israel’s Communications Minister Shlomo Karhi has proposed a bill to privatize Israel’s public broadcaster KAN, the country’s third biggest newscasting brand.

The move has sparked significant backlash, with critics describing it as “a gift to the Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions (BDS) movement.”

BDS is a Palestinian-led movement that seeks to apply economic and political pressure on Israel to end its occupation of Palestinian territories through calls for boycotts, divestment campaigns, and sanctions against Israel.

The privatisation of the channel is significant as it would exclude Israel from the European Broadcasting Union (EBU), which only accepts applications through its members’ main public service providers.

This could inevitably bar Israel from ever participating in the Eurovision, an annual songwriting competition organized by the Union, which also happens to be an important propaganda tool for Israel.

“The song contest has long been more than just a musical event; it is a critical arena for Israeli advocacy,” said Eran Cicurel, the editor of the international news desk at KAN Reshet Bet radio.

The contest’s role in boosting Israel’s image on the world stage has been kept no secret by Israeli authorities. In 2018, Israeli singer Netta Barzilai’s win at the contest was described as “exceptional foreign relations work,” by Benjamin Netanyahu himself.

“It’s a way to assert our presence on a continent that expelled us 80 years ago and is trying to do it again today through radical left-wing organizations,” the Jerusalem Post quoted the KAN editor as saying.

“Does Karhi really want to give the radical Left in Europe this prize? Because that’s exactly what he’s doing,” he remarked according to the Israeli news website.

Why now?

The bill’s advancement comes less than a month after the Israeli state’s crackdown on Haaretz, the nation’s oldest newspaper known, on November 24.

At the time, Israel's cabinet unanimously approved a proposal by Communications Minister Shlomo Karhi to sever all government ties with Haaretz, citing claims that its coverage of Gaza undermined Israel's legitimacy and security, particularly during wartime.

While KAN and Haaretz serve different audiences and operate with varying editorial approaches, the moves against both are widely seen as a government effort to stifle critical discourse.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has been notably hostile toward KAN since its inception, reportedly opposing its establishment in 2017 as a replacement for the old public broadcasting system.

KAN was designed to be governed by an independent and diverse board, ensuring editorial independence and protecting it from government interference, unlike its predecessor.

Since then, it has become a platform for journalism that includes voices across the political spectrum, both right-wing and left-wing.

On December 10, 2024, during his testimony in his corruption trial at the Tel Aviv District Court, Netanyahu denied attempting to control the media.

However, he also lamented that “Israel used to be freer in terms of opinions in the early years of the state,” criticising the current state of Israel’s media landscape.

“Gradually, the diversity in opinions was reduced, until most editors and journalists came from the left-wing camp and shared left-wing opinions,” he said at the time.

Critics argue Netanyahu’s latest push to privatise KAN is part of a broader campaign to weaken independent media and silence dissent across the country.

“The government is leading a systematic dismantling of media outlets by intimidating anyone who dares criticize it.” Israel’s Channel 12 and Channel 13 said in a statement following the preliminary approval of the bill in November.

“This is a media coup under the cover of the war,” they wrote.