Misplaced Pages

Revision as of 19:52, 18 April 2012

Public diplomacy in Israel (also hasbara) (Template:Lang-he) refers to public relations efforts to disseminate information about Israel. The term is used by the Israeli government and its supporters to describe efforts to explain government policies and promote Israel in the face of what they consider negative press (or delegitimation) about Israel around the world. Others view hasbara as a euphemism for propaganda.

Meaning of the term

While hasbara literally means "explanation", its exact import in its current usage is debated. Gideon Meir has said that there is no "real, precise" translation of the word hasbara in English or any other language, and has characterized it as public diplomacy, an action undertaken by all governments around the world with the growing importance of what Harvard professor Joseph Nye termed soft power. Gary Rosenblatt describes it as "advocacy".

Hasbara has been described as "pro-Israel propaganda," but while "propaganda strives to highlight the positive aspects of one side of a conflict, hasbara seeks to explain actions, whether or not they are justified."

History

The early mentions of the term hasbara in English mainstream print media date from the late 1970s and describe hasbara as “overseas image-building.” According to the Washington Post, this work "is called hasbara when the purpose is to reshape public opinion abroad.” In the early 1980s, hasbara was defined as a "public relations campaign," In Newsweek it was described as “explaining.” In 1986, the New York Times reported that a program for “communicating defense goals” was started in the late 1970s, and a 1984 implementation of a “Hasbara Project” to “train foreign-service officers in communications by placing them with American companies.” Carl Spielvogel, chairman of Backer & Spielvogel, traveled to Israel to advise the government on communicating its defense goals.

The trip led to the Hasbara Project, an internship program established to train foreign-service officers in communications by placing them with American companies. Shmuel Katz's book Battleground: Fact and Fantasy in Palestine, published in 1973, was described as “an encyclopedic source-book for those involved in Israel's hasbara (public relations) effort.” In 1977, Prime Minister Menachem Begin named Katz "Adviser to the Prime Minister of Information Abroad."

In May 1992, the Jerusalem Post reported that American Jewish leaders hardly reacted to news that the Foreign Ministry's hasbara department would be eliminated as part of a sweeping reorganization of the ministry. Malcolm Hoenlein noted there had been talk of streamlining the ministry's hasbara functions for some time. He said that merging the hasbara department's functions with those of the press department did not portend any downgrading in the priority the Likud government gives to hasbara abroad. Abe Foxman, reacted similarly, saying he was "not distressed or disturbed", and noted that disseminating hasbara has always been the responsibility of every Foreign Ministry staff officer, especially those working abroad; if eliminating one department means everyone will assume greater responsibility for his or her own efforts in distributing hasbara, then he is all in favor. It also reported that personnel in foreign hasbara departments would be shifted to press departments, which is where much of the work currently done by hasbara officials properly belongs. He explained that Israel's efforts to provide hasbara abroad would focus on media communications.

In 2001, Shmuel Katz published a retrospective of Israeli hasbara efforts and said that the task of Israel's hasbara "must be tackled not by occasional sudden sallies but by a separate permanent department in the government." Sharon did increase hasbara efforts, but did not create a cabinet-level ministry for that purpose.

Also in 2001, the Israeli Foreign Affairs Ministry, the diplomatic arm of the Government of Israel, was an original co-sponsor of the Hasbara Fellowships activities of Aish HaTorah. The Jewish Agency for Israel, Department for Jewish Zionist Education, operates a campaign calle "Hasbara, Israeli Advocacy, Your Guide to the Middle East Conflict". In May 2007, the Hasbara Fellowships asserted that "Misplaced Pages is not an objective resource but rather an online encyclopedia that any one can edit. The result is a website that is in large part is controlled by 'intellectuals' who seek re-write the history of the Arab-Israeli conflict. These authors have systematically yet subtly rewritten key passages of thousands of Misplaced Pages entries to portray Israel in a negative light. You have the opportunity to stop this dangerous trend! If you are interested in joining a team of Wikipedians to make sure Israel is presented fairly and accurately, please contact director". A similar advocacy campaign on Misplaced Pages was later launched by the CAMERA in May 2008; it resulted in administrative action by the encyclopedia, and several editors were banned.

In 2002, the Israeli State Comptroller's office issued a report critical of Israel's PR efforts, "A lack of an overall strategic public relations conception and objective" and lack of coordination between the various organizations were mentioned. Funding levels are modest; the Ministry of Foreign Affairs spent about US$8.6 million on these efforts in 2002, and the Government Press Office was only budgeted at US$100,000.

In 2008, Yarden Vatikay was appointed to coordinate Israel’s domestic and foreign media policy.

In 2009, Israel's foreign ministry organized volunteers to add pro-Israeli commentary on news websites. In July 2009, it was announced that the Israeli Foreign Ministry would assemble an "internet warfare" squad to spread a pro-Israel message on various websites, with funding of 600,000 shekels (c $150,000).

A 2010 report by the Reut Institute concluded that Israel is facing a global campaign of delegitimization, and called on ministers to treat the matter as a strategic threat. The report cited anti-Israel demonstrations on university campuses, protests when Israeli athletes compete abroad, moves in Europe to boycott Israeli products and threats of arrest warrants for Israeli leaders visiting London. The Reut argued that Israel was not prepared to deal with the threat of delegitimization. The Reut report lead some people to question the hasbara's effectiveness. Hasbara Fellowships is a good laugh.

Haifa U offering students new elective in 'hasbara'

MAX SCHINDLER

7 March 2012, The Jerusalem Post

The students will participate in writing Misplaced Pages entries, publicizing hasbara (public diplomacy) talking points and confronting anti-Israel activists in online chat rooms.

The internet: Israel's new PR battlefield

NEIL LAZARUS

14 March 2012, The Times of Israel

For generations, many in the Diaspora have been frustrated by the ineffectiveness of Israeli hasbara, feeling that they could explain Israel's position better themselves. Today many supporters of Israel worldwide are becoming Digital Ambassadors. The internet is transforming the battle lines of Israel's public relations war. . . . Israel is recruiting anybody with a computer or a smart phone to help in the campaign. . . . And as the internet grows, so does the potential impact of Israeli hasbara. As Hasbara becomes a grassroots movement, the very essence of the relationship between Israel and Diaspora Jewry is being transformed. Israel's hasbara seems to be becoming more dynamic, as the Diaspora takes responsibility. Even day schools and MASA programs have been conscripted to the task.

Israel's new approach to hasbara

NATALIE MENAGED

17 April 2012, The Times of Israel

Methods

The Israel Citizens Information Council (ICIC) says its purpose is "to assist efforts to explain Israeli life from the vantage point of the average Israeli citizen. Towards that end, the ICIC enlists Israelis from all walks of life to participate in its various projects ... One of our major activities is the production of special Powerpoint presentations which we post on our website. These presentations review specific aspects and issues related to Israel and the Middle East."

Some hasbara experts study methods used by Palestinian activists and offer advice on how to respond. Describing demonstrators as "youths," for example, creates a different impression from calling them "children." They draw attention to the subtle differences of meaning between words such as demonstration and riot, terror organization and Palestinian political organization. They advise against name calling and point scoring.

Edward Said wrote that hasbara methods used during the Second Intifada included lunches and free trips for influential journalists; seminars for Jewish university students; invitations to congressmen; pamphlets and donation of money for election campaigns; telling photographers and writers what to photograph or write about; lecture and concert tours by prominent Israelis; frequent references to the Holocaust; advertisements in the newspapers attacking Arabs and praising Israel.

See also

• IDF Spokesperson's Unit
• Pallywood
• Media coverage of the Arab–Israeli conflict
• New antisemitism
• We Con the World
• 50 Cent Party -- Chinese pro-Communist internet message control.

References

1. Shabi, Rachel (January 2, 2009). "Special spin body gets media on message, says Israel". The Guardian. The word 'hasbara' means, literally, 'explanation.'" Fein, Leonard. Spinning Out Of Control, The Forward, July 19, 2002.
2. Bradley Shabi Burston (2004-05-25). "The media war Israel cannot win". Haaretz. "known by the prosaic Hebrew term 'hasbara,' ('explanation')"
3. Propaganda and mass persuasion: a historical encyclopedia, 1500 to the present By Nicholas John Cull, David Holbrook Culbert, David Welch, ABC-Clio (2003), ISBN 1576078205, page 191
4. "Policy and Propaganda", Americans for Peace Now, February 9, 2010
5. "Israel admits it has an image problem", The National, March 16, 2010
6. ^ What “Hasbara” Is Really All About. Meir, Gideon, 24 May 2005
7. Rosenblatt, Gary. ‘Hasbara’ Goes Prime Time, The Jewish Week, 12/03/2004.
8. Guttman, Nathan. "Dancing the Hasbara", Moment, August 2006.
9. Avi Hyman (September 10, 2004). "The Hasbara Hijack". Israel National News. Retrieved January 14, 2012.
10. Based on a search of nexislexis for the term “hasbara” in electronically available “Major U.S. and World Publications”, between Jan 1 1940 and Jan 1 1987
11. "Israel Lifts Prohibition On Buying Arab Land; Israel Allows Purchases of Arab Land". Washington Post. 1979-09-17.
12. "Israel Moves to Smooth Ties With U.S., Others After Golan Action". Washington Post. 1981-12-16.
13. "Numbers Game Clouds Toll in Lebanon; Israel Issues New Low Figures". Washington Post. 1982-06-18. "For several weeks now, Israel has had under way a hasbara, or public relations campaign, aimed at recuperating from the propaganda battering that the Palestine Liberation Organization, the International Committee of the Red Cross and the Western media based in Beirut inflicted on Israel's image during the early part of the war."
14. "Beginism Without Begin Today". Newsweek. 1983-09-12. "the diminutive Shamir -- he is shorter than Begin -- is known in the Jerusalem press corps as "the tiny terrorist." He is a strong believer in hasbara, Hebrew for "explaining." He believes that by explaining Israel's rationale and historical imperatives, hostile world opinion could be turned around. Hasbara could become one of Shamir's major duties. With its many problems -- and a new prime minister -- Israel can use all the friends it can get.
15. "To Help Israel Improve Public Relations". New York Times. 1986-06-06.
16. Moshe Phillips (2008-05-22). "Shmuel Katz's Legacy". israelnationalnews.com. Retrieved 2012-01-12.
17. "Adviser to Begin quits". The New York Times. 1978-01-06.
18. The Knesset's English website says Katz was "Advisor to Prime Minister on Information Policy, 1977-1978". The Hebrew website says "יועץ ראש-הממשלה להסברת חוץ" ."
19. The Jerusalem Post, May 4, 1992, American Jews quiet over publicity reform
20. Shmuel Katz (August 16, 2001). "Tinkering with "Hasbara"". Jerusalem Post.
21. "Israel Targets PR, Finally; Sharon calls for bolstering hasbara; Foreign Ministry supporting several projects here". New York Jewish Week. December 12, 2003.
23. Misplaced Pages.org
25. Pfeffer, Anshel (February 8, 2008). "New media czar lost for a message". London: The Jewish Chronicle.
26. Silverstein, Richard (January 9, 2009). "Hasbara spam alert". The Guardian.
27. Jonathan Beck (Jan 18, 2009). "Latest hasbara weapon: 'Army of bloggers'". Jerusalem Post.
28. Cnaan Liphshiz (19/01/2009). "Israel recruits 'army of bloggers' to combat anti-Zionist Web sites". Haaretz. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
29. Ynet news, 10 July 2009, Thought-police is here
30. CounterPunch, 21 July 2009, Team Twitter: Israel's Internet War
31. Barak Ravid (2010-02-12). "Think tank: Israel faces global delegitimization campaign". Haaretz. Retrieved 2012-01-12.
32. http://www.hasbara.com/
33. http://www.wujs.org.il/activist/campaigns/propaganda_devices.shtml
34. http://www.mediamonitors.net/edward37.html

External links

• Hasbara.com
• Government courses
• Israel Defense Forces Spokesperson's Office
• Israel Hasbara committee
• Israelactivism.com Aish HaTorah website
• Hasbara Israel Advocacy
• Zionism & Israel Information Center
• Hasbara Handbook - Promoting Israel on Campus
• The Israel Project
• From Hasbara to Intifada: How Israel's foreign press corps rewrote history
• Israeli Hasbara: A Nation Working Against Itself

• Public relations
• Activism
• Hebrew words and phrases
• Foreign relations of Israel
• Zionism