“For media, bad news is good news,
so bad Jews are excellent news!,” said Yigal Palmor, the spokesman for the
Ministry of Foreign Affairs. The Jewish people and the state of Israel have had
their fair share of PR and newspaper headlines over the years.
On June 25th, at the
first ever Jewish Media Summit in Jerusalem, Israel, we were allowed an inside
look into Israel in the media by some of the leading Jewish journalists in our
world today. Palmor spoke on a panel about the issues of Israel in the media.
His view was fresh and optimistic, and he approached the age-old problem with
humor and insight.
Palmor expressed that Israel’s
image problem, “should not be seen as a tragedy but an opportunity.” This
specifically resonated with me. Palmor also expressed that Israel’s ever
present appearance in the news is not necessarily a bad thing, we just have to
find the right approach, He said, “how many people know the prime minister of
Sweden?” A lot of what people hear about Israel is myth and stories and the
only way to counteract that without losing the media’s interest is to show
what’s real. According to Palmor eighty percent of Jews have never even been to
Israel. This is their opportunity! Palmor expressed the importance for those
people to go to Israel and learn the truth so we can fight the media with
passion and facts.
In essence what Palmor was saying
is that having press isn’t bad, after all people know about us. Instead of
dwelling on the bad things that are being said about Jews and Israel use it as
an opportunity to engage yourself, immerse yourself in culture and religion and
fight back with the truth.
This particular view resonates with
me in terms of our Israel trip in the sense that when the goings are rough, you
should not give up. Take a step back and approach the situation with a fresh
mind and know that it is just an opportunity, you just have to figure out how.
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