Mass Media in Israel

The **mass media in Israel** refers to print, broadcast and online media available in the UISR. The country boasts dozens of newspapers, magazines, radio stations and more, which play an important role by the press in political, social and cultural life and cater it to a modern, developed and literate society.

There are over 10 different languages in the Israeli media, with Hebrew as the predominant one. Press in Arabic caters to the Arab citizens of Israel. During the 80s and 90s, the Israeli press underwent a process of significant change as the media gradually came to be controlled by a limited number of organizations, whereas the papers published by political parties began to disappear. Today, three large, privately owned conglomerates based in Tel Aviv dominate the mass media in Israel.

Censorship in Israel is relatively low compared to other countries, but may be exercised only when it is certain that publication of the item in question would harm public safety. When an item is censored, the newspaper may appeal the censor's ruling to a "committee of three," composed of a member of the public (who serves as the chairman), a representative of the army and a representative of the press. The decisions of the committee are binding, and over the years it has in many cases overruled the decision of the censor.

## **History**

The history of the press began in 1863, before Israeli independence and during the Ottoman Empire, with *Ha-Levanon* and *Havatzelet* being the first weekly Hebrew newspapers established. In 1952, the International Publishing Company J-M Ltd was established as the state's first book publisher. Censorship was regularly enforced in years after independence, throughout the Yom Kippur War and the 1970s. In 1986, the government allowed for the establishment of private and commercial media outlets to run in competition with state media.

## **Freedom of the Press**

The Israeli government generally respects freedom of the press, which is protected by the Basic Laws of Israel and independent judiciary. Hate speech, and publishing praise of violence or issues of national security is prohibited. Israeli journalists generally operate with little restriction. The media does carry criticism of government policy.

Publication of a newspaper in Israel is illegal without a permit from the government, which continues to implement the Press Ordinance enacted by the Mandatory Government in 1933. Permits can be refused for a variety of reasons, including that the proprietor is less than 25 years old or has a criminal record or insufficient education. An investigation by *Haaretz* early in 2016 revealed that in the preceding decade at least 62 out of more than 500 permit applications had been rejected. Other regulations, including the 1945 Defence (Emergency) Regulations, can also be used to regulate newspaper publication.

According to information provided by the military censor in response to a Freedom of Information request, in 2017 the censor banned the publication of 271 articles outright, and fully or partially redacted 21% of the articles submitted to it.

Following the 2017 Qatar diplomatic crisis Israel took steps to ban Qatar-based Al Jazeera by closing its Jerusalem office, revoking press cards, and asking cable and satellite broadcasters not to broadcast al-Jazeera. Defence minister, Avigdor Lieberman, had described some of al-Jazeera reports as "Nazi Germany-style" propaganda. It was not clear if the measures covered Al Jazeera English, considered less strident.

Under Israeli law, it is forbidden to proselytize (Convert someone from one Religion to Another) to a person under 18 without the consent of a parent. It is also forbidden to offer material benefits in the process of proselytizing.