It's Not the Hasbara, It's the Reality

Daniel Greenfield
Sultan Knish
11 August '10

Hasbara or Pro-Israel PR has become the great obsession of Pro-Israel activists and the Israeli government. One article calls for Israel to spend as much effort on communicating its message, as it does on its defense budget. Another castigates the many failures of Israeli diplomats in getting their message across. Still another features Frank Luntz who has been brought to tell Israeli leaders that they need to use kinder and gentler language to win the debate. Stop saying "security" and start saying "protecting innocent life", and everything will be well. Except of course it won't. Because the problem is not in the message, it's in the reality.

No doubt Israel's PR could use some work. Like most Western countries, Israel's diplomatic corps consists of incompetents who are there as a political favor, and left wingers who are good at what they do, but hate their own country and sympathize with the enemy. Like most Western democracies confronting terrorist groups, it also suffers from allowing a plurality of opinions, which means there will be no shortage of Israeli politicians, activists and reporters who actively work on behalf of the terrorists. On top of that the personality of the average Israeli has much in common with that of the average New Yorker, while the terrorists have no shortage of Marxist academics educated abroad who know exactly how to talk to European diplomats and reporters.

But none of this is really the point, because Hasbara is not really the point. Israel is not suffering from a communications problem. It isn't losing the debate because it can't get around to explaining that terrorism is wrong. It's losing the debate because the media and Western governments don't agree that terrorism is wrong. They don't agree that Israelis shouldn't be under fire or that terrorists shouldn't be rewarded for killing people. The terrorists aren't scoring points because isn't communicating its message. The terrorists are scoring points because their core audience in Europe and in some cases America, agrees with their message.

Israel has repeatedly shot itself in the foot PR wise, but no more so than most of the countries it's trying to convey its message to, have. Because the PR really doesn't matter that much. Whether or not people take Israel's side or that of the Muslim terrorists has little to do with the PR, and a lot to do with their politics, their view of Jews and Muslims, and the legitimacy of terrorism.

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4 Thoughts on the J-Blogger Conference

Backspin/Honest Reporting

14 September 09

Hats off to Nefesh b'Nefesh for for organizing yesterday's Jewish blogger conference. Here are four thoughts on the gathering:

Blogger Unity: There's a well-meaning desire for greater unity among Jewish bloggers. But there was little consensus on what this unity would look like, or if the concept is even worth pursuing. After all, every blog is already filling a niche (or should be).

I would like to see bloggers expand their network of readers and natural allies. New bloggers need to develop their voice and establish their unique expertise.

As we all flex our creative muscles, unity will come from the ground up. We'll hopefully see more collaborative efforts and cross-promotion among bloggers.

Israel: In his keynote address, Ron Dermer, an advisor to Prime Minister Netanyahu, said hasbara efforts will place more emphasis on Jewish rights. Although Israel has demonstrated its commitment to peace with various concessions over the years, Jewish rights have not been stressed.

So when the world bristles at Israel's desire to be specifically recognized as a Jewish state, it's a sneak peek of other things hitting the fan in the coming weeks and months.

Iran: As Israel Matzav pointed out, the mullahs are networking with China and Venezuela to protect the regime from the unpleasant effects of any international sanctions. Missiles capable of hitting Europe debunk the idea that Iranian nukes are "only" Israel's problem.

The world simply still hasn't woken up to the idea that Iran is a global threat. Bloggers have to take action.

Empowerment: This year's convention placed an awful lot of well-deserved emphasis on social media, with presentations on Facebook and Twitter for beginners, which you can find at those links.

So if you have an internet connection, you can share new examples of Israeli creativity and ingenuity, debunk lies, and network with people you wouldn't otherwise have access to. You can follow up on your curiosity and expand your horizons. And you can -- in real time -- both inform and be informed.

All you have to do is do it.

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