Pay attention—we’re under an aggressive campaign. Last weekend, Channels 11, 12, and 13 launched a coordinated lovefest for Gadi Eisenkot. Twenty-five minutes on Channel 12, 20 minutes on taxpayer-funded Kan 11, and another 20 minutes on Channel 13. A free campaign across three channels in Friday evening prime time.
2+Essentially, Yoav Horowitz is using the old payment method: offer a “peek behind closed doors,” some gossip and “exclusive scoops,” and get a studio tour for your candidate in return. And that’s the deal—trash Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and they won’t ask you a single tough ideological question.
The talking points? Ready for the ballot box. As Yoav said in one of the interviews, “a prime minister at quarter capacity.” Quarter capacity. Even Netanyahu’s rivals wouldn’t claim he works little. But why push back when you can deliver a message? And it doesn’t end there. After explaining what’s wrong with Netanyahu, it was time to explain what’s so wonderful about Eisenkot. Of course nothing ideological—everything around it.
2+The statement “Gadi has sound judgment and commanding leadership” shows this isn’t an interview but a public service announcement. Tough questions? Confronting his positions? Trying to push him out of his comfort zone? Not really. Instead of hard-hitting journalism we got a comfortable platform to showcase the candidate. And then comes the standard line: “Netanyahu is afraid of Gadi.”
Political graveyards are full of candidates the studios already declared Netanyahu feared. Yoav Horowitz left Netanyahu’s office seven years ago. Years during which he stayed silent during the Kaplan protests. He knows full well that all his former colleagues were dragged into interrogation rooms using illegal methods to question them. And he still chooses to protect the system in order to market Eisenkot.
2+The channels that fight all year over exclusives and breaking news turned into cute, non-biting lapdogs. The questions were identical. Tell us, who dictated them? So here we are—instead of hard-hitting journalism we got Gadi Eisenkot’s campaign staff.