Israeli media not beating drum of war like past

Mehdi Shakibayi (QUDSNA): On the eve of the Gaza 22-day war in2009, all Zionist media were struggling in unison to provide their army the necessary excuses for its carnage in Gaza. Maariv, Yedioth Aharonot, Haaretz, Jerusalem Post, army radios, Voice of Israel, Channel 2, Channel 7 and Channel 10 were all beating drum of war and bloodshed in Gaza.

The Israeli media also fought hard to prevent the release of a report by a UN fact-finding mission led by Richard Goldstone.

In the new aggression of the Zionist regime against Gaza however the media has been pursuing a passive attitude. Save Israel today, army radio and channel 7 which keep close ties with the ruling party of the Benjamin Netanyahu in Tel Aviv, the rest of Israeli media rather than beating the drum of war have been pushing the Israeli public opinion to call for ceasefire with the combatant Palestinian groups.

Reports published or aired in the media in the past few days well indicate that they wish to say war is no longer a solution for Israel. These reports were quoting Netanyahu's rivals calling for an end to the aggression.

The shift of idea is partly rooted in the Israeli internal problems in the past year. Maariv, Yedioth Aharonot, Haaretz, and Jerusalem Post dailies alongside TV channels 2 and 10 were pushed to the brink by an internal Israeli economic crisis that still lingers. They are also licking the wounds of a censorship law that prohibited any criticism of the government at least for the moment.

In a word, the fourth pillar of democracy has avoided showing the same burgeon it once showed during the 22-day carnage in Gaza largely due to the impact of economic crises and the ruling party's handling of the internal affairs that angered many within the Zionist community.