Israeli media has become a wartime government propaganda arm

A free and open press is essential in holding power to account, especially during times of conflict, but there is growing concern about the erosion of these principles in Israel.

Updated 12 February 2024

Coverage of the Israel-Hamas war has been a fraught exercise for many publications around the world, but perhaps none more so than in Israel itself.

Military censorship and the instability of the Netanyahu government saw Israel fall 11 places in the World Press Freedom Index in 2023. The country is also emerging as one of the world’s leading jailers of journalists, according to the New York Based Committee to Protect Journalists.

This outcome can be attributed to a multifaceted mix of journalistic self-censorship, government interference and Israel's political shift towards the right.

The war is unfolding on Israelis' screens through straightforward, unquestioning reporting of the Israeli military's official accounts, plus a daily press briefing by military spokesman Rear Admiral Daniel Hagari.

Coverage downplays critical questions that have arisen during the conflict, such as how much the ground maneuver endangers the lives of the hostages in Gaza. The deaths of thousands of Palestinian civilians in Gaza are ignored, the resultant famine, thirst, displacement and lack of medical care is notably absent, and only a few on-air voices challenge the establishment's perception.