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Why the Gaza War Looked Different on Israeli TV than It Did on CNN

(Tablet) Yonit Levi and Udi Segal - During the 50 days of war in Gaza, Israelis and the rest of the world were watching two completely different wars. In Israel, the country was under attack and it was all happening on live television: The camera leaped between different cities being targeted - showing the rocket's trajectory from the Gazan border, the subsequent sirens, and civilians taking shelter in Israel and, often, the rocket's interception by the Iron Dome anti-missile system several minutes later - moments of deep anxiety, followed by relief, over and over, throughout the day. Israeli networks co-operating with the IDF's Home Front Command aired banners clearly stating which region was under attack, and in some areas where the sirens weren't loud enough, this turned out to be life-saving information. The story Israelis saw on television was this: We left Gaza, dismantled all settlements, completely retreated to the 1967 lines, and the outcome was that Hamas took over Gaza and we got rockets, which at any moment might strike our homes. The world, in contrast, heard the story of Israel bombing innocent civilians. Israel sees a dark reality in which a piece of land that was evacuated and turned over to the Palestinians became a haven for terrorists who shot missiles into homes and dug tunnels into communities in order to launch further attacks. Good luck to anyone trying to convince Israelis to withdraw again. Yonit Levi is anchor of the evening news on Israel Channel 2, where Udi Segal is senior diplomatic correspondent.
2014-10-08 00:00:00
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