Will Israel get the public broadcaster it needs?

Benjamin Netanyahu WIKI COMMONS PHOTO
Benjamin Netanyahu WIKIMEDIA COMMONS

Two years ago this week, the Knesset passed the Public Broadcasting Law, laying the groundwork for the establishment of a new Israeli public broadcaster to replace the Israel Broadcasting Authority (IBA), which has been in operation, in one form or another, since 1948. But two years on, the Israeli Public Broadcasting Corporation (IPBC) that the Knesset bill envisioned has yet to hit the air, while the IBA continues to broadcast. And last week, it was revealed that the launch of IPBC may now be delayed until 2018.

This was not the first time the debut of the new public broadcaster has been pushed back. The IPBC was originally scheduled to go live last March, before the Knesset passed an amendment delaying the launch until March 2016. It was later postponed again until October 2016, before last week’s two-year adjournment.

There are plenty of possible explanations for the continuing delay. For one, the Histadrut, Israel’s powerful trade union umbrella organization, has been accused of holding up the transition over hundreds of job cuts expected in the move from the current public broadcaster to the new one. In addition, questions remain as to whether the IPBC is actually ready to make its debut. Despite CEO Eldad Koblenz’s claim that the new broadcaster is ready to go, it’s headquarters are not finished and most of the staff has yet to be hired.

Others believe that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who is also the minister of communications, is simply stalling. Indeed, Israeli leaders – on both the left and the right – have long been accused of  meddling with the public broadcaster. The leadership of the IBA, after all, has historically been dictated by the government of the day. By contrast, the 2014 Public Broadcasting Law put the power of the nascent IPBC in the hands of a 12-person independent council, with provisions for at least six females and one member of the Arab community. (The IBA is funded by a tax on all Israelis who own a TV. Needless to say, the levy is unpopular. By contrast, the IPBC is to be funded by selling ads and a pre-existing car tax.)

In recent days, prominent members of Netanyahu’s coalition have attacked the prime minister over the continuing delay. Last week, Naftali Bennet, the Jewish Home leader and education minister, said it was “designed to restrict freedom of communications, and maybe even discipline the media.” Defence Minister Avigdor Lieberman also voiced his opposition, while Finance Minister Moshe Kahalon has threatened to not approve the funds required to keep the IBA in operation. (According to one estimate, the delay could cost as much as 400 million shekels – approximately $137 million.) Netanyahu responded to his critics, saying, “The more opposition I face opening up this market to increased competition, the more I realize that I am doing the right thing,” he said.

One hopes a compromise can be reached between the prime minister and his critics. If Israel is to have a public broadcaster, then it should be reliable, efficient and independent. It seems the IBA is not that. It remains to be seen whether the IPBC can be.