Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu spent a total of six hours this week talking to senior Israeli journalists. He was trying to present them with an unmediated account of his achievements and worldview. On Aug. 8, he met with the leading journalists from Israeli public radio and TV Channel 1, components of the Israel Broadcasting Authority, and on Aug. 10, he met with senior journalists from Army Radio. Both meetings took place in his Jerusalem office and lasted three hours each, much longer than usual. Netanyahu’s staff claims that he plans to continue holding such meetings, which appear to be part of some kind of media blitz.
Netanyahu has given very few interviews to traditional media over the past few years. Social media has become his platform of choice for conveying messages to the public in an effective way. As a result, his return to traditional media has evoked quite a bit of interest and conjecture as to his motives. Above all, it is rumored that he wants to initiate an unmediated connection with journalists at this particular time because the investigation into his personal dealings is progressing.
