The twilight of Maariv in Israel
The Israeli daily Maariv, currently on life support, was once "the most widely read paper in the country."
Maariv Junction, which connects Begin Avenue and Yitzhak Sadeh, Carlebach and Lincoln Streets [in Tel-Aviv] is one of the best known and busiest intersections in the country. Say, “Maariv Junction” and every Israeli will know where it is. Almost all the roads in Tel-Aviv lead from Maariv Junction and to Maariv Junction.
For decades, in full grandeur, on the corner of Begin Avenue and Carlebach Street, stood the expansive building that gave the junction the name of the newspaper published within its walls, and the adjacent Carlebach Street — which bears the name of the man who founded the paper and edited it in its first years, Ezriel Carlebach. A few weeks ago, workers climbed to the roof of the Maariv Building and uprooted the giant red letters that spelled its name. Now the building stands desolate, its entrance abandoned, its windows half opened, and some of its air conditioners removed. Thus passes the glory of the world.
