For decades, the appearance of Israeli speakers in Arab media was the stuff of science fiction. To the Arab mainstream press, Israel was a monolithic, distant entity, “the Zionist enemy”, whose voice was permitted only through the rigid filters of local propaganda and censorship. However, the last three decades have triggered a dramatic revolution, transforming Israelis from unseen adversaries into regular, and often fiery, participants in Arab public discourse.

Cracking the Taboo: The Al Jazeera Revolution

The historic turning point arrived in the mid-1990s with the launch of the Qatari network, Al Jazeera. Under its then-audacious slogan, “The Opinion and the Other Opinion,” the network stunned the Arab world by broadcasting Israeli politicians, military officials, and academics live on air.

For the first time, Arab viewers heard Hebrew, or Arabic with an Israeli accent, directly on their screens, unfiltered. While the move sparked immense public outrage and accusations........

© The Times of Israel (Blogs)