WATCH: ELAL, Israel’s national airline, now part of state PR efforts

Mairav Zonszein By Mairav Zonszein June 28, 2012 | Edit

You know a country is in serious trouble when it decides to have its national airline’s pilots and flight attendants doing its Hasbara (PR) work for them. El Al “Ambassadors” will now be “at the forefront of Israeli diplomacy in New York, New Jersey, Connecticut, Los Angeles and Toronto,” as part of a joint initiative with the Jewish Agency for Israel, the Foreign Ministry and Stand With US. The latter group is an American organization which is considered “pro-Israel” but certainly does not represent me and what I think the countries’ interest are.

According to the Israel consulate website in New York:

Each presentation will include an introductory movie about Israel’s success in non-political related fields (such as science, culture, agriculture, assistance in humanitarian crisises around the world and medical advancements), the Ambassadors personal stories, and more.

Talk about whitewashing Israel’s occupation. I think this project calls for a new term: “Air-washing?” “Sky-washing?”

For the first time in Israeli history a private sector corporation has decided to take on an active roll in Israeli Hasbara.

And this is something to celebrate?

[youtube]http://youtu.be/8P5yGS7J6bs[/youtube]

 

Related:
Hasbara: why does the world fail to understand us? 

Mairav Zonszein

Mairav Zonszein is a journalist and editor who writes about Israel-Palestine and its role in U.S. politics. Her publications include The Guardian, The New York Times, The Washington Post, The New York Review of Books, The Intercept, VICE News, Foreign Policy and many more.

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