The Jewish Agency And Why Does Israel PR Fail?

Jerusalem, Israel ---- December 17, 2010 ...... Just a few days ago I applied for the position of VP Marketing Communications for the Jewish Agency.
Within 48 hours I was told that I that I was too late to apply. They were interviewing "finalists".

Is one ever too late to apply for a job? That is until someone is actually made an offer and signs a contract? No. It was an excuse.
Was I disappointed? Yes. Was I angry? Yes. But not for the obvious reasons.

I have been in the international public relations and public affairs business for over 20 years. In that time I was approached to create the first commercial Website back in 1995, the first Website for the Prime Minister's Office, the first English news site out of Israel and the first Website for the IDF. I successfully integrated classic PR, advertising and journalism into Web 2.0 - social media. And recently returned from Haiti assiting both the IDF and the MFA with badly needed onsite public relations.

Well, I have team experience from serving in IDF combat units and the spokesperson's unit in the IDF. The Israel Ministry of Foreign Affairs retains me to train their diplomats. And I was ready to give up far more money in a successful, private international business in digital PR, SEO, social networking and crisis communications.

I ask this question publicly to the Jewish Agency. Not because I need their money. Not because I love the Jewish Agency.

I am calling out the Jewish Agency on the candidate who does secure this position and kindly ask the public to raise the following questions.

How many years experience in international marketing and branding does that Jewish Agency professional have? How many years experience in international PR does that Jewish Agency professional have? Can you show us how that professional controls the most important medium - the Internet? What is their experience in new media, social networking, SEO, online branding, journalism, media distribution, Google Adwords and Google Adsense?

Lastly, can you show us how they have made one, major issue pertaining to Israel sparkle and shine?

Will this PR and marketing professional for the Jewish Agency work with or work against the private and successful immigration organization Nefesh B'Nefesh?

Ya see, it's not the job. It's Israel's near total lack of professionalism in conducting it's PR activities.

The Israel Ministry of Foreign Affairs has made great strides in recent years in improving their professional public affairs operations with such stars as Amir Gissin, David Saranga, Noam Katz, Yaron Gamburg, Yigal Palmor, Jonathan Peled, Arye Mekel, Ronit Ben Dor, Joel Lion, Gil Lainer, Eliaz Luf and political appointees Michael Oren, Danny Ayalon, Tal Brody, Ashley Perry and Ron Prosor.

At the IDF Avital Leibovitz and Aliza Landes makes us proud. And spokesperson for the Israel Police Micky Rosenfeld has both the smile and the soundbytes.

And then we have superstar Mark Regev at Israel Prime Minister's Office. We had mega super star Daniel Seaman at the GPO - but opps - he's gone.

But this elite public affairs team still faces massive internal and external walls. The internal walls I will not go into detail as Israel has enough problems with strategic information getting to her enemies but some basic facts do remain and need to be addressed.

Israel PR suffers from a lack of money. Lack of budget. I would think that the brave firefighters received a greater annual budget than the Israel Ministry of Foreign Affairs gets for Hasbara or PR. And we saw what limited job the firefighters did with the recent Carmel Forest fire disaster.

Israel also suffers from a lack of professional manpower. Again, I will not go into logistics. But with more money budgeted for PR manpower and operations, Israel would be able to confront the professional efforts of pro Islamic Jihad organizations such as Fenton Communications which was paid almost $400,000 to make Israel look bad on behalf of Qatar and Turkey for their "Flotilla" operation.

There is more Arab oil money than Israeli scheckels and more Arabs than there are Israelis. More representatives of Arab states in the UN, EU and the US State Department than whatever Israel has.

Well before we can answer that question, is it really a war? According to the Palestinians, they are only throwing rocks at Israel tanks.

Their public relations machine is working. And working very effectively. And most of the world public has bought it hook, line and sinker. As Palestinian terrorists attack Israeli tanks with missiles, rockets and automatic gunfire, the world witnesses Palestinian children throwing rocks!

As Palestinian terrorists pump bullets into pregnant Jewish mothers and execute Jewish babies we only see Reuters, AP and AFP images of injured Palestinian children.

Who's winning the public relations war? Syria, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Turkey, Hamas, Iran, Jihadists and the Palestinians.

We are engaged in two wars - a bloody, sweaty battle of bullets and a real-time digital media war of words.

We are losing both fronts because Israel's governmental public relations and public affairs machine is weak and ineffective.

The PR war defines public opinion, public opinion decides governmental policy and that policy decides who wins. Ultimately, public relations will decide Israel's future security. It's stature as a democracy, its economic health and its very borders.

One must take a very close, objective look at Israel's present PR efforts to understand why we have and continue to lose. Many who lead Israel's PR war are more focused on domestic Israeli public opinion than world opinion or the opinion of our enemies. Just look at some who are in contact with the international media from Jerusalem.

Who are these people? How old are they? What experience do they have in crisis communications management? Who do they consult? How effective is their coordination with other ministries? How free are they to act in real-time? Do they have the backing and logistical, financial support of Israel's Prime Minister?

Yes, we do have a handful of professional public affairs people in Jerusalem, when what is urgently required during war is a well financed and professional army of media professionals. An army that integrates and transcends the valiant efforts of the Israel Project, CAMERA, Z Street, Jerusalem Post Editor David Horovitz, Jerusalem Post columnist and Gaza Flotilla "We Con The World" video hero Caroline Glick and HonestReporting.com.

Just ask yourself one question. Is Israel's global image better today than it was a year ago?

Our enemies are smart. They don't need tanks and F-16s. All they need is a computer to upload images which will shock you. Images and soundbytes that will make you fear them more than they fear us. To create a consensus to retreat from Gaza for all of the wrong reasons.

What we do need is the immediate, urgent action of Benjamin Netanyahu who like Ariel Sharon has failed to deliver his promise of creating a professional, effective governmental PR apparatus which would be directly under his control with private, professional, crisis media logistical consultancy support.

The Americans in 1776, who were greatly outnumbered, did not walk in open formation when they entered the battlefield. They took cover from behind trees and rocks, ambushed by night and changed the rules of warfare. They were called cowards by the Brits but in the end, the creative "cowards" won the war. The British, who out of collective pride could not adapt, lost.

We don't need to display the heads of Palestinians to win this war. What we do need is the immediate, urgent action of Netanyahu and his chief advisor Ron Dermer to deliver his promise of creating a professional, effective governmental PR apparatus which would be directly under his control with private, professional, crisis media logistical consultancy support.

It is time for Islamic terrorists and the populations which support them to fear us more than we fear them. The time for Israel's "shock and awe" show has been long overdue.

So I ask the Jewish Agency, with the taxes that we pay, who have you chosen to represent the Jewish people? What is their professional PR experience? Or is this going to be just another political appointment? Are they using Google News, Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, MeetUp, Yahoo groups and YouTube?

And finally, what kind of logistical and creative support will the Jewish Agency provide to this PR professional to get the job done?

Yes. I'm angry because my children live in Israel. I'm angry because my children are in real danger.

I'm angry because the problem is not the Jewish Agency. The problem is with the Prime Minister's Office which for years has made great declarations for the need to establish a professional task force for Israel's PR. Something they never did. Something for which every Jew around the world suffers for.

Something which directly results in Jewish lives being murdered in that tiny, democratic land called Israel.

Yawn. Up to your old tricks, Joel? Israel’s problem is not the hitlerite Obama that you campaigned/voted for, like all leftists, but “the Prime Minister’s office”?

You sure you’re not James Carville’s long lost tail?

YOU are an obama-loving, kennedy-loving leftist scum. You fail to mention WHICH prime minister you are obviously so proud to have served. Do oslo ring a bell?
You supported Rabin. You supported Peres. You supported Barak. You supported Olmert. You support Labor. You would support hillary the Israel hating b—ch. Maybe that is why Benyamin wouldn’t want you anywhere near public relations for Israel. With “friends” like you, Israel doesn’t need enemies...you know, the ones you encouraged the IDF to be so much nicer to at the checkpoints?
How dare you come on this forum and bash Netanyahu?
How dare you come on this conservative forum and whine about not being given a position where you could shape leftist opinion for labor in Israel when they would have given up half of Jerusalem?
You support bringing down Netanyahu’s government and you came to the wrong place to cry in your Manischewitz, man.
Go away.
This “article” is the typical self-pitying, self-serving, arrogant rotgut that liberals generally use when they have no legitimate argument in their favor. You play the victim because in your own mind, you are so much smarter than the person they hired instead of you. It is very unbecoming and frankly, it is embarrassing.

Actually, I agree with the author. Israel IS losing the PR war and has been for at least 2 decades. And make no mistake, the PR war is important. Of course, the deck IS stacked against Israel from the gitgo, as Muslims far outnumber Jews worldwide. But PC and the colonization of the West by Muslims has made it more important for elements in the West to court and appease Muslims at the expense of Israel (and Jews in general). For a long time, Israel benefited from its David image (vs. the Arab Goliath). Now the PA looks like David to Israel’s Goliath.

Still, Jews are very creative and brilliant marketeers. Given that, you would think they would be doing better than their numbers would suggest. I have noticed, however, that Arab propaganda plays to EMOTION while the Israeli response sticks to REASON and FACTS. This may be the crux of the problem as most people are influenced more by the former than the latter.

Agree all you want. The fact remains, this is a far left character who toiled for Obama, and who served with the IDF in a leftist capacity throwing Jews out of Gaza/Judea.

You might as well have Soros posting here.

Do your research, please - and do a search for Joel Leyden.

Israel has a HUGE strike against her and no matter how much good PR they get or produce, like Israel 21C for instance, nothing they do will make any difference at all. Israel is a JEWISH state. The pope doesn’t like us. The president and the state department doesn’t like us. Most of Europe doesn’t like us. NONE of the Middle East states like us.
So no matter how much good we have done or will do for the world and humanity in general, they will never like us.
But you missed the point of this POS’s “article.” He was whining about his own self. HE is a leftist who voted for obama and would vote for hillary given the chance. He thinks Israel should be “nicer” to the palestinians and maybe they will like us more.
HE is one of the reasons the left in Israel got away with bloody murder. This article isn’t about Israel. It’s about him. Like every other leftist pos under heaven.

I voted for Obama.
I was proud to vote for the first Black American President.
I made a mistake as many had.
I was color blind!
Obama did not have one day of experience in the military!
Obama did not have one day's experience in foreign policy!

Obama was not, is not Colin Powell

As such, I will do all I can to make sure that he is not re-elected.
But please address the topic - Israel PR - and not personal attacks.
Thank you and the best of Holiday Greetings to you and your families!

Sweetheart - sorry to bust your bubble - but I am not left wing.

I voted for Netanyahu and today I am a member of Likud.
As a professional journalist I objectively judge each and every issue on it's own merit.
So please, yes do Google my name and find each and every news report where I defend Israel both in print and in uniform! ;>

Yes, that uniform. Why don’t we talk about that for a moment?

Border police, was it? Or Border Patrol?
How many Jews did *you* herd into trailer containers during your “service” to Olmert and Sharon?

And of course you weren’t “color blind” - you voted bright communist red :).

One of the main issues here is *not* Israel’s PR (or lack of it), it is how Israel can deal with its many traitors and untrustworthy scum on the left.

I served in many combat units - primary Handasa Kravit - Combat Engineers.
I also volunteered for MAGAV - anti-terror unit.
I was never part of the disengagement.

Before making biased, unsubstantiated allegations - try to do a little, just a little research! :>

Where did you serve?

Never part of the disengagement?? Then this is very strange:

http://groups.yahoo.com/group/Support_Israel/message/11180?l=1

Sharon also hinted at a timetable for a withdrawal from the Gaza Strip and said Israel would evacuate four West Bank settlements at the same time, the first time he has given an exact number. Sharon told the Maariv daily he hopes that by spring 2005, "we will be in the midst of disengagement, because disengagement is good for Israel." Sharon has said he would leave the final decision on a withdrawal to his divided Likud party.

Of course, this is your own words PR'ing for Sharon before the disengagement, doing your very leftist best.

So, you *sure* about that disengagement thing?

Good points. I would argue that the Dore Golds and Mark Regevs have never had any problem writing books and getting on all manner of TV talk shows with their point of view.

Israeli PR time on mainstream media far exceeds Palestinian exposure.

The core problem of Israeli PR is that they can never overcome the obvious unstated reality of the conflict. Any rational observer knows that Israel is far more powerful than the Palestinians. One can only conclude with their dominance and occupation of land outside their border, that it is Israel that has more power to cause change in the current status of Palestine.

Israel holds the key to resolution (note I do not say peace) of the nationality status of the Palestinians. Israel has figured out that annexing Palestine one settlement at a time creates a fact not based in law, but based in might.

Most of the world sees Israel as a bully, ya can't PR that image away no matter how you try.

IMHO, Israel should either annex Palestine and make its citizens voting Israelis or create a 3 state solution that gives them security and then pull back to Israeli borders.

The core problem of Israeli PR is that they can never overcome the obvious unstated reality of the conflict.

The reality that Israel and the Western world face comes down to two words: Islamic Jihad.

And their tactics have changed from blowing up buses and restaurants to using PR - event marketing, i.e. - Fenton Communications produced Flotilla propaganda events.

Israel now needs an advanced, well coordinated, professional social networking, Web 2.0 digital PR machine to confront this online, digital war.

Answer me first, scuzzball. Did you really think you could scuttle under a rock like that?

Now I’m gonna go dig up your history in 100-byte chunks back to before Olmert, Kadima and all that leftwing criminality :)).

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