Last week, OMedia attended a conference in Tel Aviv where representatives of the army spokesman’s office, the foreign ministry, and the media met to discuss the future of Israeli information and hasbara on the internet. Speakers were remarkably candid and not always in agreement with each other. Among the questions raised:
* Is Israel doing enough to creatively use the internet with blogs, forums, video, RSS feeds, etc.?
* Should Israel create more databases for journalists and academics who would otherwise turn to Palestinian and UN sources?
* How much detail is necessary and how much is overkill?
* Are Israeli sites available in enough foreign languages?
* Should the MFA, IDF and intelligence services join forces online to present Israel’s story to the world?
* What lessons can be learned from the way the Palestinians use the web?
The gathering was organized by the Netvision Institute for Internet Research at Tel Aviv University. Read OMedia’s whole article and post your comments below.
(Hat tip: Elder of Ziyon)
UPDATE Feb. 19: Bahraini blogger Mohammed Al Maskati praises the Israeli government’s handling of Mughrabi Gate controversy:
On the other side, I must admit the way the Israeli government handled the issue was absolutely superb and transparent. 24/7 Webcams were put in place to live broadcast to the world all reconstruction/ digging/excavation action on the disputed construction land (Source) the Jerusalem’s ultra-Orthodox Jewish mayor on Monday ordered a review of construction outside a holy site (Source)
