Now is not the time for Hasbara
The current moment of conflict requires a different type of public diplomacy
(First published on the Times of Israel)
Now is not the time for Hasbara. Hasbara (from the Hebrew word ‘to explain’) was developed as a public communications strategy to provide the Israeli government room to root out terrorist infrastructure before international condemnation forced its hand to stop military operations. The Hasbara paradigm assumes that if we only ‘explain’ the situation to international publics they will grant the government freedom to act. It does not require anything from the larger international community other than supporting (or at least not stopping) retaliatory Israeli government actions meant to create deterrence.
The existence of hundreds of hostages, coupled with the shattered trust much of the country has in our government, has made today’s situation more complex than any we have faced since 1948.
First, the situation does not require retaliation, but rescue. This will not be rockets and airstrikes. This will be a full on ground invasion.
Second, the perception of government failure to prevent this atrocity and rescue its victims and support reservists rushing to the front has created a vacuum Israeli civil society has inspiringly stepped up to fill. To continue this effort, we will need the international community to support civil society – more so than the government – both morally and financially.
Israelis cannot do it alone: we simply do not have the financial resources or the material. To succeed in the campaign to return our hostages and secure our civilians we will need non-Israelis to do more than understand. We will need them to take action alongside us. To join us to overcome nearly insurmountable odds to bring our loved ones back alive. For this we will need a new public diplomacy paradigm wherein we Enlist to action (Hafala) as opposed to Explain to them (Hasbara).
A Hafala public diplomacy paradigm should set as its aims to enable Israel to bury its dead, heal its wounded, and prepare for the long struggle to return captives to their families. In that order. Each messaging area needs to include a clear call to action for the international community.
Practically, I recommend focusing our efforts on:
Comforting the mourners
Messaging: Share stories of grief, and public support for families who lost loved ones
Action: Rally communities to aid families in their time of need by creating public foundations dedicated to supporting their needs and rebuilding the affected communities
Supporting the survivors
Messaging: Profile those victims recuperating from attacks, and highlight the medical teams working tirelessly to save lives
Action: Raise funds and provide expertise to ensure the full recovery of the wounded, and to support the rest and recuperation of medical teams after the intensity of the event
Demanding return of captives
Messaging: Solidarity as mothers and fathers, sisters and brothers, with those whose loved ones have been kidnapped and stating openly and without hesitation that we will not rest until their loved ones are back safely.
Action: Legal and civil cases on all known accomplices of Hamas, seizure of assets, international NGO condemnation and commitment to raising the return of the kidnapped to their top emergency priority
Strengthening Civil Society
Messaging: Acknowledge the government’s shortcomings and celebrate the resilience of the Israeli people to fill the gaps
Action: Raise and direct funds from international communities to vetted and well-run NGOs who can sustain civil society efforts
Timing is critical in the face of international attention spans and media cycles. Phased messaging – prioritizing key themes at strategic intervals based on monitoring the media cycle for resonance – will ensure a sustained focus by the international community to support Israeli society to honor the dead, heal the wounded, and secure the release of captives.
Tactically, by targeting messages alongside calls to action, by building on action to enlist further commitment, we will shift our own mindset from Hasbara to Hafala, from asking the international support for passive support to engage them in helping us build a better future out of the destruction.