Strategic Rituals of Loyalty

When Israeli Journalists Face Digital Hate

Bibliographic Data

ID22010963
AuthorsAyala Panievsky (0000-0001-9296-7670, University of Cambridge, corresponding author)
Year2023
Volume11
Issue10
Pages1940-1961
Publication date2023-11-26
Peer ReviewedYes
Open AccessYes
TypeARTICLE
VenueDigital Journalism (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 2167-0811 • E-ISSN: 2167-082X
PublisherInforma UK Limited (PUBLISHER • GB)
DOI10.1080/21670811.2022.2118144
OpenAlexW4297089373
LanguageEN
Citations received8
References cited47

This article examines how and why Israeli journalists use their military service as a shield in response to online violence and digital hate. This practice, termed here the military-as-alibi strategy, is highly consequential. First, it excludes Israeli citizens who are exempt from military service (mostly Palestinian citizens of Israel and ultra-orthodox Jews). Second, it affirms the presumption that “good journalists” are not to be measured by their reporting, but rather by external loyalty tests that allegedly demonstrate their commitment to the national cause. Drawing on analyses of interviews with 20 Israeli journalists, media coverage and social media content, this article frames the military-as-alibi strategy within the local context of a militarised society, but also as part of journalists’ global struggle to win the hearts of their audiences in challenging times. Building on Tuchman (1972), the article labels journalists’ references to their military backgrounds as a strategic ritual of loyalty. The article proposes an alternative strategy to counter anti-press attacks: if journalism is indeed a public good (Pickard 2019), then “good journalism” should be considered “good citizenship”. This approach could free journalists from surrendering to nationalist loyalty tests, and lay better foundations for journalists–audiences relationships in the future

Business · Internet privacy · Loyalty · Political science · Public relations · Social science · Sociology · Computer Science · Hate Speech and Cyberbullying Detection · Law · Media Studies and Communication · Social Media and Politics

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