What does the mysterious case of Prisoner X reveal about Israeli censorship?
This week we focus on Israel and the story about one prisoner that revealed multiple layers of censorship. Prisoner X was a suspected Mossad operative-turned-double agent who, in 2010, reportedly committed suicide in an Israeli jail. In cases deemed too sensitive or a threat to national security, the Israeli government can issue gag orders that prevent the media from covering the story, which is what it did in the case of Prisoner X.
But on February 12, the Australian network ABC News released a report revealing the prisoners real name - Ben Zygier – and details of his time in Israel. Grappling to contain the story, the Israeli government issued another gag order to prevent the Israeli media from citing international coverage. But with the story accessible to Israelis via social media, the order proved defunct.
To discuss what this case reveals about Israeli censorship in the age of new media, we speak with Ian Black, the Middle East editor for The Guardian; Ronen Bergman, the senior correspondent for Military and Intelligence Affairs for the Yedioth Ahronoth newspaper; Tehilla Shwartz Altshuler, the head of Media Reform project at Israel Democracy Institute; and Noam Sheizaf, a journalist who writes for +972 Magazine.
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