Today the war for people’s hearts and minds is not being fought on the battlefield but on the internet.
There is a virulent media campaign being waged by Palestinian supporters to delegitimize and demonize Israel. Words are the weapons being used as part of a widespread propaganda initiative manifest in movements like BDS and espoused by academics largely ignorant of the historiography and political realities of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.
It is absolutely vital that the Australian Jewish community is fully aware of the conversations on the internet and in our media about Jewish and Israel-related issues. Until today, there has been no answer to the need for an online repository of Israel and Jewish-related news, discussions, video and audio recordings that feature on Australian media channels. For this purpose JMedia Online was created.
The JMedia Online concept is to create one-stop destination for all media items focusing on Jewish and Israel-related issues that can potentially influence the public sphere. It is vital that all those who work in the interests of the Jewish community, as well as Israel advocates and activists, have ready access to a comprehensive collection of information being disseminated via Australian TV, newspapers and radio networks.
For television, we are primarily focussed on the ABC and SBS, but there needs to be monitoring of the other television networks as well. In radio, the ABC is once again a prime candidate for observation, although talkback programs on 3AW in Melbourne and 2GB in Sydney are also important because of their large audiences. JMedia also gathers links to news, articles, blogs, produced by newspapers and miscellaneous media tidbits from the internet.
To achieve this gargantuan task the aim is to assemble a group of dedicated grassroots advocates dedicated to delivering a full coverage of the Jewish and Israel related media from across Australia. At the moment content is maintained by just by two volunteers. There is a dire need for more help to maintain this vital, concentrated source of information about matters that are of interest and concern to the Jewish community in Australia.
JMedia Online needs your support. We are searching for organisations and members of our community who believe in what we are doing and are willing to help us financially to grow and develop. In addition, we need the hands-on support of every member of our community. If you ever come across a media item that you believe is relevant, please go to https://jmedia.online/contact to fill out and submit a notification form.
I hope that you find what JMedia is providing is useful and I welcome your sympathetic consideration of the value of this project.
David Schulberg
Jmedia Campaigner
