The slander of media personality Rina Matzliach, host of the "Ulpan Shishi" program on Channel 12, against the Haredi public aroused the anger of many, who complained against her, among other things, to the Ombudsman in the Second Authority.
In the response that Commissioner David Regev sent to the organization 'In His Photo', it was stated: "I received your request, like thousands of others, in which you responded to the words of News 12 journalist Rina Matzliach during a discussion that took place on the program 'Ulpan Shishi'.".
""First, I apologize for the length of time that has passed since your request until this response. The delay was due to technical reasons in which the Commission's work is in a reduced format during the Corona crisis.".
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""During the discussion that you discussed, which dealt with the high rate of coronavirus infection in Bnei Brak, according to the petitioners, journalist Rina Maslach attacked the Haredi community and said, among other things: 'I want to talk about the behavior of the Haredi on the street. For years they have not accepted the authority of the state. This did not happen today for the first time. It has been happening for years. Income tax officials who enter the Haredi neighborhoods only leave with a police escort because they are attacked. 20 or 30 years ago there were mass demonstrations by the Haredi just because they wanted to close the Bar Ilan Highway... And what happens when a young man receives a draft order when he knows that he will not enlist anyway, mass demonstrations... The Haredi must accept the state for better or worse... This relationship must change. It cannot be that they feel uncommitted to the orders of the state.'.
""When the other journalists in the discussion, including Dana Weiss, Danny Kushmaro and commentator Amnon Abramovich, tried to say that it wasn't about all Haredim, Mazarin persuaded them by saying that it was about the majority of Haredim and that was her opinion. Finally, she said that she was expressing her position not out of hatred for Haredim, but out of love for the country.".
The Commissioner emphasizes: "According to the complaints, which were clearly written from the hearts of the applicants, including: ultra-Orthodox, secular, traditional, public figures, members of Knesset and heads of various organizations, journalist Rina Matzliach expressed herself in a racist manner towards the ultra-Orthodox population, while criticizing this population and referring to events, some of them old, that do not at all concern the discipline of the ultra-Orthodox population during the coronavirus pandemic.".
However, he has reservations: "Some of the complaints, unfortunately, contained, in addition to criticism of Rina Matshil's words, also severe verbal violence towards her. I reject and condemn in every way verbal violence in general and towards journalists, including Rina Matshil in particular.".
Following the numerous complaints, the Public Inquiries Commissioner in the Second Authority opened an investigation, during which it contacted News 12 to obtain their position.
""A day after receiving the complaints, the news company clarified Matzliach's words on air during the program 'Six with Oded Ben Ami.' In its clarification, the news company stated that Matzliach's words were spoken within the framework of freedom of expression and reflected her own opinion. The statement also stated that during the discussion, interpretations were made that presented an opinion opposite to Matzliach's.
""Alongside the commission's investigation, the chairwoman of the Council of the Second Authority for Television and Radio, Ms. Yulia Shamalov Berkovich, wrote a harsh letter to the CEO of News 20, Mr. Avi Weiss. In her letter, the chairwoman of the council expressed her protest over Matzliach's words towards the Haredi population.
The council chairwoman wrote: "The claim that this is a private opinion does not diminish the responsibility that the news company and its journalists have for what is said in the broadcasts. Even the expression of a private journalistic opinion should be backed by facts and not based on prejudices. This statement by Rina Matzliach, which is intended to place blame for the situation, causes polarization and seriously harms Haredi society. If it is not enough that this is an unfortunate statement, then there is no Haredi representative in the studio to respond to this statement and defend Haredi society. Statements of this kind inflame hatred between the populations in the country, deepen the gaps between the various sectors and expand the public's distrust in the media.".
In his response to the council chairman's letter, the news company's CEO, Avi Weiss, wrote that the news company clarified the matter the next day during the program "Six with Oded Ben Ami.".
He added that even among the leadership of the Haredi community, there was criticism of the conduct of parts of this public during the outbreak of the coronavirus pandemic, such as Minister Aryeh Deri, who criticized the conduct of the Haredi community during the coronavirus crisis.
However, the CEO of the news company added that there was no intention to harm one sector or another, and that if any of the viewers were offended by the comments, the news company regrets it. He further added that the news company has begun broadcasting a special news project that delves into the ultra-Orthodox sector's dealings with the coronavirus through interviews and meetings with representatives of the ultra-Orthodox public.
The Ombudsman continues: "I viewed the content you complained about, I read the news company's response, and despite this, I found that your complaint and the many complaints are justified. There is no dispute that the words of journalist Rina Matzliach were spoken within the framework of the freedom of expression and creativity granted to her as a journalist and according to her professional judgment. Her words were also weighed in the context of their positions.
The opposites of the other journalists and commentators in the studio.
""However, despite this, her accusations against the Haredi community were general and labeled the vast majority of Haredi society as a violent society that does not cooperate with the authorities in Israel and is not obedient in general. I believe that this labeling of the vast majority of Haredi society while making these accusations, precisely during this difficult period in which all citizens of Israel, including the Haredi community, are experiencing, was offensive and inappropriate.".
""There is no doubt that there is room for criticism of the conduct of some of the Haredi public at the beginning of the Corona crisis. However, there was no room, in my opinion, for this generalization, especially in light of the fact that in recent years the cooperation of Haredi society with the Israeli authorities has deepened and is expressed, among other things, in cooperation in the fields of the economy, labor, welfare, and more.".
""As for the news company, the company's reporters and commentators balanced Matzliach's words with a contrary opinion. In addition, the news company published a clarification the day after the broadcast and expressed an apology to anyone who was offended by Matzliach's words.
""I have forwarded your comment, along with my own, to the attention of the broadcaster. I apologize to you and the other viewers for the inconvenience caused by watching, and thank you for your
"Your request.".
An organization in the photo told Haredim 10: "We welcome the commissioner's decision. The commissioner has unequivocally determined that Rina Matzliach's words are not protected by freedom of expression and constitute offensive things. We regret that they were not fined. However, it is clear that in the future Rina Matzliach and her friends in the media will be twice as careful.".
