• Elimelech Zilbershlag, 21, a Hasidic Sert Vizhnitz resident of Haifa, is a Haredi network star, writer and presenter and one of the most prominent figures in the digital division of the Israeli broadcasting corporation 'Kan'. He was recruited to the corporation last year, but he made his big breakthrough into the Israeli public this year, when the videos he presents about the Haredi public attract hundreds of thousands of views.
Haredi website 10 Chosen him as one of the year's trailblazers.
• Tell us about yourself.
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My name is Elimelech Zilbershlag, and I am the son of my uncle Zilbershlag... Well, what do I have to expand on? I work in the digital division of 'Kan', promising that it will expand to radio and television in the coming year. What happened was that the corporation approached me, and I was happy to find out... It happened as a result of writing and digital, as you probably know, and I am happy to be part of this thing, which I think is a bit historic.
• Let's try to understand with you, from our perspective you are one of the people who had a breakthrough year, you broke into the Israeli public consciousness, long before that you were on Facebook, and in other places on social networks, and you have been doing this work for years and that is why they took you to the corporation. But how do you summarize the point that from your perspective, this was your year?
If you asked me, I'm not sure if I would define it as my most successful year, like my most turbulent year. And it was absolutely my most turbulent year, both as a presenter and as an attacker. Listen, a year ago I was on Facebook, and they knew about me, maybe they recognized me, but suddenly I came to real life, real life. And you know, around the corporate saga, the situation at first seemed bad, and I have to say that I made a career out of it.
During the days of protests, I was the opening synopsis of the newscasts on News 2 and News 10, I was the face most identified with this issue. And when something refreshing came on the screen, people looked into what this 'strange' thing in quotation marks had to say. And I'm glad that this 'strange' thing was me, a representative of a sector that had been discriminated against for years, and that changed.
I mean, it's important for me to emphasize that I don't represent the sector and I don't speak for it. I'll go so far as to say that I don't work for it either. But I think there are very large parts of the public who think it's better for me to say these things than for others to do it the old whiny way or the less good way.
• This year, from your perspective, is a year of breakthrough, but you can't just accept a halo - and there was quite a bit of criticism heard about you in the Haredi sector, even among those on social media...
That's right, that's right, both from the public and outside of it. And I think when you receive criticism, you realize that you really exist...
Many important and good people, whom I truly appreciate, even after the criticism I received from them, I believe that if they knew how to see things from the right perspective and proportion, they would think differently. In many ways, and for many things that I received criticism for, I don't think I deserved it, although I am very proud of the fact that I received criticism, because I don't know many 21-year-olds in general, and Haredim at that age in particular, who at that age would already be subject to attacks or criticism, sometimes fatal.
And yes, sometimes I'm a person with a lot of ego, because my age still reflects that, but it definitely adds to your ego. So maybe think twice before the next time you do it, but think twice - and yes, do it, because you know that's what will bring you the audience.
I'm closing in on much more than 20 million views in the past year in the corporation, and I think it's prime time, major editions don't bring in numbers like that.
And after all, when almost every pair of eyes in the country has seen you, it comes with responsibility, with a lot of pats on the back, and criticism cannot be avoided, because criticism, even if sometimes it is not constructive but only destructive, is something necessary.
• This year, at least at the beginning, there was talk of freezing the corporation's law, and you fought, as you said earlier. Did you believe there was a chance for this move? That the corporation would actually open in the end? That would have sounded hopeless...
It's true, it would have sounded hopeless, but I am by nature a very optimistic person, sometimes to the point of naivety, and I really wanted to believe that this place would come into being, because I really believed in it. And I say believed in the past tense, even though I also believe in it in the present and in the future. I think that such a body that brings together the strongest digital division in the country, along with radio, which is also one of the strongest in the country, and television will be the strongest in the country, because that's how I believe, I think it's good that it exists, and it's important that it be strong, this body. And that's the only reason I fought for it.
I didn't fight for my salary, because I don't have children to feed, even though there are many people who think about the published data - the salaries, and I say this: Anyone who believes this is naive or Israeli, but we won't get into that, I really fought for this place because I thought it was right for it to be established, in this format, and I know the people who are at its head.
I don't know many bosses and heads of systems who talk like that at eye level. And I'm talking to you as someone who has received many offers from other places, public broadcasting is not always the ultimate place to work, but I absolutely think that they have made public broadcasting something fun, something pleasant to work in. Listen, the people who run it are special people, there's nothing to say. And I'm not flattering them, because I have nothing to gain here.
• So you're saying that overall you benefit from the seven and a half thousand shekels that were advertised as yours...
""I would be happy to tell you that I'm glad I'm not wasting a lot of public money, but I can't tell you that... I know what the data was published, and if there's anyone who came out well from publishing the data, it's me, even if not in terms of image because they'll say, what, this is what you get? Publicly, I came out well, because they say, this young man - and add in parentheses whatever you want because there's a lot to say - this is what he gets, I don't care, I just smiled at this publication. And I really think that anyone who follows me knows that I'm not a sucker, you can't hide it...
• What do you even do in a corporation? Why aren't you in the military? How many times have you encountered this question during the year?
I tend to believe that on Facebook there is an option, just like there is a Like option, an option to click and respond with a different response, and if I'm not mistaken, there are close to 100,000 times such a dislike response, for every post I upload.
• Let's try to understand. What is the biggest moment for you this year?
I get a lot of feedback from a lot of people, some are ordinary people, some are singers, people who meet them and compliment them, and it's good for your ego. But, I won't reveal it there, one of the greatest Rebbes of the generation happened to pass by me as I was leaving an event where I was standing with my father. He turned to my father and said to me: I know what you're doing, I won't tell you that I saw it, because I'm not allowed to tell you that I see such a thing, but you're doing a great Kiddush of God.
So to me, that's equivalent to about 70,000 Talkbackers writing to me that I'm committing a major blasphemy against God.
• How do you sum up this year?
""Pleasure, paradise.".
• What wish do you wish for yourself?
""Even the things that will seem to me like curses next year, because next year too we will say, 'The year and its curses are over,' I want to see these curses as blessings.".
