NIS for Likes: Smotrich Paid Influencers to Push Reservist Plan; Israelis are furious

During the last few days, numerous videos have circulated across social media featuring influencers thanking the Finance Ministry and Smotrich personally. Nearly all the videos included identical talking points, listing benefits for reservists and giving credit to the minister for initiating the plan.

Kan 11 broke the story on Friday, revealing the truth behind the paid campaign.

An email sent to various influencers read: "We’re running a campaign on behalf of Bezalel Smotrich to promote benefits for reservists. Would you like to participate by posting a story or reel?"

Influencers received a message sheet with specific phrasing to echo. One such sheet, shared with a content creator, read: "Very important: Show gratitude: Be sure to explicitly thank Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich for his personal commitment to reservists. Emphasize that this was a personal initiative he led from start to finish, responding to the field and addressing real needs."

The Religious Zionism Party stated: "We are indeed promoting awareness of the rights and benefits for reservists as part of the Finance Minister’s plan. This is a public information campaign about what reservists are entitled to, financial benefits, land rights, digital wallets, and more. The campaign will appear online and in newspapers. Additionally, it honors reservist families, as we believe recognizing the sacrifice of the few who serve is a vital pillar of Israeli society."

The statement added: "The Religious Zionism Party is proud of the Finance Minister, who led an NIS 18 billion plan for reservists and placed them at the top of the national agenda. We’d appreciate it if your news program this evening could also include details of the benefits available to reservists. It would greatly help in ensuring their rights are fulfilled and would serve both them and their families."

Singer Moshe Korsia was one of the social media influencers who participated in the campaign. In response to the backlash, he announced he had chosen to remove the video from social media and asked that the payment he received be donated to IDF reservists.

In a follow-up video posted after the campaign’s exposure, Korsia said: "My goal here online is to spread good, to bring unity. I was trying to communicate the benefits given to reservists. I’m not interested in politics: I care that things are good here. If this campaign is doing more harm than good, I ask the Finance Minister: instead of giving the money to me, donate it to the reservists."

Last night, influencer Rina Halevy revealed on her Instagram account that she had declined the campaign offer, even though it was the highest-paying one she’d ever received.

"The internet is in an uproar, and rightfully so," she wrote. "Just to say: I refused this campaign immediately. The moment I understood what it was about and what message it was pushing, especially the line ‘It’s important to explicitly thank Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich,’ I knew I’d thank him more if he didn’t take money from teachers and other vulnerable populations, and if he didn’t push for draft exemption laws for those dodging military service. The burden must be shared by everyone."

She added: "Yes, I turned down several thousand shekels. How much? This was the highest amount I’ve ever been offered for a single Instagram campaign. And even though it was tempting, I knew I was making the right choice, for myself and for my followers, by sticking to my principles."