The fight is on: Law to privatize Israeli public television passes first vote

The law to privatize the Kann Public Broadcasting Corporation passed a preliminary vote today (Wednesday) in the Knesset, setting up a showdown over a long-standing cultural fight between right and left.

Israel has long had a public broadcasting network for both radio and television, but it is the latter that has long been the source of political controversy.

Often accused of being politically monochromatic and unrepresentative of Israeli public opinion, the right tried a number of approaches to try and weaken its influence - including adding commercial television channels, creating a new rightwing channel in the form of Channel 14, and ending the mandatory (and hated) broadcast license fee exacted from anyone even suspected of owning a television.

In 2014, the Netanyahu government tried to privatize the Public Broadcasting Corporation, but fierce opposition to the law from reporters and their supporters, especially by Yair Lapid's Yesh Atid party, then part of the coalition, led to the bill's nixing.

Communications Minister Shlomo Karhi welcomed the preliminary passage of the privatization law, saying that he would have no problem providing those suffering layoffs with generous severance packages.