Name: Anonymous 2013-08-16 3:48
http://www.haaretz.com/mobile/.premium-1.541142
The Prime Minister's Office is planning to form, in collaboration with the National Union of Israeli Students, "covert units" within Israel's seven universities that will engage in online public diplomacy (hasbara).
The students participating in the project, who would post on popular social websites such as Facebook, Twitter, Reddit, and 4chan on Israel’s behalf, will be part of the public diplomacy arm of the PMO, but would not identify themselves as official government representatives.
The PMO is looking to invest close to NIS 120 million ($300 million USD) to recruit, organize and fund the activities of hundreds of university students, as part of the country’s public diplomacy effort.
Sources in the Prime Minister’s Office said the main subjects that the campus-based units will deal with are diplomatic- and security-related issues, efforts to combat the boycott of Israel, Holocaust denial, anti-Semitism and the delegitimization of Israel.
The students will emphasize Israel’s democratic values, freedom of religion, pluralism and “other subjects that give expression to the Israeli government’s public diplomacy policy.” The Prime Minister’s Office added that similar efforts with students were successful in recent years. “This model significantly advances Israel’s public diplomacy capabilities so that concurrent with messages conveyed by the country’s official spokespeople, content will also be conveyed that has been developed and disseminated by the students that is adapted to social media.”
The Prime Minister's Office is planning to form, in collaboration with the National Union of Israeli Students, "covert units" within Israel's seven universities that will engage in online public diplomacy (hasbara).
The students participating in the project, who would post on popular social websites such as Facebook, Twitter, Reddit, and 4chan on Israel’s behalf, will be part of the public diplomacy arm of the PMO, but would not identify themselves as official government representatives.
The PMO is looking to invest close to NIS 120 million ($300 million USD) to recruit, organize and fund the activities of hundreds of university students, as part of the country’s public diplomacy effort.
Sources in the Prime Minister’s Office said the main subjects that the campus-based units will deal with are diplomatic- and security-related issues, efforts to combat the boycott of Israel, Holocaust denial, anti-Semitism and the delegitimization of Israel.
The students will emphasize Israel’s democratic values, freedom of religion, pluralism and “other subjects that give expression to the Israeli government’s public diplomacy policy.” The Prime Minister’s Office added that similar efforts with students were successful in recent years. “This model significantly advances Israel’s public diplomacy capabilities so that concurrent with messages conveyed by the country’s official spokespeople, content will also be conveyed that has been developed and disseminated by the students that is adapted to social media.”