Rising anger over the various Middle East conflicts involving Israel in the past two years, particularly the war in Gaza (which has been determined to be genocidal by a UN commission) led RTÉ, as well as other broadcasters, to threaten that they would boycott next year’s Eurovision Song Contest to be held in Austria) should Israel participate. Detractors pointed out that Russia was suspended from the contest in 2022 following its invasion of Ukraine and that Israel’s continued presence is a form of double-standard, however the EBU attempted to explain the difference in approach several months ago which hinges on the argument that Israel is an EBU member in good standing whereas Russia’s national broadcaster, due to repeated rule violations, is not.
The European Broadcasting Union (EBU) which manages the contest has been desperately trying to find a way out of the quandry ever since. They did not want one of their flagship events to be boycotted (particularly by Spain, one of the five major contributors to the event) but similarly, they clearly did not want to actively exclude Israel. Germany (one of the other five major contributors) made clear that if Israel were not allowed to participate, neither would Germany.
Yesterday, matters finally came to a head. The EBU offered a package of reforms to a vote among the participating broadcasters, designed to reduce presumed political interference in the contest. Israel came second in the contest this year, winning the public vote and only losing once the jury votes were factored in. Several broadcasters allege that this result was due to the efforts of the Israeli government manipulating a system that could be easily exploited. For example, a single person could vote for the same act twenty times for a relatively small fee, but this was reduced to ten under the proposed rules. When the package was agreed upon, a hoped for further vote on Israel’s participation was not held. Consequently, Ireland, Spain and the Netherlands announced their withdrawal from next year’s contest.
The BBC report on the matter quotes RTÉ as saying “RTÉ feels that Ireland’s participation remains unconscionable given the appalling loss of lives in Gaza and the humanitarian crisis there which continues to put the lives of so many civilians at risk.RTÉ remains deeply concerned by the targeted killing of journalists in Gaza during the conflict and the continued denial of access to international journalists to the territory.”
Spain’s RTVE is quoted as saying “The board of directors of RTVE agreed last September that Spain would withdraw from Eurovision if Israel was part of it.This withdrawal also means that RTVE will not broadcast the Eurovision 2026 final… nor the preliminary semi-finals.RTVE had led the calls for Israel’s dismissal, and requested a secret ballot on its participation. According to the broadcaster, organisers “denied RTVE’s request”, adding: “This decision increases RTVE’s distrust of the festival’s organisation and confirms the political pressure surrounding it.”
Taco Zimmerman, on behalf of Dutch broadcaster Avotros, said “This has not been an easy decision, where we have not gone over one night of ice. The Eurovision Song Contest is very valuable to us. Culture connects, but not at all costs. What happened over the past year is touching our limits. Universal values such as humanity and the free press have been seriously violated and are not negotiable for us. In addition, last year’s political interference showed that the independence and unifying nature of the Eurovision Song Contest is no longer self-evident. We choose the core values of AVROTROS and, as a public broadcaster, have the responsibility to remain faithful to these values, even when that is complicated or vulnerable.”
Chairwoman Natalija Gorscak of RTV of Slovenia said “Our message is: we will not participate in the ESC if Israel is there. On behalf of the 20,000 children who died in Gaza.”
The EBU will be hoping the boycott will not grow, though reports are that both the Icelandic and Belgian broadcasters are considering their positions.
In a statement, the BBC said it supported the new package of rules passed today.“We support the collective decision made by members of the EBU. This is about enforcing the rules of the EBU and being inclusive.”
Israeli President Isaac Herzog responded to the development by saying “I am pleased that Israel will once again participate in the Eurovision Song Contest, and I hope that the competition will remain one that champions culture, music, friendship between nations, and cross-border cultural understanding.Thank you to all our friends who stood up for Israel’s right to continue to contribute and compete at Eurovision. This decision demonstrates solidarity, fellowship, and cooperation, and reinforces the spirit of affinity between nations through culture and music.”
Our mod team uses this account to share news and posts. Content here should not be interpreted as Slugger’s editorial position. Slugger welcomes all views and does not take editorial positions on issues.
Discover more from Slugger O'Toole
Subscribe to get the latest posts sent to your email.
