Sky News has made an on-air apology after presenter Belle Donati compared Israel’s war in Gaza to the Holocaust in an interview with former UN ambassador Danny Danon.
11.01.2024 - 10:55 / deadline.com
Israel‘s place at this year’s Eurovision Song Contest is under the microscope following a petition signed by more than 1,400 Finnish music industry professionals urging a ban due to alleged “war crimes.”
Echoing the state of play in 2022 after Russia invaded Ukraine, the group says that local broadcaster YLE should threaten to pull Finland‘s entry if the European Broadcasting Union (EBU), which runs Eurovision, doesn’t take action. Signatories include Finnish artists Olavi Uusivirta, Paleface and Axel Ehnström, who represented Finland in Eurovision 2011 under the name Paradise Oskar. Icelandic musicians made similar demands to local network Rúv last month.
Lukas Korpelainen, the initiator of the petition, said to local paper Hufvudstadsbladet that “Israel violates human rights” and “we don’t think it’s okay for the country to be part of the Song Contest to polish its image.”
The EBU has previously backed Israel, stating in December that Eurovision is “for broadcasters – not for governments” and that Israel has taken part for 50 years.
But the situation looks unlikely to go away and YLE’s head of communications told a local newspaper that the network is following the situation closely, while talking to the EBU and other public broadcasters.
The pressure has echoes of 2022, when nations urged a ban on Russia, which was agreed by the EBU soon after. Ukraine won the contest that year but the following year’s Eurovision had to take place in the UK due to the ongoing war. A YLE representative has, however, previously sought to draw a line between the Russia-Ukraine War and Israel-Hamas, with Ville Vilén saying recently, “As gruesome as it is, [Israel-Hamas] is not a war of inter-state aggression like between Russia and
Sky News has made an on-air apology after presenter Belle Donati compared Israel’s war in Gaza to the Holocaust in an interview with former UN ambassador Danny Danon.
UK TV producers will be given the opportunity to pitch to helm the BBC‘s Eurovision Song Contest coverage, Sports Personality of the Year (SPOTY) awards and iconic kids show Blue Peter as the BBC unveils its next set of tenders.
Stephen Flynn has urged Rishi Sunak to condemn the killing of a Palestinian man by Israeli forces as a "war crime".
EXCLUSIVE: Israel‘s Girl from Oslo director Ofir Lobel has signed for representation with LA outfit Black Box Management.
The Berlinale put out a statement expressing its sympathy for the “victims of the humanitarian crisis in the Middle East” and making it clear that its 74th edition would be a place for filmmakers on all sides of the Israel-Palestinian conflict, at its press conference on Monday.
who appeared in “Scream VI” but was fired from the seventh “Scream” film over her controversial remarks on the war — joined the hourslong protest midway through as it choked the city’s historic main street and delayed festival-goers making their way to and from events.Barrera was let go from the horror flick in November after posting on Instagram, “Gaza is currently being treated like a concentration camp… THIS IS GENOCIDE & ETHNIC CLEANSING.”She stars in the new Sundance film “Your Monster.”The group of about 100 “Let Gaza Live” protesters chanted “From the river to the sea, Palestine will be free!” and “We are tired of funding Israel! Shame on Israel!” while clutching signs that read “Butcher Biden,” “De-platform Zionism” and “Intifada Everywhere.”One crowd chant seemed to approve of the Oct.
is hinting they may have been canned from the Max series due to their pro-Palestinian stance.“Our industry is so duplicitous” Ramirez, 48, wrote Tuesday on Instagram, the night after the 75th Emmy Awards. “While they give awards away, casting directors and agents are making blacklists of actors and workers who post anything in support of Palestinians in Gaza to ensure they will not work again,” they continued.“While they lift up some of their own clients who have spoken up against this genocide, they are firing and letting others who have smaller platforms go.”Ramirez recently participated in a Palestinian protest in Brooklyn waving a transgender flag and also took part in the Jan.
K.J. Yossman The BBC has been plunged into crisis after its highest paid anchor has been accused of breaching the broadcaster’s impartiality rules for the second time in less than a year.
Dua Lipa has called for a ceasefire in Gaza and urged for world leaders to “take a stand” in a new interview.The ongoing conflict between Israel and Hamas has continued into the new year, with over 24,000 people now having died on both sides, 23,469 of them Palestinian and 1,200 Israeli.Last year, Lipa joined the likes of Michael Stipe and Cate Blanchett in signing an open letter to President Joe Biden calling for a ceasefire and “an end to the bombing of Gaza and the safe release of hostages”.Speaking to Rolling Stone about her upcoming new album, Lipa reaffirmed her stance on the conflict, saying: “My existence is kind of political, the fact that I lived in London because my parents left from the war,” she said. “I feel for people who have to leave their home.
Stranger Things actor, who is Jewish, was criticised online last year after he was seen in a video promoting stickers labelled “Zionism is sexy” and “Hamas is ISIS”.In a video posted on TikTok on Monday (January 15), Schnapp addressed “everything that’s been going on online” since the clip emerged.“I feel like my thoughts and beliefs have been so far misconstrued from anything even close to what I believe, and I wanted to just state from my heart how I feel,” Schnapp said. “I only want peace and safety and security for all innocent people affected by this conflict.“I’ve had many open discussions with friends from Palestinian background, and I think those are very important conversations to have and I’ve learned a lot.
Dua Lipa is opening up like never before.
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Stranger Things‘ Noah Schnapp is issuing a statement amid backlash he’s received online amid his statements about Israel and Palestine.
Ellise Shafer Noah Schnapp has addressed online backlash to his stance on the ongoing Israel-Hamas War, saying that his “thoughts and beliefs have been so far misconstrued.” In a video posted on TikTok late Monday night, the “Stranger Things” star said he “just wanted to come on here super briefly to discuss everything that’s been going on online.” “I feel like my thoughts and beliefs have been so far misconstrued from anything even close to what I believe and I wanted to just state from my heart how I feel. I only want peace and safety and security for all innocent people affected by this conflict,” Schnapp said. “I’ve had many open discussions with friends from Palestine standing in background, and I think those are very important conversations to have and I’ve learned a lot.
Noah Schnapp has taken to TikTok to address controversy around his thoughts on the ongoing Israel-Hamas conflict.
Elsa Keslassy International Correspondent “Shtisel,” the popular series following the lives of a tight-knit ultra-Orthodox family in Jerusalem, is changing its U.S. home. Previously available on Netflix, all three seasons of “Shtisel” have been acquired by Amazon Prime Video from Yes Studios.
Picture the scene: you’re bathed in sunshine, lying on a sun lounger on the beach with the sound of waves lapping at the shore, as you relax with a cocktail in hand. It all sounds rather dreamy, especially compared to the chilly conditions we’re experiencing in Greater Manchester right now.
Massive Attack have spoken out about their boycott of gigs in Israel since 1999.The trip-hop group took to their official X/Twitter account to respond to someone’s comment about their performance in the country. “Your shows in Tel Aviv were fantastic,” read the tweet.Massive Attack replied with: “Massive Attack have not performed (& will not perform) in Israel since the international request was made by Palestinian civic society & artistic institutions in 2002 (reiterated in 05 as BDS) as a form of non-violent pressure on Israel to end its brutal occupation of Palestine.They continued: “The band took a decision not to perform in Israel in 1999 – some years before the Palestinian call for international boycott was made – based on our own observations of military oppression, occupation & apartheid.”Massive Attack have not performed (& will not perform) in Israel since the international request was made by Palestinian civic society & artistic institutions in 2002 (reiterated in 05 as BDS) as a form of non-violent pressure on Israel to end its brutal occupation of Palestine.
Good afternoon Insiders, Max Goldbart here in a week that has had a distinctly ‘back to school’ feel to it. We’ve certainly been busy. Read on for the biggest stories of the week and sign up here.
Eurovision Song Contest.Organisers of the contest faced backlash and boycott calls in December after allowing Israel to participate in 2024 competition – which is due to take place in Malmö, Sweden from May 7-11 – despite the ongoing conflict with Hamas in Gaza.Since Hamas forces launched a surprise attack on Israel on October 7, 2023, killing 1,200 people, at least 22,835 Palestinians have been killed in Gaza, amounting to one per cent of the territory’s total pre-war population of 2.27million (per CNN).The petition urges a ban over alleged “war crimes” in Gaza, adding that if Israel is not excluded, they want public broadcaster Yle to withdraw Finland’s entry.Yle said it is monitoring the position of the organiser of the contest, the European Broadcasting Union (EBU).One of the petition’s authors, Lukas Korpelainen, told newspaper Hufvudstadsbladet (via BBC) that it was not acceptable for Israel to “take part in the Eurovision Song Contest to polish its image”.Others who have signed the petition include Finnish artists Olavi Uusivirta, Paleface and 2011 contestant Axel Ehnström.Signatories have accused Yle of double standards, noting that the broadcaster was among the first to demand a ban on Russia from the 2022 contest after its invasion of Ukraine, saying “we expect the same active defending of values from Yle now as well”.Russia was banned from competing in the 2022 Eurovision Song Contest, which was won by Ukraine’s Kalush Orchestra.Yle representative Ville Vilén said the situation in Israel and Gaza was “not quite the same”.“As gruesome as it is, it is not a war of inter-state aggression like between Russia and Ukraine,” he told Finnish tabloid Ilta-Sanomat.Yle’s head of communications, Jere Nurminen, told