Israel's opposition parties back Gadi Eisenkot to form a government and oust Netanyahu, who says voters chose him
Yisrael Beytenu chair Avigdor Liberman said he will recommend Gadi Eisenkot for prime minister and rule out a minority government reliant on Arab parties. President Herzog begins coalition consultations on Wednesday, and haredi parties hold much of the power to decide the next government (Jerusalem Post).
Our outlet list is not evenly split: about 50% left-rated, 15% centre and 35% right-rated, so raw splits lean left by construction. Blindspots are tested against each side's own share. About our sample.
Left 1 · Centre-left 6 · Centre 1 · Centre-right 2 · Right 2
ContextSources by leanVideoDeep diveFollow the moneyMore coverage
How each side framed it
Left-leaning outlets
'Israel's opposition leaders back Eisenkot to oust Netanyahu' (Al Jazeera); 'Lieberman backs Eisenkot to form coalition, Lapid for Knesset speaker' (Haaretz); 'Leader of Israel's largest Arab political alliance: There's a chance to oust Netanyahu' (CNN).
Centre outlets
Centre-rated outlets headline it: “Israeli opposition unites behind Eisenkot as Netanyahu says voters chose him for PM” (France 24).
Right-leaning outlets
'Liberman backs Eisenkot for prime minister, blames him for election result' (Israel Hayom); 'Netanyahu faces coalition showdown as rivals maneuver to form Israel's next government' (Fox News).
Context
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Sources by lean
Balanced: the same number of articles from the left, the centre and the right (up to 3 each). The bar above still counts every rated outlet we found. Bias and factual ratings come from Media Bias/Fact Check. How we balance · All ratings.
Left 1
Centre 1
- France 24
Israeli opposition unites behind Eisenkot as Netanyahu says voters chose him for PM (paywalled or blocks bots)
Showing 1 from each side of 12 rated outlets (L 7 / C 1 / R 4). Capped at 1 because that is all we found on the thinnest side. More coverage
Video
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Deep dive
A short prompt for thinking it through. We write a fuller side-by-side deep dive for the day's biggest stories.
The paradox: Both sides see the haredi parties as pivotal, and differ on whether Netanyahu or Eisenkot has the mandate.
What each side may be protecting: Opposition: replacing Netanyahu. Netanyahu's camp: the election result.
A question to hold: Shared question: which policy deal could bring the haredi parties and the opposition into one government?
Try it: open one left and one right article in Sources by lean and note what each takes for granted.
Follow the money
Not yet researched. We haven't yet looked at who gains or loses financially from this story, or who funds the main voices on each side. When we do, we check company filings, the Electoral Commission donations register, lobbying registers, annual reports, InfluenceMap and OpenSecrets, and we apply the same checks to every side. How we follow the money.
Who owns or funds the outlets covering this story (11 outlets)
| Outlet | Lean | Ownership & funding (MBFC) |
|---|---|---|
| Haaretz | Left | According to the Financial Times, Haaretz does not report its earnings. They were also the first Israeli paper to introduce the paywall. For subscription fees, please see here. source |
| Al Jazeera | Centre-left | Al Jazeera is owned and funded by the state of Qatar. The founder and Chairman of the Board is Sheikh Hamad bin Thamer Al Thani, a member of Qatar’s ruling family, the House of Thani. According to a Fortune article, i n 2016, state-funded broadcaster Al Jazeera laid off 500 workers due to Qatar’s financial troubles resulting from low global prices for oil and natural gas. source |
| Middle East Eye | Centre-left | The Middle East Eye lacks transparency as it does not easily provide ownership information. The website requires that you find ownership information on their Terms and Conditions page, which indicates M.E.E Ltd is the owner. The website also does not indicate that Jamal Bessasso is the owner of M.E.E Ltd. source |
| New York Times | Centre-left | The Ochs-Sulzberger family controls the New York Times through Class B shares. Since 1967, the company has been listed on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol NYT. Class B shares are those that are held privately. source |
| Times of Israel | Centre-left | The Times of Israel is co-owned by David Horovitz and Seth Klarman. Revenue is generated through advertising..push({}); source |
| Ynet News | Centre-left | Yedioth Ahronoth owns Ynetnews. Advertising derives revenue. source |
| France 24 | Centre | France 24 is owned by France Médias Monde, a state-owned French holding company that supervises and coordinates the activities of the major public media organizations broadcasting or publishing internationally from France. Besides government funding, they also generate revenue through advertising. source |
| Jerusalem Post | Centre-right | In 1989, the paper was purchased by Hollinger Inc. for $17-million, which Canadian-born British Conservative Conrad Black owned. Conrad Black later was charged with “swindling his company, Hollinger International, of $60 million.” He was serving a prison sentence; however, in 2019, President Donald Trump pardoned him. source |
| The Jewish Chronicle | Centre-right | In 2020, The Jewish Chronicle was purchased by a consortium of philanthropists led by Sir Robbie Gibb and others, rescuing the paper from financial collapse. However, the full details of its ownership and funding remain unclear, as the financial backers of the consortium have not been fully disclosed. Speculation about involvement from figures such as billionaire Paul E. source |
| Fox News | Right | Rupert Murdoch is the owner and a board member of News Corp 21st Century Fox. According to Reuters, James Murdoch (son) was chief executive of 21st Century Fox and left in May 2018. L achlan (the other son of Murdoch) and Rupert Murdoch will serve as the new Fox co-chairman. source |
| Israel Hayom | Right | Israel Hayom is owned by the family of Sheldon Adelson, an American businessman and casino tycoon. He was also one of the largest donors to the Republican Party. His wife Miriam Adelson is the publisher of the paper and also a prominent Republican donor. source |