At a synagogue hall in North Finchley, we met a small group of community members, rabbis, pastors, radio jocks, and journalists – one of whom was Melanie Phillips, a lone rep from the Board of Deputies and the Israeli Ambassador. The Jewish community were frustrated, they wanted to MARCH – they wanted to march at Marble Arch as a matter of fact! The BoD were having none of it – verboten – “we don’t march, that’s not what we do – no public displays” (no surprises there). I recall standing up and addressing the ambassador. “The Arabs have a PR response across the media including billboards, and we – the Jews, who are supposed to be clever – we have nothing – anywhere –  what we need is an Advertising Agency”.  

At that time, I was a seasoned Ad Agency tv producer, having worked at some of the top Agencies in London and Sydney. I knew well, the power of advertising. How Saatchi & Saatchi turned around the image of Margaret Thatcher, had British Rail trains running on time, encouraged Brits to ‘go to work on an egg’ or‘drinka pinta milka day’. As cultural icon Marshall Mcluan once famously said ‘the media is the message’.

The Israeli ambassador said the government were considering a ‘Brand Israel’ department, which indeed duly came and then went – within a short period of time.

Other PR initiatives over the next decade included ’Soft Warfare’, ‘Winning the Battle of The Narrative’, ‘Forging Strategies of Defence’, ‘The Dept of Strategic Affairs’ and sending Israeli emissaries across the globe. None of these ideas came to anything, whilst BDS came – and went on coming. After the Hasbara meeting, I knew I could no longer remain silent and started a ’newswire’ agency which flourishes to this day providing resource material to the media.

2006 to Oct 7 2023. Nearly eighteen years have passed and still no significant advertising or response. Since the Gaza incursion, the world increasingly hates Israel. Useful protesting idiots in their hundreds of thousands who could not point to Gaza or Israel on a map, hate Israel with a passion and worst of all – they hate Jews. 

This must change, it cannot be allowed to metastasize – the world needs to be informed about Israel – the Israel we know. Not perfect – but bravely punching above its weight.

At the recent USA Super Bowl, several pro-Israel / anti-Hamas and ‘hostage’ ADS were screened at a cost of US$7M per 30sec ad. They likely emanated from ‘big name billionaire moguls’ who have taken up the gauntlet to run ‘million-dollar campaigns’ boosting ‘Israel’s image and demonising Hamas’ via media company‘Facts For Peace’as reported on the news website ‘Semafor’ in December. Google Ads have also been released on social media. This is admirable and a start, but once seen, soon forgotten – did you see any?

What we need is advertising for the LONG TERM and in addition to tv/press and social media – Billboards are still a very strong form of communication.

BILLIONAIRES

At the start of 2024 I decided that enough is enough and resurrected my strong desire for Israel to have an international Advertising Agency outside of Israel, creating a campaign over the next DECADE, dealing with every detail of Israel’s existence, through history, legality, building a nation, and producing Nobel prize winners along the way. Add to that, innovation in science, medicine, intel, technology, IT, irrigation and agriculture. Letting people know what Israel contributes to the world. 

Basically, it’s very simple. We just need an Advertising Agency, and that requires seriously BIG money. This is not an occasional Google Ad or six months of social media messaging while the Gaza/Israel war rages on. This is advertising that will run for the next decade and beyond, and for that reason, I seek Billionaires to make it a reality, not just philanthropists with warm hearts offering short-term fixes.

Ad Agency creative experts would be guided and briefed to write, produce and build campaigns under the rich tutelage of experts such as –  Dr.Einat Wilf, Eugene Kontorovich, Prof.Avi Bell, Col.Richard Kemp, Douglas Murray, Melanie Phillips, Prof.Mordechai Kedar, Natasha Hausdorff, Nitsana Darshan Leitner, Hillel Neuer, Bassam Eid, Dr. Deborah Lipstadt – those who understand the extensive facts of history, Israel’s rights to the land under international law, the Holocaust, Israel’s achievements, Geo-politics and beyond. These people would be the Agency’s consultants and would be salaried.

Agency Media experts would strategise how and where to place advertising using the most relevant forms of media available in the modern idiom, and actually, Billboards still work darn well.

The world needs to be EDUCATED about our beautiful and extraordinary little country. It needs to know Israels story.

Billionaires – please step up.