News Director As Cruise Director

Caroline Glick

Just a few hours ago, I posted my Facebook status as a question: “Is it just me, or is anyone else feeling like they are on Flotilla overload?” It felt like my head (and heart) was going to explode if I read one more article or op-ed sent to me via email or social networking site. Everyone has had to weigh in on the so-called humanitarian aid flotilla, the IDF, Gaza, the Gaza blockade, Hamas, the Israeli leadership, the Turkish government, and every other possible angle on the events of this past Monday. Yes, we get it – this is BIG (and not in a good way).

And when there is BIG news, you can always be sure that a parody of it is not far behind. With SNL finished for the season (and besides, it’s not yet Saturday night), the Israeli satirical website Latma Press (“Why Be Annoyed Alone?”) has beat everyone to the punch with a “We Con The World” video starring the Flotilla Choir. It’s the “Turkish Aid to Gaza Song, With Captain Stabbing and Friends.”

You can even see Latma editor-in-chief, Caroline Glick in the video. Truly amazing that she had time to put this together given her day job of Deputy Managing Editor of The Jerusalem Post – it’s not as though things are quiet in the newsroom these days (as though they ever are in Jerusalem…). Given how fast things move today, it’s evident that she and her fellow satirists felt there was no time to lose in getting their (singing) voices on these critical events out there. They clearly took Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu’s remark that “This [the Mavi Marmara] was no Love Boat,” and ran with it.

This would be funny, if it weren’t so infuriating and sad:

© 2010 Renee Ghert-Zand. All rights reserved.

Update: An article in the UK’s The Guardian on June 6 reported that the Israeli government press office initially released the link to the video to foreign journalists. It later retracted and apologized for the release, with the office’s director Danny Seaman saying that, “the video did not reflect official state opinion.” Many Israelis loved the parody and thought it was great PR for Israel, while others thought it was in bad taste and demonstrated that Israel was out of touch with world opinion. I read some commentary questioning the professional responsibility and journalistic impartiality of Caroline Glick, a high-ranking and experienced newswoman. In any case, the Israeli government should get clued into the fact that often the best hasbara (PR) is of the unofficial, private citizen-produced viral marketing variety, and should accordingly leave well enough alone.

Tags: Benjamin Netanyahu, Binyamin Netanyahu, Caroline Glick, Facebook, Flotilla, Gaza, Hamas, Israel, Latma Press, Mavi Marmara, parody, satire, social networking, The Jerusalem Post, Turkey, We Con The World