As is often the case in times of crisis, it is the media that dictates the agenda and sets the national mood. It influences fateful decisions, builds leaders up and cuts them down ay will. Sometimes, it seems that those sitting outside the decision-making halls possess the knowledge, data, and especially the intelligence decision-makers lack.

Follow Israel Hayom on Facebook and Twitter

This wisdom, mind you, is not the prerogative of only the senior commentators – often you see young reporters offer eloquent criticism and advice to government officials.

One must remember, however, that it's easy to give advice and offer solutions from the sidelines when you shoulder none of the responsibility for the outcome.

If I may offer counsel to my colleagues in the media: It's time to evolve from talking to taking action. If you believe we are dealing with an epic failure, if you believe this is a war – act like it.

Start covering the funerals of coronavirus fatalities – daily coverage, like you do for fallen soldiers or the victims of terrorist attacks. Join forces here and there and lead with the same headlines, to shake the public out of its indifference.

Set competition aside in favor of the solidarity you demand from politicians and the public. Cover the bereaved families and the critically ill patients in hospitals, demand government officials attend every funeral, and make sure that anchorpeople and guests alike wear facemasks and maintain social distancing in the studio – without exceptions.

Stop reporting on those calling to violate lockdown directives, especially when it comes to celebrities. If anything, get as many celebrities as possible to join a campaign calling on the public to follow the rules.

Don't cover the mass weddings and partygoers on the beach. Show the empty streets and shuttered synagogues. Have rabbis who call on worshippers to pray at home or outside. Who only protesters who observe police guidelines. Show the doctors and nurses, who are about to collapse with exhaustion, the overworked paramedics and lab technicians.

If this is a war, then the media is the air force. It has the power to help decision-makers win the battle.

Subscribe to Israel Hayom's daily newsletter and never miss our top stories!

The post Media must do its part to fight corona appeared first on www.israelhayom.com.

Emotion plays a central role in the election drama, which has seen undecided voters continue to move like a ship caught in a hurricane, every morning certain they will vote for a different party.

My pollster friend Professor Yitzhak Katz mathematically confirms the above data and argues that a majority of the still undecided voters are situated within the voting blocs. According to another database, between one-quarter and one-third of swing voters are deliberating between Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's Likud and Blue and White party's Benny Gantz. Their internal dialogue sounds something like this: "I am a Likudnik. Obviously, there's no one better than Netanyahu. But enough is enough already. We should say 'thank you' and give someone new a chance, but does that mean my vote should allow [Gantz's fellow Blue and White party leader] Yair Lapid to become prime minister? We'll see. I might vote for Gantz, but I don't know if I'll be able to go through with it." There are also those Likudniks who have been influenced by their children, who intend to vote for Gantz.

On the other hand, there are those who contemplated voting for Gantz, or anyone but Netanyahu, and their internal dialogue goes something like this: "Gantz suits me – a former IDF chief of staff, Israeli-born, new, honest. At first, it was clear that I would vote for him, but I've seen how he has gotten himself into trouble on an almost daily basis, and I suddenly feel he'd be in over his head as prime minister. When I compare him to Netanyahu, suddenly I don't feel like I can count on Gantz. I prefer an experienced, if not the most honest, pilot to an honest but inexperienced one, and that's why I'll probably vote for Netanyahu, but I don't know if I'm actually capable of going through with it."

The candidate or political strategist that succeeds in cracking the DNA of these undecided voters, and is able at the last minute to invent the arrow that is able to directly pierce their hearts is the one that will win the elections. In campaign headquarters across the country, they are now thinking of ways to defame their opponents and once against evoke strong emotions in their candidate's favor.

No outcome would be a surprise in this election. The most likely outcome would be a small victory for the right-wing bloc, and for Netanyahu to continue to serve as prime minister. It is also possible the Likud and the right-wing bloc will seal a decisive victory, although no one would be surprised if there is a dramatic turnaround. Incidentally, a unity government in which three prime ministers (Netanyahu, Gantz and Lapid) serve in rotation is also a possibility.

Eighty percent of eligible voters are expected to head to the polling stations on April 9. I recommend that each and every one of them exercise his or her right to vote.

The post Anything is still possible appeared first on www.israelhayom.com.

We have an anti-Netanyahu candidate. Netanyahu himself is, as always, a candidate for victory, but he could also find himself beaten.

Netanyahu, by his very existence, awakens strong feelings among us. I don't know anyone who is indifferent to him, anyone who has no opinion about him. It ranges from "hail, Bibi" to "Bibi is a disaster" – from "King Bibi" to "anyone but Bibi."

Campaign activists and communications advisors work hard to crack the genetic code for the sake of their candidates who known how to play to voters' hearts. The strategy meetings currently taking place handle not only words but also – even mainly – the music. What you say doesn't matter so much. What's important is how you say it, and mostly how you sound and how you appear to the voters' subconscious.

The Likud campaign (effectively Netanyahu's campaign) isn't lacking in professional errors, but luckily for it, the Blue and White campaign is making more mistakes. At the end of the day, we remember a few words or a standout sentence, but mostly images, or a few images that will tip the scales.

Everyone remembers the tiny, miserable image and pinched face of former Labor leader Isaac Herzog contrasted with the enormous images and calm expression of Netanyahu on "Meet the Press" three days before the 2015 election, and Herzog's pathetic remark, "I'll keep Netanyahu united."

As of now, there are three main images that will be remembered from the current campaign: the first from the night Blue and White announced its joint list, four leaders against one Netanyahu; the second of the Blue and White leaders on the Golan Heights, dressed in their combat jackets (which looked like a pathetic attempt at mimicry) – in contrast to Netanyahu and the Likud ministers in their tailored suits a day later, with Jerusalem in the background; and the third – which will be taken two weeks before the election – Netanyahu with U.S. President Donald Trump.

Judging by the campaigns right now, Netanyahu could close the gap created by the initial excitement over the united front against him, and stay in power. Netanyahu could also ruin things for himself if he doesn't realize that because a risky or controversial move happened to work out in his favor in the 2015 election doesn't make it a smart tactic.

The post Campaigns are about emotions appeared first on www.israelhayom.com.