I went to Israel for the first time last summer during a six-day trip with the National Religious Broadcasters. I was there at the height of the rocket campaign against Israel by Hamas in the Gaza strip. Israel's response to the rockets, which totaled in the thousands by the end of the summer, became known as Operation Protective Edge.
While I was in Jerusalem, I had the honor of meeting Felice Friedson and her husband Michael of The Media Line,a non-profit news outlet founded 16 years ago and based in Israel with reporters working around the world. Felice is an incredible journalist, with experience in a number of Middle East countries, and serves as president and CEO. She served as a mentor to American journalist Steven Sotloff, the young man who was captured and ultimately beheaded by ISIS last August, and continues to help young people in the field. Her many travels once took her to Yemen, where she became the last journalist to interview the tiny remaining Jewish population in that country. Prior to founding The Media Line and moving to Israel, Felice and Michael hosted a nationally syndicated radio program for years in the United States.
As I've gotten to know Felice, I've learned how important her work and the work of other journalists at The Media Line is to western understanding of the complex relationship Israel has with its neighbors. Their work is also crucial to understanding how Middle East policy and conflict affects the United States. Their work is used and referenced by other media outlets around the world, including the BBC, the Jerusalem Post, Al-Quds, PBS, National Post, Canadian TV, Fox News and others."The Media Line, an independent Mideast resource that contracts with media outlets throughout the world, is utilized by journalists and government officials because of its access and ability to understand what the United States and Western consumers need to know about the region," she tells me. "From the Arab Spring to events unfolding in Iran, Syria, Iraq, Yemen, Israel and the Palestinian territories, The Media Line is reporting from the epicenter of events, impacting American lives for generations to come."
"Trust in media is at an all time low, but The Media Line prides itself in reading the streets, offering all relevant and appropriate narratives for each story, allowing its readers to decide," Felice says.
The Media Line was recently relaunched with a new website and I highly encourage checking it out, especially with the recent violence and stabbing terror attacks in Israel. Their most recent reporting covers ongoing tension between Israelis and Arabs, women attacking Israeli soldiers with knives, propaganda and possible incitement of violence from the Palestinian Authority, how every life has changed since the stabbings started, the continued disputes over Israeli-Palestinian territories and more.