Twitter Strikes Along with Rockets in Israel the Palestine Todays Modern War

Israel's use of Twitter as a PR tool in the attacks on Gaza draws on a long history of branding that Palestinians have yet to match Here we go again. Israel and Gaza are embattled, and innocent civilians are dying. And as the "collateral damage" mounts, so too does the jargon-ridden justification. There is, however, something new amidst this deja vu, and that is the prominence of Twitter as a multimedia mouthpiece for said justifications. While Israel has always matched aggressive military action with assertive marketing, this is the first time it has quite so explicitly turned war into what is basically a social-media drive for "Brand Israel". On Wednesday morning, the Israel Defense Forces made history by choosing to break the news of Operation Pillar of Defense via Twitter. Hamas's military wing, the al-Qassam Brigades, promptly tweeted back. In the time since, the IDF has live-tweeted a blow-by-PR-vetted-blow of the campaign. There's also a Tumblr and a selection of infographics and action-packed assassination videos you're encouraged to share with friends. Somebody in the IDF also clearly knows what makes the internet tick because cats are also present. There has been much talk in the press about this being the first "Twitter war"; of this being the first example of (internet) viral warfare. But this is a very real, very bloody conflict that the IDF is shamelessly filtering through digital media. There is, indeed, even a collection of Instagram pictures portraying Israeli soldiers looking all military chic as they get ready to go to war. But while it may be very in vogue to position the deaths of real people in a framework of digital media and social networking, doing so is dangerous. It makes human tragedy seem less tangible and more virtual. It makes real-world devastation feel like what Operation Pillar of Defense sounds like it could very well be: a video game. Which, arguably, could be just what the IDF intended. The rather brilliant Israeli writer Amos Oz once said that the Israel-Palestine conflict is, ultimately, a dispute over real estate. But it's not: it's a war over nation states. And that means it is a war about the appropriation of falafel just as much as it is a war about the appropriation of land. Both Israel and Palestine have accused each other of being invented and imaginary -- and to some extent they are both right. Nation states in general, theorists have argued, are imagined political communities that were first formed around the unifying power of print capitalism. Now, with print being passé, they are imagined communities held together by branding. Which is something that Israel has always been a lot more strategic about than Palestine. Ever since it officially came into existence in 1948, Israel has gone methodically about the creation of a "Brand Israel". This originally began with an emphasis of the religious significance of a state for the Jewish people. Then, in 2005, when it was time for a rebrand, the Israeli government consulted with American marketing executives to develop a positioning that would appeal to a new generation: an Israel that was "relevant and modern" rather than a place of "fighting and religion". So Israel did some pinkwashing, and suddenly became a vocal champion of gay rights. It fought to retain cultural ownership of falafel, hummus, and Kafka. It poured millions of dollars into tourism campaigns that sought to replace imagery of wartorn landscapes with sun-kissed seascapes. When it comes to winning modern wars, a robust marketing campaign is as important as a military campaign. But while Israel has long been aware of this, the Palestinians have never been quite so PR-savvy. Back in 2005, the Economist quoted a Palestinian official who said that Israelis "spend a lot of time in marketing, and they succeed, whereas the Palestinians have a really good product, but invest nothing in selling it". Several years on, nothing has changed. The Palestinian messaging currently being most amplified by the media consists of Hamas's crazed proclamations about "gates of hell". This curries no international favour for the broader, more moderate Palestinian community -- which, being half-Palestinian, I number myself among. While Palestine should certainly not be looking at emulating the IDF's feverous Twitter-tactics, it should be following Israel's lead in a more sophisticated approach towards nation-branding. Because, in today's world, if there is ever to be a Palestine there needs to first be a "Brand Palestine"

• 2012-11-16T18:11:22+00:00
• Duration: 01:48

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