Strategic Assessment

America’s military campaign in Iraq came as no surprise to Israel. In consequence, the country had time to make preparations at many levels, including plan for a coordinated information policy that was designed to keep citizens informed of the situation, present Israel’s case to the outside world should Israel lose its bystander status and become involved in the war, and most significantly, ensure that the government’s positions came across with one voice. At the heart of the plan lay the decision to appoint a “National Explainer,” or more idiomatically, a National Commentator.