Israel in the Eurovision Song Contest 2019

Israel earned the right to host the 2019 contest when Netta Barzilai won Eurovision 2018 with “Toy.” The European Broadcasting Union (EBU) selected Tel Aviv as host city, and Israel thereby hosted Eurovision for the third time.[1] The Library of Congress described the tradition by which the previous year’s winner hosts the following contest.[6]

The choice of venue was debated publicly. Jerusalem, Eilat and other cities were considered, while Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu publicly supported Jerusalem, viewing the contest as an opportunity to reinforce its status as Israel’s capital.[7] The EBU said Tel Aviv provided the best overall setup for the event; its selection reflected the host bid and practical considerations, while the decision also carried political significance.[7][1]

The venue discussion included Shabbat scheduling. Reporting on the EBU’s host conditions said guarantees were required concerning security, access, freedom of expression and the contest’s non-political character.[8][1] Jerusalem’s municipality had also asked that rehearsals and the contest not be held on Shabbat.[8]

The contest took place at Expo Tel Aviv, also referred to in contemporary coverage as the Tel Aviv Fairgrounds or Exhibition Grounds. The semifinals were held on May 14 and 16, and the grand final on May 18.[1] The EBU selected Tel Aviv after Israel’s broadcaster, Kan, was asked to put forward at least two possible host cities; Jerusalem and Eilat were among those considered.[1]

Forty-two countries were announced as participants. Thirty-six were scheduled to compete in the semifinals, while Israel and the “Big Five”—France, Germany, Italy, Spain and the United Kingdom—qualified directly for the final.[9] After Ukraine withdrew, 35 countries took part in the semifinals and 26 competed in the final.[6] Bulgaria did not attend because of financial difficulties, while a contemporary report described the event as not being boycotted by countries.[9]

Israel selected Kobi Marimi through the televised competition “The Next Star for Eurovision.” He was eliminated during the program and later returned; in the final selection he beat Maya Buskila, Shafita and Khyatiria Pautz. The result combined viewers’ and judges’ votes.[10]

During the selection process, the Shalva Band, a group of musicians with disabilities, withdrew after saying it would not participate in required rehearsals on Shabbat. Culture Minister Miri Regev asked the EBU for an exception, which it denied.[7] Marimi’s song, “Home,” was selected by a six-member committee from about 200 submissions. Kan said the songs were presented anonymously and that the number of submissions was 30 percent higher than in previous years.[11]

The National Library of Israel catalog lists “Home: Eurovision version” as a 2019 English-language recording by Kobi Marimi and Amos Ben David, with a duration of three minutes. Its contributor fields name Lukah and Ohad Shragai as composers and lyricists, while a production note credits Inbar Weizman and Ohad Shragai with the words and music; the record lists Ben David as arranger and music producer.[12]

Marimi performed the ballad “Home” in the grand final and finished 23rd among the 26 acts. Coverage reported that he cried at the end of the song and became choked up while thanking the audience; afterward, he said he was happy with his performance and with having represented Israel honorably.[11][2]

The initial reporting gave Israel 47 points, including 35 from the public vote and 12 jury points attributed to Belarus. On May 22, the EBU said a human error had produced incorrect Belarusian jury results and removed the 12 points. Israel’s final total was therefore 35 points, but its 23rd-place ranking did not change.[13] Israel’s 35 televote points came from France, Moldova, Cyprus, Georgia, Romania, Czechia and San Marino.[14]

The Netherlands won the final with “Arcade,” performed by Duncan Laurence, earning 492 points and the right to host the next contest.[3] The event also included a week of public programming in Tel Aviv. Eurovision Village, set up on the beachfront, offered live entertainment and a food festival, and screened the semifinals and final.[3] The final drew 7,280 spectators at Expo Tel Aviv, while about 70,000 people watched from Eurovision Village that night. The Tel Aviv municipality estimated that more than 500,000 visits were made to the village during the week; contemporary reporting placed the number of foreign tourists attending the event at between 5,000 and 7,000.[2][5]

The run-up to Eurovision included security concerns. One account reported that Hamas and Palestinian Islamic Jihad had fired hundreds of rockets at communities in southern Israel earlier in May and described the groups as having stated an intention to disrupt the contest. Kan planned to offer free rehearsal and semifinal tickets to Israelis living within 25 miles of Gaza.[7]

Boycott calls also targeted the event and its participants. Campaigns included “No to Eurovision Pinkwashing,” described as backed by more than 60 LGBTQ groups, and a Palestinian Liberation Organization appeal for organizers not to broadcast the contest in Israeli settlements.[4] BDS efforts urged contestants not to take part, and Icelandic band Hatari openly opposed Israel. Contemporary reporting said no countries had withdrawn under the pressure at the time it was written.[7]

The Foundation for Defense of Democracies reported that some boycott pressure became harassment. Ireland’s entrant, Sarah McTernan, said in June that she had received verbal abuse and threats to her safety for competing in Tel Aviv; the same account said the contest proceeded smoothly despite the pressure.[15] The Institute for National Security Studies described claims by Israel’s Ministry of Strategic Affairs and Public Diplomacy that it had exposed the use of fake social-media accounts, bots and other inauthentic activity intended to pressure artists to cancel their participation.[16] Maariv likewise reported the ministry’s allegation that fake accounts and bots promoted #BoycottEurovision2019 to create an appearance of broader opposition and discourage broadcasters and artists from participating.[17]

Although boycott calls continued, the contest proceeded, and no participating country boycotted it.[9][3] The debate also included criticism that hosting could improve Israel’s image, a charge that contemporary commentary compared with criticisms directed at earlier host countries.[7]

Political gestures appeared during the final despite the EBU’s characterization of Eurovision as a non-political contest. During Madonna’s performance, two dancers displayed Israeli and Palestinian Authority flags while holding hands. The EBU said the flag segment had not been included in the rehearsals it approved and that the display had not been cleared.[5]

During the televote announcement, members of Hatari’s delegation raised Palestinian Authority flags. The audience booed, and venue security confiscated the flags.[5] Another account said Hatari had complained before the final about restrictions on political statements and displayed Palestinian scarves while being filmed.[18]

UK Lawyers for Israel and the Simon Wiesenthal Center wrote to Eurovision supervisor Jon Ola Sand urging action against Hatari. UKLFI argued that the group had breached the contest’s non-political rule; that was its position, not an independent adjudication that a breach had occurred.[19] The episode also drew criticism from BDS, which faulted Hatari for competing rather than boycotting the contest and said participation harmed the boycott campaign.[20]

Israel’s place in the final remained 23rd after the EBU corrected Belarus’s jury result, leaving the country with 35 points rather than the initially reported 47. The EBU said the error resulted from the use of an incorrect result and that it would review its procedures to prevent similar mistakes.[13] The Netherlands’ victory sent the following contest to the Netherlands.[3]

The 2019 contest was part of Israel’s longer participation in Eurovision, which began in 1973. The National Library of Israel has noted that Israeli participation has sometimes been affected when contest dates coincided with Memorial Day, Independence Day or holiday eves. Its article on Israeli connections to the contest closed with a wish of good luck to Marimi: “at least he is at home.”[21]

Research on the event’s effects found different responses within Israel. A Tel Aviv University Peace Index report said Jewish respondents generally viewed the contest as expressing positive images of Israel, while that perception did not hold among significant segments of the Arab population. The report also found disagreement between Arab and Jewish respondents over how well Israel implemented values including peace, equal rights and religious freedom.[22]

A longitudinal study focused on Israeli Jews and reported differences between people exposed to the contest and those who were not. Its abstract described mixed effects, including cultural patriotism and increased chauvinism alongside some cosmopolitan effects.[23]

A separate longitudinal survey compared sympathy for the European Union six months before the contest with attitudes immediately after Israel hosted it. Its abstract reported that watching the final increased sympathy for the EU and suggested that the event could have an unintended public-diplomacy effect despite Eurovision’s institutional separation from the Union.[24]