Introduction The organization of mass media communication system is affected by the social, political and cultural conditions of the

society in which the media perform the role to communicate information (DeFleur, 1970, p.168). The medias function to frame political issues is particularly powerful as it affects individuals interpretation of political realities, which are reported in the news (Reese, 2010, p.10). In studies of mass media communication, the concept of framing is defined as a tool that mass communicators use to structure their ideas coherently as to make sense of events which are then reported to an audience. Therefore, the media framing of events is used for socially constructed event (ibid.). The social construction of reality by the media affects the viewers perception of reality. According to the social learning theory, individuals unconsciously process the images or information received from television programs which they generalize to their social environment (Tan, 1985, p.299). Hence, the perception of social events by viewers is the result of the media framing, which also affect our views of political event. The media approaches to frame events can vary and thereby, the media apply different methods to interpret events. The use of visual images in media framing is an example. However, in the process of framing an event by including visual images, the media professionals aim to construct a meaning of the event, which is supported by subjectively selected images. This socially constructed meaning reflects the media professionals views of the event (Tan, 1985, p.218). Hence, the use of visual images in the media framing affects the method of explanation of the event as well as the viewers perception of the event. Moreover, the use of framing including the news image can shape the meaning of an issue which would be regarded as controversial or faced public opposition in case it would be disseminated through words (ibid. p.215). The concept of framing can be explained by different models, for instance McQuails model of media organization and production, which focuses on the forces and constraints that affect the media framing of events (McQuail, 1992, p. 81). A second model is the news selection which elaborates on the role of news values in the process of news selection (Harcup, and O'Neill, 2001, p.261). Thirdly, the theory of agenda setting in mass media communication explains how the media frame news stories as to focus the public attention on key events (Scheuefele, 2000, p.302). The applied conceptual framework in

this essay combines these three models that are used in studies of mass media communication to explain the effect of framing on viewers perception (ibid, 2000, p.298). The concept of framing will be applied to explain the role of the media in the 2006 IsraeliHezbollah conflict. In this paper three models are first introduced as they contribute to the method of explaining the concept of framing. The conceptual framework is based on these three models. Secondly, the 2006 Israeli-Hezbollah crisis is being examined as a case study, particularly the Israeli media framing of the 2006 conflict and the political effect of this framing. The Israeli media portrayed a pro-Israeli view of the conflict and ignored the decisive role of the leadership to initiate a war against the Hezbollah (Gavriely-Nuri, 2008, p.7). Moreover, in the media coverage of the issue, the true time and scale of the conflict was not reported despite the severe bombing of Hezbollah which affected the lives of Israeli populations established in Northern Israel (Ibid, p.7). Most importantly, the Israeli leadership never announced the official decision to wage war against the Hezbollah (Ibid, p. 8). The main claim of this paper is that the use of visual images as an instrument of the media framing aimed to shape a meaning of the controversial 2006 Israeli-Hezbollah conflict. Within the media setting of the event, politicians could rationalize the event. The media framing of the event intended to support preconceived ideas which gave meaning to the event. Consequently, as most viewers may not be aware of the media framing, they tend to rely on Israeli mainstream media like television programs for information which in turn affect individuals perceptions of the event (Ibid.) This paper will explore how the Israeli media have framed the 2006 IsraeliHezbollah conflict and what the political effect is the media framing? The first part of this paper examines the common approach by media organization to carry out their business strategy of news production from a theoretical perspective. Focusing on McQuails model of media organization and production, the media framing will be explained (McQuail, 1992, p. 81). The second part of the theoretical chapter covers the role of the news values as relevant factors which contribute to the selection of news according to Galtung and Ruges theory (Harcup, and O'Neill, 2001, p.261). The third part of the theoretical chapter delves into the purpose of agenda setting in mass media

communication. Based on the concept of agenda setting, the media attaches relevance to some issues or personalities, thereby affecting the perception of viewers (Scheuefele, 2000, p.302). In the second part of the paper, the case study will be described focusing on the method of the Israeli media to frame the political event. In the third part, the conceptual framework will be applied to the case study to demonstrate the (main claim that the use of framing with visual images in the media aims to shape a meaning of events which in turn can impact viewers perceptions of events.) In the fourth chapter there will be an analysis of the case study. To conclude the findings derived from the examined case study will be discussed. Defining television newscasts The media can be defined as a technological development achieved to enable communication. The media is also thoroughly described as a set of related cultural and social practices which underlie the functionality of the media system of communication. These types of media are cultural systems (Jenkins, 2006 p, 13-14). The undertakings of the mass media are carried out by journalists who report news images through mediums like televisions, newspapers and radio (McQuail, 2010, p.278). An aspect of television newscasts, which is the object of this study, is the fact that television programs are extensively regulated by governmental agencies because of democratic values, self interest and economic utility (Ibid, p.278). Because, television as an instrument of mass media is considered an influential tool of social control, it is under state regulation that can restrict the publication of certain news content. Consequently, the television programs face the challenge to act as politically independent media organization as opposed to the freedom enjoyed by the print media like the press. (ibid, p.34). Methodology The proposed research question of Israeli media framing of news is useful to understand the framing effects of this media. The formulated research question which is two folds is based on the premise that framing serves as a tool of social construction of reality. (Scheufele, 1999, p.105). First of all, the media framing has a significant effect on viewers

interpretations by shaping social event in a predictable and interpretive fashion. The media communication as such is a determinant factor in the individuals approach to shape the meaning of social events. Therefore, the media communication is involved in the process of construction of meaning by indivduals (ibid.) This implies that public perception is also shaped by the media professionals who create a meaning of public contorversial events (ibid.). Secondly, the political effect of this media framing can be defined based on the notion of social constructivism that has been expalined above. The poltical effect of media framing can be described as the media active role in setting frames that individuals refer to in order to make sense and discuss public events (Tuchman, 1978, p.9). From a social constructivist perspective, strucutral constraints, professional beliefs and opinions about the viewers are considered by the media profeesionals who shape the media narratives. Consequently, these constraints and the subjective beliefs are reflected in the constructed meaning of events which affect individuals intrepretation of events. (Crigler, 1992, p.120). As illustrated above the media constraints and journalists opinions are relevant facotrs that contribute the framing effect according to social constructivist. To explain the relationships between these structural constrainst, journalists personal beliefs and the media framing effect , the model of media organization can be applied. The media framing can also be explained by combining the models of media agenda-setting and the theory of framing. Studies reveal that effects of agenda-setting and framing are linked. The hypothesis derived from these studies is that the media frames and emphazises particurlar news stories which affect the viewers interpretation of the percieved importance of these events (Scheufele, 1999, p.103).

This implies that To answer the research question, facts from primary and secondary sources were applied. The selected sources primarily dealt with studies of mass media communication studies. These chosen sources were significant in the sense that they included studies in which individuals behaviors and perceptions have been explained by means of the concept of

framing. Thus, these sources are relevant and relate to the current study considering that they use the concept of framing to explain the construction of meaning. Chapter 1 Theoretical models Model 1: McQuails model on media organization and production The underlying assumption of this model is that the activities of the media take place within conditions of internal and external forces that put constraints on media performance. In a situation of constraints, it is difficult for the mainstream media like television programs to compete with new media firms because their options to publish any news content is restrained by the state. Furthermore, it is also possible for the mass media television programs to undergo financial constraints due to high investment funds and labor costs (McQuail, 1992, p. 88). Mass media organizations aim to maximize profit. They produce a variety of new products to attract different audiences. Usually, mass media businesses pursue a vertical integration which implies that the business activities of newscasts or advertisements are coordinated and unilaterally managed by a single owner (Ibid, p.88). Moreover, in an attempt to reach larger and more diverse audiences the media organizations intend to pursue economic goals by producing a greater variety of news items. Thus, the economic incentives to manufacture various news items can lead to economic pressures on the media as the media strive to meet the demands of news consumers (Ibid,). Given the forms of ownership and structural arrangement of the media that were mentioned above, the media organization can be seen as an entity that seek profit by producing marketable mass media news items. McQuail argues that the medias motivation for economic achievements have an impact on the news content (McQuail, 1992, p, 276). McQuails model also supports the view that due to the media economic approach to produce news items, the bias in the news content is encouraged by the production patterns of the mass media (ibid, p. 277). In this model, other relevant factors are also identified, for example the role of the media employees. At the individual level, the task of the media professionals can be constrained due to certain normative requirements or goals set by the media organizers. In democratic societies, for instance, the major structural norm of the media is the freedom of

communication. However, this contradicts with the restricted independence of media by the state. State regulation enables the government to control, which media product can access the market of ideas (Golding and Murdock, 2000, p, 7). In connection with societies, western beliefs and values of democracy such as freedom of communication tend to favor free market ideas and diversity of news items. Yet, these ideals clash with non liberal political ideology or interests and the protection of minority groups, for example. Therefore, these external pressures limit the freedom of the media to communicate neutral information. Hence, the mass media can hardly serve the ideas and interests of all social groups in a society (Ibid,). The decision making power of the mass media organization which news items can have access to the market of ideas is rather restricted. The power of television programs to portray diverse news in accordance with the norm of diversity in news content is also restrained because the media professionals have to select the news which ought to be broadcasted. Powerful social groups may influence the media in a different way since they expect the mass media to serve their interests. This can lead the mass media to reflect partly on these influential groups in the news and to neglect minority groups or issues. Therefore, the norm of diversity in news content is merely an ideal as it is unlikely to be achieved in practice. (McQuail, 2010, p. 199). The media business undertakings are assigned to the various agencies of the media organization. The tasks of television broadcasting are culturally, politically and economically defined. Culturally or politically news oriented items are expressed by the mass communicator and thereby influenced by the individuals beliefs and value, whereas, the economic value of the news depends on the news utility (Ibid, p, 297). The individual level of analysis only explains the behavior of a media professional within the media organization. However as noted earlier the media organization comprises more occupational tasks. Therefore, an interpretation of the social setting of the media organization can help understand how the media structure puts constraints on the media professionals. At the social level, the media organization can be regarded as a social institution whose structure affects the behavior of media professionals (Sumpter and McQuail, 2004, p.448). As agreed by sociological theorists, one of the characteristics of the media structure

consists of allocating news information of events within a populace according to specific rules. Therefore, this characteristic of the media organization which is created by the individual members that form the media underlies the individual behavior and thereby constraint or impact the acts of individuals (Tan, 1985, p.78). Studies indicate that at the social level, the structural characteristics of the media organization determine which actions by individuals are allowed according to the structure (ibid.). The centralized control of the mass media communication by governments and the structural norms in media communication interfere with the medias autonomous role to report neutral information. The constraints and pressures on the mass media are the outcomes of the interference and regulation by government which cause a decline in media independence. In fact, the mass media are to a large extent dependent on the state for sources of information. As a result, government can shape the news agenda and provide the media with information about domestic and foreign news (Chomsky, 1988, p. 3). American media corporations like the Readers Digest, Time, and Newsweek have to rely on the political support of the US government for their rights to report on foreign issues with a pro American view on current affairs (ibid, p.6). From this perspective, these media businesses are interlinked with the US government and share common interests which affect the news selection (ibid, .p, 7). Model 2 Selective News At the core of the theory of news selection is the idea that an event can be assessed as newsworthy and relevant based on the criteria of news values. According to Galtung and Ruge, the criteria of news values are the outcome of informal agreement among reporters and they are factors which contribute to the process of news selection. Thus, the news values play an important role as they can impact the decisions by reporters to select a story as newsworthy. ( in Harcup, and O'Neill, 2001, p.261). Moreover, Galtung and Ruge in their theory developed an exhaustive list of relevant news values which are essential for news construction. An illustration of such news values is the cultural significance for the portrayed event. In this case, Galtung and Ruges hypothesis suggests that a reporter is more prone to select an event, which reflects

the cultural aspect of the society where the news is produced. Hence, news from the USA is regarded as more relevant to the UK than is news from countries which are less culturally similar (Ibid, p.263). Galtung and Ruges idea of news values can be linked to the aforementioned definition of the media as cultural systems within societies. In this sense, the media play a role in reflecting the cultural values of a society. Therefore, the media are expected to portray what is culturally acceptable in a society and to consider the decisions of influential actors which affect the news selection (Fourie, 2008, p. 75.) The news values of significant events serve as a criterion to assess the selection of relevant news. Media journalists are expected to deliver relevant news products in order to meet this criterion of assessment. Thus, their decisions to choose relevant stories as newsworthy can be affected by this internal policy. External forces, on the other hand, can impact the media professionals behaviors who strive to report significant news to the audiences. In this case, the media professionals will primarily consider whether the event is politically, socially and economically significant and secondly if it attracts the audience. Thus, these external and internal forces can lead to a bias reporting as they influence the reporter in his or her representation of news stories as important (McQuail, 1992, p, 218). More in depth, the media professionals who are responsible for the selection of news items are the gatekeepers whose task is to filter the information based on the criteria of news values and they also decide which news is going to be portrayed in the media. Therefore, these media professionals such as journalists, editors also exert a direct influence on the news which is broadcasted on television program (Fourie, 2008, p. 76). Public institutions, such as governments, are the main external regulators of the media organization. The media interact with public institution for reasons of official authorization by the government to pursue the business strategy of the media. In order to publish or broadcast news on television programs, the media organization requires a license, which can be issued by the state. In this relationship, the state has an advantageous power position that it can use to regulate the news content while limiting the medias independence. Thus, to avoid the external pressures resulting from the state regulation, the media lobbies for certain political interests (Chomsky, 1988, p. 5). According to Gans, (1980, p. 147) another sociologist who conducted a study of news media in the USA, the selection for a significant and newsworthy story can be based

on these three criteria. First of all, a news story concerning a political figure is deemed important and more likely to be selected depending on the position of the politician within the government. Then the news story is interpreted from the perspective of the media professionals. Secondly, the reporters tend to choose domestic issues, which are emphasized in the media as they can affect the nation and national interests or large groups of people. Finally, the journalist can select a story based on its significance for the past and future (Gans, 1980, p. 147-52). Moreover, news criteria particularly the ones that value the significance of the personal characteristics of politicians can impact the decisions made by the journalists. In this context the relevant stories may be constructed due to reasons of a self-fulfilling prophecy on the part of the journalist (McQuail, 1992, p. 217). News values significantly contribute to the process of news selection. The news values are connected to the media cultural, political and economical values. The medias approach of describing stories or events can hardly be value-free, because the media will decide to report a story or event if the criteria of news values are met. The stories or events are described from the medias point of view which is reflected on the television news programs. Political stories or news event are generally depicted form a media perspective, this implies that reporters have to structure the story as to mirror the medias view (Fourie, 2008, p. 134). Model 3 Agenda-setting The hypothesis of agenda-setting is based on two main assumptions. The media portrayed issues or images of political figures that reflect the medias perception. The process of media agenda-setting includes the application of framing issues or images or politician as to communicate information and to create public awareness about these messages. In this sense the media agenda-setting is connected to the framing of events or images of political figures which are covered as relevant in the news media. According to the concept of agenda-setting, the media has the power to shape and emphasize not only public issues and corporations but also news story of political figures. As a result, some issues may be excluded from the medias agenda. The agenda-setting function of the media has the effect to attract public attention on key issues according to the media (Valenzuela and Correa, 2009, p.207). The cause of the shift in public attention can be also explained by the medias approach to frame public issues or to shape an image of

political personalities. To attract the viewers attention on these news images, the media tend to emphasize certain issues which in their view should be the focus of public attention. By selecting the political issues that are covered in the news, the media professionals contribute to the construction of political reality because the public only becomes aware of the perceived political issues. Therefore, news consumers only know how relevant a political event might be and how it is framed by the media (McCombs and Shaw, 1972, p.176). This enables the media to set the agenda during a political campaign and to influence the viewers attitudes towards political events. The media can shape an image of political personalities and by constant news coverage of these political figures the media can attract public attention. The relevance that some media attach to political leaders can explain the media role of agenda-setting as the media can disregard a political event and then report on a politician whom the media organizations share similar political beliefs (Fourie, 2008, p.134). The power of the media to set the public agenda can be related to the media framing of issues because the media capacity to build a public agenda is enabled through the use of techniques like framing. That is, the media effectively set the public agenda by selecting the political issues to be covered in the news and by shaping a political reality. From an inward perspective, attempts have been made to interpret the concept of agenda setting in terms of the actors that shape the media agenda. Research indicates that the key actors who set the media agenda are public information officers, public institutions and staff of public relations organizations (Walters and Gray, 1996, p.11). These actors determine the covered news in the media and since they hold different viewpoints, they focus on a different set of issues. However, they choose to advocate for certain perspectives. Therefore, these influential actors provide the media with sources of information and they use the media to communicate their perspective on key issues and to advance their interests (Ibid,). The choices and decisions made by media professionals are the interests and priorities of the owners and those who run the media business (Fleras, 2003, p.25). Therefore, the media reporting on issues reflects a reality which is based on the sources of information which the media acquires from the media elites who control the media organization. This assumption is based on the idea that media elites have access to

the media and the power to determine the interpretations of different events in a subjective way (Driedger, 2008, p. 25). The media agenda-setting function can increase public attention on events if the portrayed issues in the news can be linked to high profile individuals in order to promote certain views or concerns about an event. In this sense, the political personalities and the sources of the information and their interests are reflected in the media. Hence, in constructing media narratives, the media aim to mediate the interests of media elites and key actors concerning an event (Driedger, 2008). The media coverage of these political issues has an agenda-setting effect. The media has the power to affect the perceived significance of these political issues by the public. The covered political issues are emphasized and extensively portrayed in the news media. As a result, individuals receive this information which can shift their political attitude towards the issues as they only learn about the issue which the media portrayed as relevant. Researchers examined the strong effect of media agenda-setting and provided evidences that media agenda setting affects the individuals social learning who communicate the received information from the media to other individuals (Roberts et al.2002, p. 453). Based on social learning theories, individuals assumed that gained information can be applied to their social environment (Tan, 1985, p.299). The media agenda-setting role can influence viewers perception when the political issues are repeatedly covered in the news media. As a result, the news consumers attach relevance to the portrayed political issues. The agenda-setting effect which aims to increase the public awareness of certain issues can also lead to a decrease in individuals critical view of the same issues. That is, as certain issues are positively exposed in the news media, news consumers interests in these issues may increased as they pay attention to these covered issues by the media. Consequently, the media positive portrayal of the same political issues has the function to stimulate individuals interests but it can as well decrease individuals concerns about the critical aspect of these issues. (Roberts et al. 2002, p. 454). Conceptual framework What is framing?

The conceptual framework of this paper is developed based on the three models discussed earlier. The models are linked to the concept of framing and therefore useful to demonstrate the relationship between the different ideas of the concept of framing and the three models. This conceptual framework will be applied to the case study in order to answer the research question. The concept of framing is a used in media studies in order to explain the method by media professionals to interpret events including conflicts. The media framing of event in specific way influences people to choose one meaning over another (Gavriely-Nuri, 2009, p.828). According to scholars the media framing of contentious political event serve two main purposes. The media framing define situation or effects as problematic and shift individuals judgments of events (ibid.), The concept of media framing is based on the premise that the media framing of event can affect public opinion by emphasizing certain values or evidences. The portrayed event in the news media can be perceived as relevant depending on the applied frame by the media professionals (Scheufele, 2000 p.298). This implies that the media framing of event aim to create a meaning of events that the public understands according to the applied framing. The media framing might reflect a preferred aspect of the event while excluding issues that might be crucial to public understanding of the event (Gavriely-Nuri and Balas, 2010, p.410). One of the underlying factors that contribute to the media selection of are the advice by political figures for a particular frame as these politicians are the main sources of information (Ibid,). A second motivation is the media representation of the event may require the application of a frame which excludes critical aspects of the event to be covered (Ibid). The use of media framing in the media agenda-setting is also crucial because the media can apply the concept of framing to define the covered issues in the news (Kiousis, 2005, p.4). Hence, the use of framing aim to define certain issues that influence individuals perception, while the agenda setting effect of the media induces viewers to focus on specific issues rather than other topics. For instance, the media coverage of issues like unemployment is expected to create public awareness of the important issue. The media agenda setting role in this case also aim to emphasize the relevance of unemployment in a given economic context. As a result, the perceived importance of the

issue of unemployment may increase as viewers tend to relate the economical issue to their social environment (Kiousis, 2005, p.5). Another effect of framing is the media interpretation of political or sensitive issues. Certain events or issues may be portrayed in one media but excluded from others. Although the motivations for decisions to portray specific stories as newsworthy can vary, studies reveal that decisions made to select certain news is extremely subjective. A great deal of news stories, which are filtered by the media professional are either accepted or disregarded based on personal assessment of the importance of the stories whether the media professional believed that the stories were accurate (Shoemaker, 1996, p. 82). For example during the first Gulf War of 1991, mainstream American media, like CNN and Fox News portrayed a pro war view. Live images of the war scene and the US military campaign in Iraq was positively covered by these television programs to support the US foreign policy of use of force against Iraq (Lin, 2009, p.3). Concerning the 1991 Iraq War and according to researchers, Fox News biased reporting is to a great extent due to prejudiced opinions of influential media elites and reporters. Approximately 73% of Fox News narratives were influenced by the subjective opinion of media reporters (Ibid,). From a sociological perspective, frames are abstract concepts that the media applies to create a social meaning of event. The frame serves as a method to structure ideas coherently as to make sense of the event. In this respect, the applied frame by the media aim to define the socially constructed event. The outcome of this media framing is that the event is presented by the media in a way that it reflects the medias viewpoint. Therefore, the frames determine which aspect of the event is portrayed and the method adopted to interpret the event (Fairhurst, 2005, p.166). This implies that certain critical aspects of the events may be excluded from the media framing. Hence, the media narratives are shaped by the media professionals who select the context that mirror the medias point of view (Fleras, 2003, p.25). Fairhusts (2005) argues that the concept of framing comprises two elements. The language factor in the media framing which enables the individual to recall information or actions that are vaguely understood, which in turn alter the individuals perception of the event. Secondly, the thought element plays a crucial role as it influences the choice for a frame and the language used by the media to express certain messages. Therefore, the

media professionals choose the frame they use to create a meaning of the event in favor of certain communications goals (Fairhurst, 2005, p.168). Using the concept of framing in media studies can provide insights on the medias approach to define certain events which are interpreted in a fashion that affects individuals perception. The media framing has the effect to contribute in the construction of individual perception. Concerning the social construction of events, frames can be applied to label events and key actors behavior. As a result, the interpretation of these events or acts can affect news consumers perception (Scheuefele, 2000, p.301). For example in case of conflict, the media active role in framing the event aim to label the parties involved in a conflict and to shape public perception of the conflict (Avraham and First, 2010, p. 483) From this point of view, the media professional use frames to explain abstract social phenomena that are subsequently presented as news events which the public can understand (Ibid,). The concept of framing can be linked to the above mentioned models as the media framing of events involves the systematic organization of selected ideas to construct the meaning of events (Avraham and First, 2010, p. 484). The event is emphasized in the news media as to increase the perceived importance of the event. This implies the agenda-role of the media which has been mentioned earlier. The general idea that be derived from the models is that the media performance is influenced by diverse factors. These factors significantly contribute to the media representation of events. In this research paper the focus is on how the Israeli media framed the 2006 IsraeliHezbollah conflict. Secondly the political effect of this media frame can be explained by applying the concept of framing as a theoretical framework. The concept of framing is used by scholars to explain the medias approach to communicate messages that direct viewers towards perceiving or interpreting an event in a certain way. Therefore, in the process of media framing, the reporters play a crucial role in selecting a frame, as this chosen media framing can affect the news consumers interpretation of the event (Gavriely-Nuri and Balas, 2010, p.411). Next, the case study will be described. Chapter 2 Background to the 2006 Israeli Lebanon conflict

On July 12th, 2006, the Hezbollah launched attacks on the Israeli border which caused the death of three Israeli soldiers (Kalb and Saivetz, 2007, p.46). During these attacks, the Hezbollah militants fought against Israeli soldiers on the border of Israeli and captured two Israeli soldiers (Ibid.). On the Lebanese side, Israel deployed ground military forces and subsequently air forces to combat the Hezbollah foe situated in Southern Lebanon (ibid.). The head of the Hezbollah organization, Nasrallah acknowledged that the reason for these attacks was the aim for the release of prisoners that were held hostages by Israel. In this sense, the Hezbollahs leadership Nasrallah decided to launch these attacks and to capture two Israeli soldiers as a strategy to accomplish its objective to free the prisoners held hostages by Israel (ibid.). Initially, the Hezbollah leadership Nasrallah thought that the goal to free the prisoners could be attained by exchanging prisoners with Israel through negotiations. However, Nasrallah, the head of the Hezbollah organization made a vital decision that resulted in a war situation which severely affected Palestinian and Lebanese populations. In fact, the Israeli Prime Minister Olmert refused to negotiate with the Hezbollah organization (Harel and Issacharoff, 2008 p.76). The Israeli Prime Minister Olmert warned that a forceful Israeli response would follow to the attacks of the Hezbollah which led to the escalation of the second war between Israel and the Hezbollah (Ibid.). The Israeli key actors who orchestrated the plan to apply force against Hezbollah were the Prime Minister Ehud Olmert, the Defense Minister Amir Peretz and the Chief of Staff Dan Halutz (ibid,). Following the unlawful kidnapping of Israeli soldiers, the Prime Minister Olmert saw the incident as an opportunity to use force against Hezbollah with the approval of the international community. Hence, the Israeli Prime Minister Olmert put forward the claim that the Lebanese government included members of the Hezbollah organization and decided to implement the plan to use force against Hezbollah (Ibid). The Chief of Staff, Dan Halutz proposed military operations to bomb major Lebanese civilian infrastructures such as Beirut airport (Wheat, 2011p.13). Amir Peretz who was rather new to the position of Israeli Defense Minister and without experience approved the bombardment of areas from which the Hezbollah was launching rockets to Northern Israel (ibid.). These main actors were responsible for making vital decisions which led to the second Lebanon war that lasted 34 days (ibid.). According

to the Winograd Commission, the Israeli officials approach to tackle the incident was based on wrong political and strategic decisions. Therefore, the Israeli leadership failed to adopt a strategic plan in order to achieve Israelis military and political objectives (Harel and Issacharoff, 2008, p.245). Moreover, the Commission stated, that the proposed forceful military campaign against Hezbollah gained support within the Israeli cabinet because of the vaguely defined Israeli objectives and the strategy to pursue these goals. Thus, the ministers supported an ambiguous decision to authorize a military campaign without a clue of the serious consequences which would result from this decision to go to war (ibid, p.246). Even the Israeli media portrayed a positive image of the 2006 Lebanon conflict. The media emphasized the objectives that the Israeli leadership claimed to accomplish by using force against Hezbollah. The media hardly presented a critical view on these objectives and the rational strategy to pursue them (Levy, 2010, p.795). Therefore, the media supported a pro Israeli view of the war and ignored the critical aspect of the 2006 Israeli-Hezbollah conflict (ibid.). This implies that coverage of the conflict in the news reflected the Israeli media point of view consistent with the government war initiative. The media professionals perspectives on minority groups also influenced the media representation of the event which excludes minority from the public image. The perceived interests of the majority social groups are presented by the media professionals who are involved in the process of shifting the social and political environment (Avraham and First, 2010, p.484). These media professionals make cultural assumptions concerning the values which prevail in the Israeli society, which in turn affect the news making process and the news content (ibid.). The media representation of the Israeli majority social groups is biased towards the minority Arab- Israeli groups. As the media representation is based on cultural assumption about the societys core cultural values, the media professionals rather portrayed news stories that reflect the Israeli culture (ibid.). Consequently, the ArabIsraeli minority groups which represent about 18% of the Israeli population and established in the Gaza Strip and the occupied territories like the West Bank has no impact on issues that affect the majority of groups within the Israeli society (Avraham and First, 2010, p.485).

Changes in the political and social reality as a result of the media involvement, shaping social and political environment has contributed to the culturally divided Israeli society which consists of Jewish and Arab-Israeli (ibid). In fact, one of the most important social transformations to strengthen a separatist culture in Israeli has been the politicized voting system which has been enhanced in order to strengthen the Palestinian-national identity (ibid.). Consequently, due to the change to strong Palestinian national identity, the majority of Jewish people regard the presence of Arabs as a threat to the existence of the state of Israel (ibid.). The media independence is restricted by the government which influenced the medias approach to cover and interpret the war (Avraham and First, 2010, p.485). The underlying motivation for the government limitation on the medias autonomy serves to constrain the media decision making power to portray of the Arab- Israeli conflict. Therefore, during the war, the Israeli media coverage emphasizes the government objectives and portrays the conflict in accordance with a nationalist perspective in order to rally public support for governmental actions (ibid.). Following the incident which led to the abduction of the two Israeli soldiers, the Israeli leaderships announced its decision to wage war against Hezbollah. This official decision to attack the Hezbollah in Southern Lebanon gained significant public support. Approximately 95 percent of the Israeli population supported the government pro war decision (Wheat, 2011, p.13). The states of the international community recognized Israelis right to defend its territory, which implies that they also supported the Israeli strategy to use force (Dijkstra, 2011, p.8). However, the Western states also insisted on an agreement between Israel and the Hezbollah to cease fire and to end their hostilities (ibid.). The exact number of casualties is disputed by the two sides involved in the conflict. Yet, according to an official report of the Israeli Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the war caused the death of 162 Israeli, 43 civilians and 119 soldiers (Kalb and Saivetz, 2007, p.48). By contrast, according to the Associated Press, statistics reveal that 845 Lebanese lost their lives, 743 civilians, 34 soldiers and 68 Hezbollah militants (ibid.). Clearly, the Hezbollah suffered from a greater loss than Israeli not to mention the damaged infrastructures like the Beirut airport as noted earlier.

Chapter 3 Applying the framework The concept of framing as defined above can be used to explain the applied method by the Israeli media to frame the 2006 Israeli-Lebanon conflict. For example, the media exposure of wounded Israeli soldiers during the conflict. In this case the media used frames that displayed the great courage of wounded Israeli excluding aspects of the human suffering due to the atrocities caused by the 2006 war (ibid.). This implies that the applied media framing of the wounded soldiers contributed to the construction of meaning that the public interprets as mediated in the news. Therefore, in the process of framing a controversial event, the media rules out alternative explanations in order to communicate the medias interpretation of the event that the public perceives differently (ibid.). A great deal of studies has used the concept of framing to examine the effect of labeling events or issues that are communicated as messages to public. Based on these studies the effect of media framing is that people value the meaningful messages that the media communicates to them. Thus, the media framing is able to affect public perception as the applied frame to present issues or events provide a view of the media which contribute to the process of socially constructed event (Cable, 2010, p. 284). Another applied instrument in media framing is the use of metaphor to create meaning. In a general sense the use of metaphors in media framing involves the images or the language used in the media representation of issues or events. The relevance of metaphors in the media framing is that it can be applied to depict a problem or situation. The media representation of events or issues by means of metaphors aims to attain certain framing effects by comparing the problem defined with the metaphor (Reese and Gandy, 2003, p.277). However, from a theoretical perspective, metaphors are abstract concepts which are used to conceptualize event which are experienced by individuals (Lakoff, 1993, p.204). In this sense, individuals use metaphor as a result of experienced situations or events. Therefore, although individuals use metaphor to describe experienced situations with reality by analogy, there is no certainty that metaphors be used to reflect an accurate image of a situation that can be generalized to the individuals social context (ibid.). The Israeli media metaphorical interpretation of the event as War is business aimed to shape a meaning of the conflict that characterized the event as normal in the Israeli social context (Gavriely-Nuri, 2008, p.6). Moreover, in the Israeli media

representation, the potential consequences resulting from the conflict were underestimated. Especially casualties caused by the Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) operations in Southern Lebanon were excluded from the Israeli media coverage. This portrayed image of the 2006 Israeli-Hezbollah conflict served to justify the war as a legitimate act of Israel which gained support from that the leftist political movement that are actually peace advocates (ibid). The majority of the Israeli population also provided support for the cause of the war which the leadership used to rationalize the 2006 Israeli-Hezbollah conflict as mentioned earlier. From this perspective, the public perception of the Israeli media coverage of the 2006 Israeli-Hezbollah conflict is affected by the effect of the frame applied to report political news stories. Thus, the media framing can significantly influence public view. Political news stories are shaped via media framing that are interpreted from the media perspective which in turn affect public perception. The media process of framing political news is also influenced by the role of news elites, political figures and the public (Cable, 2010, p. 290). The Israeli media representation of Arab-Israelis minority is in many ways biased. This can be explained by the 2000 October demonstrations for example which led to a struggle between Arab-Israelis and Israeli polices forces. The outcome of the clash was the deaths of Arab-Israelis (Avraham and First, 2010 p. 491). The media coverage of the incident on Israeli television news programmes 1 and 2 displayed 32 percent of political news that concerned statements made by Jewish politicians as opposed to 14 percent news content about Arab political figures (ibid.). Another significant factor that contributes to the process of media framing is the nationality of the media professionals. The applied frame by Jewish reporters to cover the event of 2000 reflected a Jewish media perspective which labeled Israeli-Arab citizens as violent demonstrators (Avraham and First, 2010, p.493). But in case of Jewish riots the media portrayed a rather different view that characterized the event as a struggle between Jews and Arabs (ibid.). This implies that Jewish journalists can have certain cultural assumptions that can affect the construction of news to support Jewish viewpoints of events (ibid.).

In October 1, 2000, the Israeli television news programme Channel 1 negatively portrayed the Israeli-Arab minority groups (Avraham and First, 2010, p.493). The media covered the 2000 event from an Israeli perspective that subjectively associated Arabs in Israel with the Intifada and Palestinians (ibid). The Israeli- Arab situation illustrates the media representation in favor of the majority of Jewish groups. The media narratives in most Israeli television news programmes predominantly communicate a Jewish majority view on events while excluding Israeli-Arab minority group (ibid. p 496). The implication for the Israeli-Arab minority groups is a social disadvantage as their voice cannot be heard within the Israeli society (ibid.). The social problems of discrimination and concerns that affect Arab populations within Israel are not covered in the Israeli media. The Israeli media selects negative events like crimes, protests and anti-Israeli movement that it can portray in the news in order to expose Israeli Arab as a threat to the Jewish society (Bar-Tal and Teichman, p. 156). The Israeli media frames a negative image of Israeli Arab which has an effect on public perception, despite the fact that 99, 9 percent of Arab citizens of the state of Israel do not engage in illicit actions (ibid.). This indicates that much of the Israeli media coverage on Israeli-Arab is not supported by facts. The Israeli media professionals depict the conflict and the Israeli Arab minority from an ideological perspective which makes it not easy the Israeli defense forces. The settlement of the majority Jewish community in Israel is another factor which the Israeli media has to consider and cannot criticize in the published news. Therefore, the Israeli media presents the conflict from a Jewish perspective which in turn can be uniformly interpreted and supported the members of society (Bar-Tal and Teichman, p. 156). In times of war, government can use the media as a strategy to pursue specific goals. Key actors and governmental bodies regulate which information can be published in the news media. The control and access of information enables government to influence the way that media frame political issues (Caldwell and William, 2009, p. 7). The media frames political issues in favor of the government which can pursue its political or military goals (ibid.). During the 2006 Israeli-Hezbollah conflict, the Israeli Prime Minister Olmert officially stated that the Israeli government pursued the goal to destroy the Hezbollah organization (ibid.). However, during this official statement, the Israeli leadership did not

announce the time and scale of the conflict (ibid.). Therefore, the Israeli government made use of the positive media framing of the war at home and abroad as an opportunity to allow the Israeli defense forces to carry out the military operations (ibid.). The Israeli government effectively controlled the access of information which made it difficult for Israeli and foreign media journalists to report on facts of the 2006 conflict (Kalb and Saivetz, 2007, p.53). The government aimed to restrict the access to relevant information so that it could use the media as tool of propaganda for public support (ibid.). The Israeli Media Lines News chaired a meeting which most Israeli and foreign media professionals who participated in the media coverage of the conflict attended in order to discuss their concern for the lack of access to information during the war. It was concluded that the most journalists encountered difficulties in the sense that they were not allowed to access the war zones in order to describe facts concerning the conflict (Kalb and Saivetz, 2007, p.55). In fact, the Israeli police that controlled the Israeli border kept Al-Jazeera journalists away from war sites thereby restricted the access to information (ibid.).

Findings and Discussion Researchers observed the news content of two Israeli news items namely Haaretz and Yedioth Ahronoth, with respect to the Land Day protest which took place in 1976. These Israeli news media frame the Israeli-Arab as a danger even before the riots began (Bar-Tal and Teichman, p.153). This implies that Israeli media emphasize its views on Israeli- Arab and ignored the reasons for the demonstration (ibid). Thus, the media framing characterized the Arab-Israeli demonstration as a hostile act against the government rather than citizens of the state of Israeli who wants to draw the government attention on their concerns (ibid.p.154).

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Competing Actors and the Construction of Political News: The Contest

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