Benjamin Netanyahu reportedly negotiated with newspaper publisher for positive coverage

Benjamin Netanyahu.
(Image credit: Abir Sultan/AFP/Getty Images)

In 2014, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu met with the publisher of a newspaper that was often critical of him in order to work out a deal for positive coverage, Israeli media reports.

Israel's Channel 2 says Netanyahu was recorded while negotiating with Arnon Mozes, publisher of Yediot Aharonot. Netanyahu reportedly proposed helping the struggling newspaper out by slashing the circulation of its main competitor, Israel Hayom, and limiting that paper's weekend supplement. Israel Hayom is mostly supportive of Netanyahu, and is backed by American billionaire Sheldon Adelson, a major Republican Party donor and patron of Netanyahu. Channel 2 reports that the tape was recorded at the request of Netanyahu's former chief of staff, Ari Harrow, and it was found during an investigation of Harrow on suspicion of financial irregularities.

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Catherine Garcia, The Week US

Catherine Garcia is night editor for TheWeek.com. Her writing and reporting has appeared in Entertainment Weekly and EW.com, The New York Times, The Book of Jezebel, and other publications. A Southern California native, Catherine is a graduate of the University of Redlands and the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism.