The Seventh Eye journal was established in 1996 by senior Israeli journalists who wished to establish a transparent platform for discussing the issues of their trade. It quickly became the most significant arena for honest and constructive dialogue on the challenges facing the Israeli media—a journal in which journalists evaluated and criticized the media’s performance, raised ethical questions, and discussed issues in the Israeli media world.
In 2008, this global pioneer of journalistic self-criticism abandoned its bimonthly printed format and was transformed into a vibrant website. Now an online journal, The Seventh Eye exposes the inner workings of the media, offers new perspectives on media ethics, and empowers journalists to fulfill their role as watchdogs of Israel’s embattled democracy. Its articles are cited frequently in Supreme Court rulings, Knesset position papers, and academic research and it is often quoted by the media, websites, and blogs.
Under the direction of Editor Uzi Benziman, The Seventh Eye provides new perspectives and resources for media professionals and the public. It presents excerpts from professional monographs, maintains a database of media-related court rulings, includes a lexicon of communications terminology, maintains an archive of its printed issues, and provides links to newspapers and communications research centers around the world.
The Seventh Eye also plays a central role in training the next generation of Israeli media professionals. A valuable teaching tool in academic programs in communications, it serves as a resource for faculty and students of journalism, communications, and political science. Supervised by IDI Vice President Prof. Mordechai Kremnitzer, former president of the Israeli Press Council, this virtual meeting ground for journalists, academics, and students subjects the press to high level, ongoing quality control.
The Seventh Eye website receives an average of one hundred thousand visits per month. With over 10,000 subscribers to its weekly newsletter, it reaches newspaper editors, Knesset members, judges, academics, and communications professionals, enriching discourse in political and civil circles and in all types of media. In a society like Israel's, racked by growing cultural divisions and constant external threat, The Seventh Eye is an indispensable tool for democratic stability.
Visit the Seventh Eye website (Hebrew)