Entertainment leaders are calling on celebrities and influencers to stop the spread of misinformation surrounding the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. Michael Bublé, Gene Simmons, and Meghan McCain are among over 130 celebrities and executives who signed an open letter calling for balanced discourse about the escalating violence in Israel and Palestinian Territories. Released by the nonprofit entertainment industry organization Creative Community For Peace, the open letter urges those in the entertainment community to use their voice to call for the deescalation of violence and the end to divisive rhetoric while also acknowledging the pain and loss impacting all parties involved in the conflict.
The joint statement comes amid a wave of violence in Israel and the Palestinian Territories, including indiscriminate rocket attacks targeting metropolitan areas throughout Israel as well as Israel’s retaliatory response in Gaza. “We are deeply concerned by the escalating violence in Israel and the Palestinian Territories,” the statement reads. “The loss of life and violence is heartbreaking. We call on the leaders of all parties to end the violence, urge calm, and work toward deescalation.” The statement’s signers are among the first in the entertainment industry to publicly promote peace while also opposing a surge of deceptive media narratives that have dominated the news cycle since tensions escalated nearly a week ago. “We also call on our colleagues and friends in the entertainment community to stop posting misinformation and one-sided narratives that only work to inflame the conflict instead of bringing about peace,” the statement continues.
“Misinformed and fallacious memes being posted by those far away from the conflict are being taken for truth,” said Ari Ingel, Director of Creative Community for Peace. “This distorted version of reality is being spread online and then amplified by influencers, which only fans the flames of hatred and has real-life consequences.” Celebrities’ public stances during this current attack have been under immense spotlight. Actress Gal Gadot recently was under fire for her statement on her social media accounts decrying the war and violence, using a rather generic language, and not assigning blame. However, her words ignited a backlash, and she disabled comments on her Instagram and Twitter accounts.
Moreover, supermodel Bella Hadid in the last few weeks has been very vocal against the attacks made on Palestine. She even was seen recently protesting at pro-Palestine events. She did however draw the ire of Israel’s official social media account, run by the foreign ministry’s digital diplomacy team, which falsely accused the model of wanting to throw Jewish people “into the sea.” “When celebrities like Bella Hadid advocate for throwing Jews into the sea, they are advocating for the elimination of the Jewish State,” a tweet said. The accusation referred to Instagram live footage which showed Hadid joining in with the chant “From the river to the sea, Palestine will be free.” Fellow supermodel, Kendall Jenner, and heiress, Paris Hilton, were also seen posting about the current conflict in the Middle East, but both deleted their comments quickly after. Many fans called the two out for their tweet removals.
This joint statement comes at a time of unrest, with many of these leaders wanting to use their platforms to combat misleading and one-sided accounts of the conflict in Israel and the Palestinian Territories. The CCFP was founded by entertainment industry executives and is a nonprofit organization composed of prominent members of the entertainment industry who have come together to promote the arts as a means to peace, to counter antisemitism within the entertainment industry, and to galvanize support against the cultural boycott of Israel. CCFP is apolitical and does not stand for any government official or party. Instead, CCFP believes in artists and their ability to affect lives and effect positive change in the world.
For more information please visit: creativecommunityforpeace.com
