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http://www.ynet.co.il/english/Ext/Comp/ArticleLayout/CdaArticlePrintPreview/1,2506,L-3501806,00.html
Israel
- Ultra-Orthodox Press Digitally Erases Women From Images
Haredi print, internet media refuse to publish photos of women,
even those in prominent positions; female member of Winograd Commission omitted
from photograph on news website
Neta Sela
So how many members were there on the
Winograd Commission? A prominent ultra-Orthodox website, www.ladaat.net, chose Thursday
to digitally erase the image of Winograd Commission member, Professor Ruth
Gavison, from their coverage of the commission’s
report.
What is seemingly a simple Photoshop function translates into a
very thorny dilemma for the haredi print and internet media.
On the one hand ultra-Orthodox papers and websites strive to cover
all newsworthy events in the best manner possible. On the other hand, the
haredi media is still considerably wary of publishing women’s photographs, even
when the women in question play central and prominent roles in newsworthy
events.
The ultra-Orthodox press, bound by strict laws regarding modesty
which demand that women be obscured to the greatest extent possible, prefers as
a general rule to refrain from carrying images of females.
Spiritual committees, comprised of rabbis who regularly monitor
haredi sites and newspapers, generally dictate what will appear and what will
not be shown in the haredi press, and, more often then not, they tend to bar
the publication of such photographs.
MK Limor Livnat, who formerly
served as education minister, received treatment similar to Gavison in the
ultra-Orthodox press when her face was digitally blotted out from a photo taken
at a cabinet meeting.
Photos of most women, and even
young girls, are handled similarly. If they are published at all, that is
In an interview with Ynet, Ladaat.net site manager Yechiel Levy
explained that the site “caters to an audience which is highly sensitive
regarding content”, and that he must respect their wishes. He noted that the
decision to blur or remove photos from the site has nothing to do with the
prominence or respectability of women such as Knesset Speaker Dalia Itzik,
Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni, or Professor Gavison
The Ladaat website, explained Levy, is currently operated by
ultra-Orthodox internet providers 'Rimon' and 'Nativ' which use stringent
content filters to remove inappropriate content, such as photographs of women.
“Even if the woman in question is modestly and appropriately
dressed, as soon as a woman’s photo appears on our site they’ll pull the plug
on us, said Levy. “Our very existence as a haredi website is contingent upon
our maintaining a very strict, exacting moral code that we cannot deviate
from.”
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