HonestReporting's 14th Israel Mission
November 3rd - 9th, 2010
Sample itinerary – based on past Missions (subject to change)
Wednesday, November 3rd
 
6:30-8:45 am Breakfast
Israel is famous for its special hotel breakfast: this is not just any breakfast – it's a banquet! Enjoy a countless selection of cheeses, homemade breads, juices, coffees, fruits, grains, cereals, veggies, fish and more.
 
 
9:00 am Welcome to Jerusalem!
Introductions and Orientation
 
 
11:30 am "Israel in the 21st Century: Where do we go from here?"
 
 
Buffet lunch at the Inbal hotel
 
 
1:30 pm "Ethics in the Field: An Inside Look at the IDF"
IDF Colonel (res.) Ben-Tzion “Bentzi” Gruber
 
 
3:30 pm Bus to the Western Wall
 
 
4:00 pm Tour of the Western Wall Tunnels with Lee Glassman, Tour Guide, Archaelogist and Historian
 
 
6:30 pm Dinner at 'Noya', an elegant, new meat restaurant, combining the tastes of the French cuisine and the Mediterranean; located in the center of Jerusalem, in an old and fancy building with a magnificent décor.
 
 
Return to Inbal hotel
 
 
Thursday, November 4th
 
6:30-8:00 am Breakfast
 
 
8:30 am "Confrontation on Campus"
Audio/Visual presentation
Patrick Amar, Hasbara Fellowships
 
 
10:00 am Itamar Marcus, Palestinian Media Watch (www.pmw.org.il) - Watchdog group that monitors Palestinian media for incitement to violence and anti-Israel propaganda
 
 
11:45 am Depart for the Israel Intelligence Heritage & Commemoration Center (IICC), for light lunch, followed by:
 
 
  • Brig. Gen. (res.) David Tzur, IICC general manager
  • Presentation film
  • Guidance tour of the Memorial Maze
  • Multimedia show – "A Race against Time - A Battle of Wits"
  • The Terror Exhibition
  • Miri Eisin, Israel’s first female Government Spokesperson
 
 
Dinner at El Gaucho one of Israel’s leading steak restaurants, in Ramat Gan.
 
 
Friday, November 5th
 
8:30 am Fauxtography: Photo Bias in the Media
 
 
10:00 am "Behind the Scenes at HonestReporting"
Joe Hyams, CEO - HonestReporting.com
 
 
11:30 am Lunch in the trendy German Colony, followed by free time for shopping, and leisure.
 
 
3:30 pm Leave for Old City
 
 
6:00 pm Candlelighting (4:06 pm)

Kabbalat Shabbat at the Western Wall
 
 
5:00 pm Shabbat Dinner in the Old City overlooking the Western Wall
An authentic, traditional Shabbat experience in the Heart of Jerusalem.
 
 
Walk back to Inbal Hotel (approx 40 minutes).
 
 
Shabbat: Saturday, November 6th
 
8:15 am Optional Shabbat morning services in the beautiful 100-year old synagogue of Yemin Moshe overlooking the walls of Jerusalem, or in other Congregations throughout Jerusalem. (Other options available from hotel Concierge)

Shabbat lunch:Home Hospitality with English-speaking families who now live in Jerusalem
 
 
4:00 pm "What Arabs inside Israel are Really Thinking"
Khaled Abu Toameh, Israeli Arab, West Bank and Gaza correspondent for the Jerusalem Post, and the US News and World Report
 
 
5:20 pm Havdallah- bringing the Shabbat to a close, in the traditional way
 
 
5:45 pm "Fact over Fiction – How one journalist realized that fiction is a better vehicle for portraying the Middle-East accurately, over Journalism Matt Rees,"
Former Middle East Correspondent for Newsweek and Times Magazine; now a best-selling Author of Palestinian Crime Novels.
 
 
Buffet Supper at the Inbal hotel.
 
 
7:30 pm "Shaping Israel’s Image: How to be an Effective Advocate"
David Olesker – Jerusalem Center for Communication and Advocacy Training. JCCAT’s counter-propaganda workshops teach Israel supporters how to understand the way negative perceptions of Israel are formed and the tools needed to present a new positive image.
 
 
Sunday, November 7th
 
8:30 am Bus to MediaCentral
 
 
Welcome to MediaCentral, Israel’s premier bureau for Foreign Correspondents.
 
 
9:00 am MediaCentral: Reaching out to the Press
Aryeh Green, Director
 
 
11:00 am "Taking the Battle Against Terrorism into the Courts" Nitsana Leitner, Esq.,Director, Israel Legal Center; providing legal representation and resources for courtroom struggles on behalf of the Jewish State.
 
 
12:30 pm Lunch at Café Rimon, on the Ben Yehuda pedestrian mall
 
 
2:00 pm "Myths & Reality in the Refugee Problem"
Dr. Mordechai Kedar a lecturer in Arabic at Bar-Ilan University, also an expert on Israeli Arabs.
 
 
4:00 pm Travel south to the Judean Desert
 
 
  • The Bedouin Community: Is Israel doing enough?
  • Dinner & Drums in a biblical atmosphere
  • Meet with Ishmael Khaldi, Israel’s first Bedouin to serve as a Diplomat, representing the State of Israel
 
 
Monday, November 8th
 
7:30 am Meet In Lobby of Inbal Hotel
"Threats & Security" Overview, with Elliot Chodof, Military Analyst, IDF Major (res.) Itinerary subject to change, due to political considerations
 
 
  • The Flotilla “Crisis” – The Good; The Bad & The Ugly
  • VIP visit to IDF Navy base
  • Observe and discuss issues connected with the Security Barrier
  • Visit Sderot Police Station and view a collection of rockets fired from Gaza
  • Picnic lunch overlooking Gaza
  • Discuss means of combating terrorism and the new hybrid guerrilla/terrorist organizations
  • Discuss civilian involvement on both sides of the conflict; military vs political solutions with terrorist organizations, and their sponsor states.
  • Dinner in a stunning Yemenite restaurant in Kfar Maimon
 
 
Return to Jerusalem.
 
 
Tuesday, November 9th
 
8:00 am "Don’t Just Think About It; Do Something. . ."
Tips, ideas, and brainstorming for becoming better advocates for Israel.
 
 
10:00 am "The Foreign Media in Israel"
Danny Seaman, Director, Government Press Office.
 
 
11:30 am "A Journalist's View"
Caroline Glick, Deputy Managing Editor -The Jerusalem Post
 
 
Light lunch; check out for those leaving the hotel today
 
 
2:00 pm Travel to JCPA for meetings with:
 
 
Dr. Dore Gold, 11th Permanent Representative of Israel to the United Nations & Past Foreign Policy Advisor to Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu
 
 
Prof. Gerald M. Steinberg, President, NGO Monitor and Political Science Department, Bar Ilan University
 
 
5:00 pm Final Dinner and closing remarks in the gardens of the beautiful Anna Ticho House
 
 
8:15 pm Transfer to airport for those leaving tonight