2025 – As the only democracy in the Middle East, Israel’s free press is unparalleled in the region and plays a critical role as the country’s watchdog. The Center for Media and Democracy, known as Shomrim (“Guardians”) was established in 2019 to strengthen democracy in Israel through investigative journalism. Inspired by ProPublica, it is independent and not-for-profit, working in partnership with other media outlets to hold government accountable. As part of its mission, Shomrim seeks to highlight new voices and to examine issues of importance to communities overlooked by the mainstream press. This includes the Arab sector, which has few journalists in the Hebrew-speaking media. In 2023, of 3,000 journalists with press office credentials, 200 are from the Arab sector and 25% of those worked in Hebrew media. On Hebrew television and radio, in the first half of 2024 only 1.5% of experts interviewed were from the Arab community, down from roughly 4% the year before.

Looking for reporters from the Arab sector, Shomrim found there were few effective pathways for interested reporters from Arab and other communities underrepresented in the mainstream press to learn and practice investigative reporting. The few existing opportunities were unpaid and lacked ongoing institutional commitment.  Since 2022, Revson has supported the paid training of reporters from Israel’s Arab and ultra-Orthodox communities. Their published work includes an expose of mental health exemption “fixers” for Haredi youth; how the lack of sex education in ultra-Orthodox society leaves the its young vulnerable to exploitation and harm and reports on changing attitudes towards Israel among a new generation in the Druze community; the plight of LGBT Arab youth; and the housing crisis in the Arab community.

After October 7, 2023, journalists were some of Israel’s first responders to the scene. Recognizing their essential public service and the toll it takes, Shomrim established the Emergency Fund for Israel’s Frontline Journalists that provided grants for mental resilience support to journalists, photographers, videographers, and sound technicians working in Israel’s zones of combat zones. In 2024 the Fund received special recognition by the  Shimon Peres Prize from the German-Israeli Future Forum. Read Revson’s president Julie Sandorf’s describe the Fund’s creation here.

Photo credit: Bea Bar Kallosh via Shomrim