The Real Meaning of “Hasbarah” (and Hasbarah)

English has a new word, and it comes from Hebrew. It’s “hasbarah,” more frequently spelled in English (without its final Hebrew letter) as “hasbara.” In either spelling, the stress is placed on the final syllable.

What does it mean? In Hebrew, it denotes an organized effort or program to educate the public about some matter. When this effort has to do with defending Israel, the orchestraters of it are commonly organizations like the Jewish Agency and AIPAC, or such Israeli government institutions as the National Hasbarah Forum, which operates a department in the prime minister’s office in Jerusalem.

To many of Israel’s critics, however, “hasbarah” is something more sinister. Among the definitions of it that you will find on the Internet are: “a selected dissemination of Zionist propaganda as fact”; a web of “fabrications, half-truths, and downright lies” spun on Israel’s behalf; “a [form of] communication calculated to influence cognition and behavior by manipulating perceptions of [Israel’s] cause or position with one-sided arguments, prejudicial substance, and emotional appeals”; “a cynical attempt to flood the web and news media with favorable flackery in a vain attempt to tilt public opinion toward Israel,” and a “policing of social networks for Israel” by a “hasbarah troll brigade.”