The Times of Israel Daily Briefing

Welcome to The Times of Israel's Daily Briefing, your 20-minute audio update on what's happening in Israel, the Middle East and the Jewish world.
Analyst Ben Sales joins host Amanda Borschel-Dan for today's episode.
Sales, who covered the 2021 Capitol Hill riot, hears echoes of what he calls the "Trump playbook" in the steps Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his supporters have taken since the October 27 national election.
What are these signs, and could demonstrations -- such as the right-wing rally set for today outside the Knesset -- turn violent?
Sales compares and contrasts the lead-up to the January 6, 2021, riot with the state of play in Israel today. How is the media in both countries potentially responsible for inflaming the situation?
We also learn about a historical precedent in Israel: Rioters stormed the Knesset in 1952.
Check out The Times of Israel's ongoing liveblog for more updates.
For further reading:
Is Netanyahu laying the groundwork for an Israeli January 6?
Police said to see little evidence to back Shin Bet probe into foreign election interference
Subscribe to The Times of Israel Daily Briefing on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, YouTube, or wherever you get your podcasts. This episode was produced by Ari Schlacht.
See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Welcome to The Times of Israel's Daily Briefing, your 20-minute audio update on what's happening in Israel, the Middle East and the Jewish world.
ToI founding editor David Horovitz joins host Jessica Steinberg for today's episode.
As Yashar party leader Gadi Eisenkot is tasked by President Isaac Herzog to form a government, Horovitz reviews the timeline and the political challenges facing the nominated leader.
Horovitz otes the recent prevarications by Yisrael Beytenu chairman Avigdor Liberman, after his bombshell announcement that he would be open to a government with ultra-Orthodox parties that oppose universal military service, later clarifying that he still seeks mandatory enlistment for all.
As the Shin Bet reportedly failed to find any evidence of a foreign interference campaign in the recent election, Horovitz discusses the questionable request by Shin Bet chief David Zini, known for his allegiance to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
As US President Donald Trump remarked on the 'great dislike' for Israel among US voters, Horovitz mentions the leader's recent declaration to cut off Israeli military aid by the end of 2026, discussing whether Israel will still be able to purchase American defense products in the future.
Finally, Horovitz discusses a recent concert featuring Radiohead's Jonny Greenwood and Israeli rocker Dudu Tassa performing Arabic music, and the harmony portrayed in that one-time performance.
Check out The Times of Israel's ongoing liveblog for more updates.
For further reading:
Subscribe to The Times of Israel Daily Briefing on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, YouTube, or wherever you get your podcasts. This episode was produced by Yitzchak Ledee.
Eisenkot tasked with forming government, vows ‘creative and unconventional’ path to ‘emergency’ coalition
Liberman bashed Netanyahu’s enlistment bill. The one he put on the table is weaker
Under fire for urging ‘compromise,’ Liberman says he still wants Haredim to serve
Report: Shin Bet has no evidence of election interference, ‘everyone except Zini’ understands nothing will come of it
AG: Fraud probes have turned up nothing that would ‘even remotely’ affect election results
Trump: Republicans did poorly in midterms because of a ‘great dislike’ for Israel
Rubio says Iranians making ‘outrageous and ridiculous’ demands in negotiations
Dudu Tassa and Jonny Greenwood let their stirring Arabic music speak louder than politics
IMAGE: Times of Israel founding editor David Horovitz appears on the Daily Briefing podcast with host Jessica Steinberg (Flash 90)
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Welcome to "Still Life in Israel with Jessica Steinberg," a new weekly podcast in which The Times of Israel’s arts and culture editor explores what life in Israel looks and feels like right now, through conversations with the artists, writers, musicians, and other voices helping us make sense of this moment.
For this second episode in the new series, we speak with Mark Feuerstein, a veteran character actor who has appeared in dozens of films and television series, including "The West Wing," "Prison Break," "Royal Pain," and "In Her Shoes."
Feuerstein is in Israel filming the YES intelligence thriller "Midair” produced by Paramount-owned Ananey Studios in collaboration with KODA and Jaya Entertainment.
Feuerstein plays a CIA agent in this latest role, racing to neutralize a mysterious weapon aboard a fighter jet flying above Israel, before the crisis turns into a catastrophe.
The actor arrived in Israel a month ago for his first trip to the country in 40 years, and he discusses his New York Jewish upbringing, raising his three kids in Los Angeles, and the existential realities of being an "October 8" Jew.
Feuerstein also talks about being Jewish in Hollywood, where there is both subtle and blatant antisemitism since the October 7, 2023 Hamas terrorist attack and how he has responded.
At the end of the podcast, Steinberg adds the Still Life calendar, a brief listing of upcoming arts and culture events over the next few weeks.
For further reading:
Global industry professionals spurn major Israeli music showcase amid cultural boycott
Israel’s traumas, absurdities come into focus via a veteran photojournalist’s lens
Jerusalem’s largest Biennale yet asked artists to plumb their depths
Still Life in Israel podcast episodes are available for download on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, YouTube, or wherever you get your podcasts. This episode was produced by Ari Schlacht.
IMAGE: Actor Mark Feuerstein appears on Still Life in Israel with host Jessica Steinberg (Courtesy)
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Welcome to The Times of Israel's Daily Briefing, your 20-minute audio update on what's happening in Israel, the Middle East and the Jewish world.
Health reporter Diana Bletter joins host Gabriella Jacobs for today's episode.
Residents of the Western Galilee — a diverse mix of Jews, Muslims, Druze and Christians — came out in full force to vote in the October 27 polls. Bletter discusses the factors which these Israeli citizens say informed their voting decisions.
On election day, Bletter visited Yarka, Nahariya and Mazra'a and noticed a different energy than in past elections. Yet now, as the country struggles to form a new government, Bletter reports a total lack of consensus across the region, and that the initial atmosphere of optimism has faded into uncertainty.
After the break we take a look at Israel’s trailblazing protocols for repatriating October 7 hostages, which are detailed in new study published in the journal Healthcare.
Subscribe to The Times of Israel Daily Briefing on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, YouTube, or wherever you get your podcasts. This episode was produced by Gabriella Jacobs and edited by Ari Schlacht.
See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Welcome to The Reel Schmooze with ToI film reviewer Jordan Hoffman and host Amanda Borschel-Dan, where we bring you all the entertainment news and film reviews a Jew can use.
Continuing in our decade-by-decade comedy viewing, this week's featured Schmooze film is 1998's "Slums of Beverly Hills."
Set in 1976, the film was written and directed by Tamara Jenkins and is loosely based on her life story of growing up poor with her divorced Jewish father and brothers.
Brilliantly cast, it stars then 19-year-old Natasha Lyonne as a 14-year-old Vivian Abromowitz who is on the cusp of discovering -- and exercising -- her feminine power.
Alan Arkin is Murray, her 65-year-old out-of-luck father; Marisa Tomei is her drug-addled 29-year-old cousin; David Krumholtz is her obnoxious older brother and Kevin Corrigan plays the friendly Jewish pot dealer from next door. There are great scenes with Jessica Walter, Carl Reiner and Rita Moreno, who all play against type and are even better for it.
The movie is racy, and it includes disturbing and provocative scenes (dildo dance, anyone?).
Let’s hear who gave this film an “oy,” “meh” or the prized “not bad” this week on The Reel Schmooze.
The Reel Schmooze is produced by Ari Schlacht and can be found wherever you get your podcasts.
See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.