Don't Know Much About with Naya Lekht
Don't Know Much About is a show devoted to unpacking contentious topics--to clarify the complex and empower people to understand historical and political events.
Don't Know Much About with Naya Lekht
Heroes, Villains, and Speaking for a Nation with Eylon Levy
In this episode, I sit down with Eylon Levy, former spokesman for the State of Israel, to ask, what is the role of a government spokesman, and does every country have one? We begin by examining the function of state advocacy, public diplomacy, and crisis communication, separating myth from reality in how nations speak for themselves on the world stage.
From there, the conversation widens to the deeper challenge facing Israel today. We argue that advocacy cannot remain reactive or limited to fact-checking and image repair. Instead, it must pivot toward confronting the ideological forces that fuel anti-Israel and anti-Jewish hostility, particularly the belief systems that distort moral language, weaponize grievance, and normalize demonization.
I conclude with a reflective note: Who are our heroes today? Eylon names Abba Eban, who spoke ten languages fluently! Eylon recounts the legend that when Eban expressed interest in becoming Israel’s prime minister, Golda Meir quipped, “Of which country?”—a remark that captured Eban’s legendary diplomacy and global stature. His mastery of moral clarity, eloquence, and restraint offers a model of leadership and courage that feels both historic and urgently relevant today, laying bare that Israel was and continues to be the solution, not the problem, facing our world.
About the guest: Eylon Levy is a former Spokesman for the State of Israel, who became one of the most globally recognized voices for Israel in the October 7 War. During the war, he gave over 600 interviews to international media outlets, earning him praise from President Trump for his “words of wisdom.” His press conferences from the Israeli Prime Minister’s Office were broadcast live globally. He now heads the Spokesoffice, a civil society initiative that advocates for Israel and the Jewish People in international media. He is a regular panelist on Israeli primetime news, and continues to use his major social media presence to advocate for Israel.
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