Sneak Peek: Amit Segal on the polls vs the election in Israel

**Dan Senor** (0:00)
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**Dan Senor** (0:46)
You are listening to an Ark Media Podcast.
Welcome to Inside Call Me Back, our members-only edition where we open the door and let you shape the conversation. And today in the hot seat, addressing your questions and your personal dilemmas is Ark Media contributor, Amit Segal. Amit, welcome back to The Inside.

**Amit Segal** (1:13)
Thank you so much.

**Dan Senor** (1:14)
Before we jump into the questions, I understand the topic of weight loss right now is a, maybe this is too sensitive a topic. So for our listeners who haven't been following this, this is something that's gone viral inside Israel, where Prime Minister Netanyahu was doing what, like the equivalent, like a town hall meeting, a Channel 14 sponsored town hall meeting.

**Amit Segal** (1:32)
An interview, an interview.

**Dan Senor** (1:33)
Yeah, but in front of a live audience.

**Amit Segal** (1:35)
Yep.

**Dan Senor** (1:36)
Well, why don't you explain what happened?

**Amit Segal** (1:38)
It was a very long, friendly, yet interesting interview. And Netanyahu was in a very friendly, supportive atmosphere. So when he asked in what fashion has he changed since October 7th, he said, I lost some weight.
And then after a few seconds, he collected his thoughts and said, but seriously, one, two, three, four, five. However, the fact that he joked on October 7th.

**Dan Senor** (2:02)
Joked about October 7th.

**Amit Segal** (2:04)
He joked about October 7th. Exactly. He has been making a lot of noise in Israel.

**Dan Senor** (2:08)
Okay. So this has been coming up a lot in conversations I've had with Israelis about how these different comments can just be very triggering, very upsetting. I mean, I just came up with, I was talking to Avi Sikharov and Lior Raz about the new season of Fauda that has a couple of episodes that deals with October 7th. And season five takes place way after October 7th, a couple of years after, but they have like flashbacks in a couple of episodes to October 7th. They had to put out a disclaimer when the season was released to alert viewers that two episodes deal with October 7th and may have like a triggering aspect that may be very hard for people to watch.

**Amit Segal** (2:44)
Right.

**Dan Senor** (2:44)
And that if they want to skip those episodes, they can. And it won't mean that you'll lose the plot of the whole series. So this is just coming up a lot and a lot. So when Netanyahu makes an offhand joke, for many, I would argue most Israelis, I could see why they're just like, I mean, it's just so offensive.

**Amit Segal** (2:59)
Yeah, it's offensive.
I don't think it's going to move the needle because I'm not sure anything can move the needle when it comes to Netanyahu's positioning in the Israeli public one way or the other. It was a very rare moment for Netanyahu because for me it was clear once I watched it that it's not a typical Netanyahu. He's very aware to say the least of sensitivities and things not to joke about, et cetera. Is it going to decide the election? No.

**Dan Senor** (3:29)
Yeah. Well, let me say this. Michael Kinsley, the famous American journalist and pundit and he was editor-in-chief of the New Republic, he since passed away. He had this very good line about the definition of a GAF. What is a GAF or GAF in politics?
And he says a GAF basically is when a public figure accidentally breaks character or drops their spin to reveal an unfiltered thought that reveals like exactly how they think about an issue or about a set of events. It was a GAF clearly. I mean, but if you applied the Kinsley lens to it, a GAF kind of reinforces what people think about that person. So it's not that anyone thinks Netanyahu is really so loose and lighthearted about October 7th. Please give me a break. I don't believe that for a second. But if people perceive that he hasn't taken responsibility to the extent that he should, that he hasn't been as sensitive to how much Israeli society was traumatized and shattered, then a joke like that reinforces what they already think of what he thinks.