I love hearing songs in Hebrew and on paper I should love this big belting ballad from Israel. However I simply don't. This is pure dirge. The plunging neckline doesn't help this either, nor does the wetsuit she appears to be wearing. I really want to like this however I can't find any redeeming features. Sorry to my Israeli friends but it looks like another year in the semis for you and deservedly so.
The UK waited 16 years for a victory in Eurovision after Bucks Fizz won in Dublin in 1981. In Dublin in 1997 history really did repeat itself and Katrina and the Waves stormed to a landslide victory which meant that the honour of hosting the 43rd Eurovision Song Contest was bestowed to the BBC. There are many reasons why 1998 was a landmark contest so let’s take a look back to the last time the BBC hosted the Eurovision Song Contest.
In the mid-1990s the BBC invested heavily into the Eurovision project which in turn, for a time, reversed the fortunes of the popularity of the contest and led to the UK entries becoming credible chart hits. Love City Groove’s eponymous entry from 1995 reached number seven in the UK singles charts and of course Gina G had massive number one with “Ooh Aah… Just a little bit”, which was even nominated for a Grammy. The new approach at the Beeb also spawned some further hits from the Song for Europe show itself; Deuce’s “I Need You” became a top ten hit in 1995. The BBC wanted to win Eurovision in the 1990s, not because of the musical merit but because they wanted to host the event. Eurovision is of course, first and foremost a television format and allows the host broadcaster the opportunity to pioneer new broadcasting techniques. The 1998 contest did exactly that.
1998 is memorable to many fans since it is the last year that the orchestra was present at the event. Many lament the demise of this tradition arguing that the show has lost some of its unique ambience whilst others have barely noticed that the musicians have left the building. In the past many Eurovision fans have criticised the BBC for their apparent aloofness towards them and yet it was the BBC’s Terry Wogan who specifically welcomed the “thousands of fans and supporters” who had gathered in the National Indoor Arena in Birmingham. Whilst fans with flags had increasingly become part of the show, only two or three years before the event felt like almost like a black tie affair. The acknowledgement of the fans in 1998 was a watershed moment in Eurovision history, since this point the show has incorporated fans as very much as part of the show, so much so that they formed the interval act in 2010!
The 43rd Eurovision Song Contest is also notable because it remains the last year that there was a restriction on the language of performance. 1999 saw free language introduced which saw many countries opting to sing in English, dip in and out of English and other languages or in the case of Belgium making up a language of their own (2003, 2008). Finally, the 1998 contest stands out because it was the first year that televoting was introduced en-masse. This one rule change injected new interest in the contest and new controversies and continues to have a lasting impact on the way in which the contest is analysed by fans, critics and academics alike.
The voting in 1998 was perhaps one of the most thrilling sequences since Celine Dion’s narrow one point victory over the UK in 1988. With the leader changing almost with every country voting, it was a race to the finish. By the time the final country voted, the debuting Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, the contest could have been won by three countries. The voting patterns from 1998 appear to be contradictory since it could be argued that they marked a turn towards more explicit “neighbourly voting” which has recently dogged the contest. On the other hand, Malta, with no neighbours scored consistently whilst the UK notched up its 15th second placing, receiving votes from every single participating country. Certainly the outstanding moment in the voting that year was Ulrika Jonsson’s “a long time ago, was it?” gaffe. Personally I think it would have been a whole lot better if Conny, the Dutch spokesperson, had taken offence. Of course Ulrika was merely repeating what had previously been said, the audience in the arena, however, heard differently. It remains one of the highlights of 1998 for me and is a testament to the enduring appeal of live television.
Of course the contest really was Dana International’s. Not only did she win the event, she won the publicity game. Months before the competition the Israeli singer was causing a stir in the European press, Eurovision’s first transgender singer. The selection of Ms International as Israel’s Eurovision entry caused outrage amongst orthodox Jews who viewed her as peripheral to their understanding of national identity. Death threats ensued and the headlines grew. From an academic perspective the controversy concerning Dana International is interesting. According to one esteemed colleague of mine, Professor Brian Singleton, this was the moment that Eurovision itself “came out”, from that point onwards it could be read as an openly queer event. For many fans Dana International’s victory represented a struggle over adversity, in essence a reflection of the very personal journey many people make when they come out as gay.
From a technical perspective the 1998 contest was a triumph for the BBC. The corporation has endured criticism from Eurovision fans for as long as I can remember however their moves toward modernising the contest are a legacy which continues to be felt today. In 2012 the BBC and the UK proved that when they host large international events, they host them well. I personally think it’s about time that the Beeb were responsible for organising Eurovision in the very near future. The challenge is of course finding a winning song for Europe. It seems that when it comes to the UK, hosting the contest is the easy part, winning the damn thing is the real challenge.
Social media is a funny old world isn't it? Facebook, Twitter and
everything else in between really does put us in touch with the world like
never before. We now see so much of each other's lives and seem to know more
about each other than ever before. Politics is one example. Before social
networking took off I didn't really have much of a clue about who my friends
voted for, what their thoughts on abortion are or indeed their views on gay
marriage. It's a totally different ballgame now. People often seem so willing
to share their thoughts on the issues of the day (myself included at times).
However all too often people fly off the handle and resort to personal remarks
or even fall out when they don't agree on something. If it wasn’t for Facebook
then they might never have had that conversation, either online or in person.
Politics is a tricky business and outlets like Facebook and Twitter have
brought this into our lives like never before.
The current escalating conflict between Israel and Gaza highlights this
perfectly. It's not something that I know a great deal about to be honest, nor
is it something I wish to discuss in great depth for that very reason. It is
interesting reading the posts on Facebook though; the apartheid of opinion is
striking. These are certainly troubling times for the people in the region and
indeed for the world as a whole. The on-going tensions and violence in the
Middle East has also had an impact on Eurovision.
Controversy is never far away from Eurovision in any given year and even
more so when Israel's participation is considered. Israel debuted in the
Eurovision Song Contest in 1973 and over the years their appearances have often
been politically sensitive. Several Arab states do not enter Eurovision despite
being eligible to do so. Israel is undoubtedly the main reason. Many Arab
states do not recognise Israel as a sovereign nation state. Eurovision rules
state that each country must broadcast the contest in its entirety, for many of
these countries this would mean broadcasting the Israeli song and therefore
providing a platform of sorts for Israel. Take 1978 for example, when it became
clear that Israel were winning, Jordanian television cut the transmission.
Indeed Morocco is the only Arab and African state to enter Eurovision, in 1980,
when Israel was absent. In 2005 Lebanon were due to make their Eurovision debut
yet when it emerged that they would screen commercials in place of the Israeli
entry they were forced to withdraw. The controversy between Armenia and Azerbaijan in Eurovision highlights the difficulties of enemies coexisting on a
Eurovision stage and if Israel's neighbours were to enter then
Armenia-Azerbaijan issue would seem miniscule in comparison.
Even Israel's Eurovision entries have proved to be hot potatoes over the
years. In 1983 Israel's Ofra Haza performed "Hi" which is widely
interpreted as a metaphor for Israel. Despite the attempts to destroy the
modern Jewish state or the Jewish community, Israel is still alive. This was a
significant entry not only because it was performed in Germany, for obvious
reasons, but also because the Eurovision stage was in Munich, the scene of the
1972 massacre of Israeli Olympians. Remember though, Eurovision is not a
political contest according to the European Broadcasting Union.
In 1998 the Israeli Broadcasting
Authority (IBA) selected a trans-gendered artist, Dana International to
represent Israel at Eurovision. This caused uproar in the country with
ultra-Orthodox Jews, who considered Dana International to be peripheral to
their ideal of national identity. Others such as composer Svika Pikk
highlighted the fact that it was a chance to promote Israel as a liberal and
tolerant country, changing the way the Middle East is imagined. Politician
Shlomo Ben-Izri claimed that the decision“symbolised the sickness of a secular
Israel”. Such discourses show how seriously some nations approach the
Eurovision Song Contest; a Eurovision entry is seen as representative of the
entire nation.
The 1999 Eurovision Song Contest in Jerusalem was also dogged by
controversy. The interval act featured Dana International singing below
Jerusalem’s historic city walls caused further outrage to ultra-Orthodox Jews,
who were also incensed at religious lyrics being used in the performance. The
rules of the Eurovision Song Contest state that a full dress rehearsal must
take place on the Friday evening before the contest. This violated the
traditions of the Jewish Sabbath where all activity is forbidden from sunset on
Friday through to Saturday evening, again provoking angry reactions from
conservatives regardless of the fact that Israelis officially a secular state.
A compromise was reached, the IBA held the rehearsal in private. The Israeli
entrants of 1999, four-piece boy band Eden, with the song, “Happy Birthday”,
was a celebration of the fiftieth anniversary of the foundation of the state of
Israel.
At the 2000 contest Israeli
representatives, Ping-pong, waved Syrian flags during rehearsals. Israel and
Syria were officially in a state of war at the time and Israel’s then Deputy
Education Minister, Shlomo Yahalom called for the group’s participation to be
banned claiming that they failed to represent national values. The waving of
the Syrian flag during rehearsals on Israel’s Independence Day May 10th, in
particular, caused further upset to officials who publically boycotted the
group leaving them to cover their own expenses. Despite threats from Israeli
broadcasting officials to ban the group from performing altogether, they
appeared at the 2000 ESC and waved the Syrian flag along with the Israeli flag
in a call for peace. Again, Eurovision isn’t a political contest…
The case of Israel has shown how the
Eurovision Song Contest often touches on sensitive subjects such as gender
identity, sexuality, religion and politics. Indeed in Israel and Jerusalem,
these issues often intrude in even the most unlikely of situations. The
reaction of some officials in Israel has shown how seriously they regard
Israel’s image. Such controversies therefore represent a struggle in Israel
between secularism and religious freedom.
In 2009 Israel's Eurovision entry was called "There Must Be Another
Way" and was performed by an Arab-Israeli duo, Mira and Noa. This was the
first time an Arab singer had represented Israel and the first time Arabic had
been performed under the Israeli flag at Eurovision. Whilst critics can argue
that this was merely a clever public relations exercise, it is a significant
entry for Israel and indeed for Eurovision. In particular the line "When I cry, I cry for both of us, my
pain has no name", struck a chord with me when I saw the news this
week. Given the current conflict in the region, which seems to be escalating by
the hour, the message in that song is now more pertinent than ever.
