Veteran News Reporter Matan Ayela Departs Channel 13 After Decade

Matan Ayela, a journalist at Channel 13's news division, has announced his departure from the network after ten years, including approximately eight years with the news department. In a Facebook post, Ayela described his time at Channel 13 as more than just a workplace, highlighting a period of work, learning, challenges, and growth.

During his tenure, Ayela held various roles, including researcher, system coordinator, assistant editor, chief editor, field reporter, and studio news anchor. He was involved in covering numerous significant events, such as social issues, national incidents, extended broadcasts, the COVID-19 pandemic, five election cycles, wars, military operations, and special events, stating that "the news was reality itself."

Ayela specifically reflected on his work during the period of October 7th and the subsequent war, recalling the faces of families of hostages, missing persons, and murder victims who visited the studio. He described the emotional toll of managing broadcasts from the control room or covering funerals in the field for months.

He noted that his ten years at the channel shaped his professionalism and personal identity, transforming him "from a young man who entered the system after 10 years of service in the IDF to a family man with two children born into this."

Ayela expressed gratitude to the managers and professional teams he worked with, as well as to specific colleagues including Avri Gilad, Lucy Aharish, Yaakov Eylon, Almog Boker, and Tom Caspi, whom he credited with influencing his journey. He concluded by stating he is moving on to a new path, carrying with him the people, experiences, and memories from his decade at the channel.