MK Shelly Tal Miron Demands Halt to Communications Regulations Favoring Channel 14

MK Shelly Tal Miron of the Yesh Atid party has urgently called on the Attorney General and the Second Authority for Television and Radio to immediately freeze the draft regulations proposed by the Ministry of Communications. This demand follows her previous allegations of serious legal violations, non-reporting, and data concealment by Channel 14 and the Second Authority. Tal Miron insists that the new regulations be suspended until the full financial reports of Channel 14 and other broadcasters are published, as these reports will determine which channels exceed the revenue threshold and thus lose their "small channel" status and associated regulatory exemptions.

The draft regulations, pushed by Communications Minister Shlomo Karhi ahead of the 2026 elections, include a controversial increase in the revenue threshold defining a "small channel" from 80 million to 2 billion shekels. This change would classify all commercial channels in Israel as "small," exempting them from the legal obligation to establish separate news companies. Consequently, responsible oversight of news broadcasts would be removed, dismantling the structural separation between editorial teams and channel owners.

Karhi and the Communications Committee chair Galit Distel-Atbaryan have aggressively advanced this model, which also strips free access to content from major channels Keshet 12 and Reshet 13, while allowing pro-government channels like Channel 14 and i24NEWS to charge platforms for their content and enjoy unprecedented regulatory benefits worth millions. Tal Miron criticized the fact that Channel 14 still qualifies as a "small channel," arguing that the legislative blitz aims to grant the channel's owners significant financial advantages. She also condemned the removal of the requirement to broadcast news from Jerusalem, noting that Channel 14's studios are located in Modiin.

Tal Miron stated, "The picture is becoming clear - the reporting failure was not technical but a planned move to buy time. Minister Karhi, who desires the patronage of Mirilashvili (Channel 14's owner), is now trying to pass 'personalized regulation' that will save Channel 14 between 7 and 9 million shekels annually. Instead of collecting the 11.4 million shekels the channel owes the public treasury since February, the government is tailoring regulations to reduce this liability to just 1.6 million shekels. A commercial entity that flagrantly breaks the law should not receive regulatory rewards tailored to its benefit - it needs enforcement."