News 13 Chairman Resigns Amidst Ownership Change and Salary Dispute

Eyal de Pau, Chairman of the Board of Directors for News 13, has announced his resignation as chairman and public director, a position he held since early 2021. In his resignation letter, de Pau cited the completion of the channel's stabilization and change processes as the reason for his departure, stating he waited for the ownership change and the new CEO's appointment. The ownership change refers to the transfer of control of News 13 from Len Blavatnik to a group of investors led by Asaf Rapaport, founder of the cyber company Wiz. This deal, involving a commitment of approximately $120 million over three years, faced a lengthy legal and regulatory process before its official approval in September 2026.

De Pau's departure coincides with other leadership changes at News 13. Following the resignation of CEO Tali Ben-Ovadia after the elections, the board approved the appointment of a former executive from Keshet and Channel 12, Itai Dancziger, as the new CEO. This appointment became effective after a labor court petition by Keshet was dismissed.

Beyond the official reasons, it has been revealed that de Pau faced significant pressure from the Second Authority for Television and Radio due to salary irregularities. The authority reportedly found that de Pau received approximately NIS 3,000 per month in excess of the legal cap for about a year, accumulating to an overpayment of roughly NIS 36,000. The Second Authority is reviewing the legal demand for the repayment of these funds and has criticized News 13 for approving and disbursing the excess payments against regulatory guidelines.

This dispute aligns with new, stricter regulations implemented on January 1, 2026, aimed at limiting compensation for public directors and ensuring their independence from channel management. De Pau has faced public criticism before; notably, when he was acting CEO, he reportedly received a monthly salary of about NIS 90,000 after the removal of Yulia Shamalov-Berkovich.

However, sources close to de Pau strongly deny any connection between his resignation and the salary issue. They assert that no pressure was applied for him to leave, all compensation was legally approved by the board in September 2025 before the new regulations took effect, and the overpayment ceased in August, after a year of its approval.