Israel's participation in the Eurovision Song Contest is not merely a matter of cultural enthusiasm — it is legally and institutionally anchored in the membership of its public broadcaster within the European Broadcasting Union (EBU). Today, that broadcaster is Kan (כאן), the Israeli Public Broadcasting Corporation, which assumed full responsibility for Israel's Eurovision engagement when it replaced the historic Israel Broadcasting Authority (IBA) in 2017. Kan's role encompasses every aspect of the national Eurovision effort, from the domestic selection process to negotiations with the EBU and the live broadcast of the contest to Israeli audiences.
From the IBA to Kan: A History of Public Broadcasting and Eurovision
Israel's relationship with the Eurovision Song Contest began in 1973, when the Israel Broadcasting Authority — established along the lines of the BBC as a publicly funded institution — joined the European Broadcasting Union and entered the competition for the first time. That inaugural entry finished fourth among seventeen competing nations, heralding a long and celebrated tradition. Over the following decades, the IBA guided Israel to four Eurovision victories: Izhar Cohen and Alphabeta in 1978, Gali Atari and Milk and Honey in 1979, Dana International in 1998, and Netta Barzilai in 2018 — the last of these victories occurring just one year after Kan had formally replaced the IBA.
The transition from the IBA to Kan was mandated by the Israeli Broadcasting Corporation Law of 2014, which dissolved the old authority and created a new, modernized public broadcasting body. Kan officially launched its operations in April 2017, inheriting the IBA's EBU membership, its Eurovision obligations, and its archive of broadcast history. The institutional continuity was deliberate: Israel's participation rights in Eurovision are contingent upon holding EBU membership, which belongs to the broadcaster rather than the state, making the seamless transfer of that membership a legal and diplomatic priority during the reorganization.
Key Facts About Kan's Eurovision Role
- Kan holds Israel's EBU membership, which is the formal legal basis for Israeli participation in Eurovision; without an EBU-member broadcaster, Israel could not enter the contest.
- Kan produces and broadcasts HaKokhav HaBa ("The Next Star"), Israel's national televised selection competition, which determines the artist and song representing Israel at Eurovision each year.
- Kan hosted Israel's triumphant 2019 Eurovision broadcast from Tel Aviv — a logistical and diplomatic feat following Netta Barzilai's 2018 victory — and managed all domestic coverage, press coordination, and EBU liaison duties for that landmark event.
- Kan is funded through a combination of a broadcasting levy (replacing the old television license fee) and state budget allocations, ensuring editorial independence while remaining answerable to Israeli law and public oversight frameworks.
- The broadcaster operates multiple channels including Kan 11 (television), Kan Bet, Kan Gimel, and Kan Moreshet (radio), with Kan 11 serving as the primary Eurovision broadcast platform in Israel.
Kan's Strategic and Cultural Significance Within the EBU
Kan's membership in the European Broadcasting Union is far more than an administrative formality. The EBU is the world's foremost alliance of public service media, and its members enjoy full voting rights in the governance of Eurovision, including decisions on rules, eligibility, and the future direction of the contest. As an EBU member, Kan participates in the General Assembly and relevant working groups, giving Israel an institutional voice in shaping the competition's standards and policies. This standing is significant given the recurring political controversies surrounding Israel's Eurovision participation, particularly since the outbreak of the Israel-Gaza conflict in October 2023. According to reporting by the BBC, Kan's association with Eurovision is believed to have provided it with a degree of institutional protection even amid domestic political pressures and broader debates about the future of Israeli public broadcasting itself.
The national selection program HaKokhav HaBa, produced in-house by Kan, reflects the broadcaster's commitment to using Eurovision as a platform for showcasing Israeli musical talent to a global audience of over 160 million viewers. The show draws substantial domestic viewership and has become a cultural institution in its own right, blending reality television formats with live musical performance. Kan's creative and editorial teams work closely with the EBU throughout the preparation period, ensuring that Israel's entry meets all technical and regulatory requirements while allowing Israeli artists creative latitude in crafting their entries.
Political Pressures and Kan's Defense of Israel's Participation
In the years following the October 2023 war in Gaza, Kan found itself at the center of an intensifying international controversy over Israel's right to remain in the Eurovision Song Contest. Several European public broadcasters — including Ireland's RTÉ, the Netherlands' Avrotros, and others — threatened to boycott the 2026 contest in Vienna if Israel was permitted to compete, citing the humanitarian situation in Gaza. Kan responded by consistently affirming Israel's eligibility under EBU rules, which tie participation to broadcaster membership rather than geopolitical considerations, and by actively engaging with EBU leadership to defend Israel's continued inclusion. As documented in coverage by Al Jazeera and confirmed across multiple sources, Kan's legal standing as an EBU member remains the definitive institutional basis for Israel's participation, regardless of external political pressure.
Kan has also faced domestic criticism from some quarters, with political figures on various sides of Israel's internal debate questioning either the broadcaster's funding model or its editorial independence. Nevertheless, the broadcaster has maintained a stable operational posture with respect to Eurovision, continuing to run the national selection process and fulfill its EBU obligations. For more historical detail on Israel's Eurovision record, the Jewish Virtual Library's overview of Israel and Eurovision provides a comprehensive summary of the country's competitive history under both the IBA and Kan.
Conclusion: Why Kan's Eurovision Role Matters for Israel
Kan's stewardship of Israel's Eurovision participation is a matter of both cultural pride and strategic national interest. The Eurovision Song Contest provides Israel with one of its most prominent annual platforms for soft power projection — a stage on which Israeli artists, culture, and creativity are displayed to hundreds of millions of European and global viewers in a non-political, celebratory context. Kan's professional management of this role, from talent discovery through HaKokhav HaBa to live broadcast production, demonstrates the value of a well-functioning public broadcaster that serves as a bridge between Israeli society and the international community.
In an era when Israel faces growing diplomatic isolation in some forums, Eurovision — and by extension Kan's active participation in it — represents a durable thread of normalization and cultural connection with Europe. The broadcaster's resolve in defending Israel's EBU membership against calls for exclusion is not merely institutional self-preservation; it reflects a broader commitment to Israel's legitimate place among the community of nations that share democratic values, cultural exchange, and the principles of open competition. Kan's continued and effective role in Eurovision is, in this sense, an expression of Israeli democratic culture at its most visible and internationally engaged.