Bibi: I Speak To Sheldon Adelson On Average 0.75 Times A Week

Graphic by Angelie Zaslavsky
Responding to criticism that he had maintained an open line with the heads of Israel’s largest daily newspaper, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said he talked to owner Sheldon Adelson “.75 times a week.”
Adelson, a Las Vegas casino magnate and Republican mega-donor, also owns Israel Hayom, a daily newspaper usually viewed as supportive of Netanyahu.
In a Facebook post Netanyahu said he has “nothing to hide” regarding his talks with Adelson and with the paper’s former chief editor Amos Regev. “Adelson has been a close friend of mine for 30 years and I’m glad to speak to him from time to time,” Netanyahu wrote. “Between the years 2012-2015 I had on average 0.75 calls a week with him.”
That odd arithmetic adds up to about 40 calls a year.
In his Facebook post Netanyahu claimed it is not uncommon for politicians to speak to reporters, editors and publishers and that, “once in a while, after I finish my day’s work late at night, I also talk to members of the press.”
Contact Nathan Guttman at [email protected] or on Twitter @nathanguttman
This is a moment of great uncertainty. Here’s what you can do about it.
We hope you appreciated this article. Before you go, we’d like to ask you to please support the Forward’s independent Jewish news this Passover. All donations are being matched by the Forward Board - up to $100,000.
This is a moment of great uncertainty for the news media, for the Jewish people, and for our sacred democracy. It is a time of confusion and declining trust in public institutions. An era in which we need humans to report facts, conduct investigations that hold power to account, tell stories that matter and share honest discourse on all that divides us.
With no paywall or subscriptions, the Forward is entirely supported by readers like you. Every dollar you give this Passover is invested in the future of the Forward — and telling the American Jewish story fully and fairly.
The Forward doesn’t rely on funding from institutions like governments or your local Jewish federation. There are thousands of readers like you who give us $18 or $36 or $100 each month or year.
