Israeli ‘Survivor’: Next Stop, Masada?
Nearly two millennia after becoming the site of a mass Jewish suicide, the ancient fortress Masada might finally yield a “Survivor.”
The once-isolated desert outpost is among the locations being considered for the season finale of Israel’s version of the TV show, which is currently advancing through its second season. Producers for the show’s broadcaster, Channel 10, are looking for an open-air venue to host the episode, which will crown a single winner following several months of physical challenges and the eliminations of earlier contestants. Masada, where more than 900 besieged Jews died in 73 C.E. rather than surrender to Roman forces, is just one of several possible locations for the finale, which might be shot at Ramat Gan Stadium, north of Tel Aviv, or at the Sultan’s Pool, an ancient water source and now the site of outdoor concerts and festivals in Jerusalem.
The search for an outdoor venue was interpreted by the Israeli news Web site Ynet, the first to report the story, as part of an effort to boost ratings for “Survivor,” which earned a record audience during its first season last year but has declined in popularity during its current run. The show’s first season finale took place at Tel Aviv’s Nokia Arena, home to the city’s professional basketball team.
“Masada is only a possibility,” wrote Inbal Hadida, a Channel 10 publicist, in an e-mail to The Shmooze. “This season we are looking for a different location — a more spectacular, breathtaking and ‘challenging’ one.”
Seven contestants of the original 20 remain on the current season of “Survivor,” which is taking place mostly on the Pearl Islands, off the coast of Panama. A decision about the location of the finale will be made at the end of May.
A message from our CEO & publisher Rachel Fishman Feddersen
I hope you appreciated this article. Before you move on, I wanted to ask you to support the Forward’s award-winning journalism during our High Holiday Monthly Donor Drive.
If you’ve turned to the Forward in the past 12 months to better understand the world around you, we hope you will support us with a gift now. Your support has a direct impact, giving us the resources we need to report from Israel and around the U.S., across college campuses, and wherever there is news of importance to American Jews.
Make a monthly or one-time gift and support Jewish journalism throughout 5785. The first six months of your monthly gift will be matched for twice the investment in independent Jewish journalism.
— Rachel Fishman Feddersen, Publisher and CEO