Israel's State Broadcaster Shut Down By Netanyahu Gov't - With One Hour's Notice

The end of the Israel Broadcasting Authority was not a total surprise: the plan, several years in the making and legislating, was to smoothly hand over the IBA's radio and television stations next Monday (May 15) to the newly-created Israel Broadcasting Corporation (officially named Kan in Hebrew). But a decision was made - nobody's saying by whom - late Tuesday to close the IBA immediately. Staffers on the country's flagship TV news broadcast had to go on the air and announce that the show was