Milwaukee-area resident Susan Carneol said she returned from an educational mission to Israel in 2024 frustrated by what she described as a disconnect between what she witnessed overseas and how events were being portrayed in U.S. news coverage.
“I came back very frustrated with what I saw as propaganda, misinformation and accusations,” said Carneol, a retired speech language pathologist. “There seemed to be parallels to what was happening in Europe in the 1930s and ’40s. I said, ‘I have to do something.’”
Carneol shared her concerns with her friend Donna Kleiner, also a retired speech language pathologist from the Milwaukee area. The two began developing a plan to address what they viewed as misleading coverage and the use of inflammatory language in media reporting.
“We started reaching out to people we knew in communications and journalism,” Kleiner said. “We gathered a group together and got feedback about what might work and what wouldn’t.”
That effort led to the creation of Media Ambassadors, a Milwaukee-area group whose stated mission is to support fair and accurate reporting on issues involving Israel. The group also works to identify antisemitism and raise public awareness.
The pair is also organizing community events focused on education and discussion. Their first event was a training session designed to help participants better analyze media coverage.
“It helped our group think about what to look for in the media, including common antisemitic tropes and how language is used,” Kleiner said.
The group’s next event will feature Gil Hoffman, executive director of HonestReporting, at Congregation Shalom from 7:30 to 9:15 p.m. Feb. 16. Hoffman will present “Peace, Politics and Propaganda: An Insider’s Look at the Fight for Israel on the Media Battlefield and What You Can Do to Help.”
Carneol and Kleiner also compile a list of vetted news and information sources, including radio programs, television reports, print stories, podcasts and books. The material is distributed in a newsletter called The Spark.
“We want people in our group to feel confident the information they’re getting is reliable,” Carneol said. “That way, if they have difficult conversations with co-workers, neighbors or family members, they have sources they can cite.”
The group has published six editions of the newsletter. It also includes local events and talking points that address definitions and common misuses of terms.
“In recent issues, we’ve added a section that highlights positive stories about Israel,” Kleiner said.
More information about Media Ambassadors is available by email at mediaambassadorsmke@gmail.com
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