i24NEWS
Israeli right-leaning, pro-Israel
Background
i24NEWS launched on July 17, 2013, broadcasting from the Jaffa Port area of Tel Aviv in English, French, and Arabic, with the stated goal of providing international news from an Israeli vantage point. It was founded by Patrick Drahi, a French-Israeli billionaire best known for building the Altice telecommunications empire, with Frank Melloul as its first CEO. The channel expanded steadily, opening studios in Paris, New York, Washington D.C., and Los Angeles by 2018, and launched a U.S.-specific cable channel in 2017. In June 2024, it added a Hebrew-language channel, becoming the first Israeli outlet to broadcast 24/7 news in Hebrew. A 2019 Haaretz investigation reported that i24NEWS shifted editorially toward more favorable coverage of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in order to secure Israeli broadcasting licenses, with Melloul reportedly instructing staff to 'be softer toward Netanyahu'; several journalists subsequently resigned in protest. A 2025 Haaretz review of the Hebrew channel's first year found it still struggling with low ratings and no investigative journalism desk, and described it as broadly aligned with the government's narrative in an Israeli media market seen as growing less independent. Media bias trackers such as Media Bias/Fact Check rate i24NEWS as 'lean right' with high factual reporting overall, while noting it has on occasion amplified unverified claims, including an early and disputed report that babies were beheaded during the October 7, 2023 Hamas attack.
Sources
- i24NEWS (Israeli TV channel) - Wikipedia
- I24 News – Bias and Credibility - Media Bias/Fact Check
- One Year of i24NEWS in Hebrew: A Credible News Outlet or a Netanyahu Mouthpiece? - Haaretz
- Israel's i24news to launch US channel - The Times of Israel
- New Hebrew-language i24 aims to be Israel's 1st 24/7 news channel - The Times of Israel
- Patrick Drahi - Wikipedia
Profile compiled 2026-07-11; refreshed when ownership, funding, or the administration changes.