Leaving the post-Eurovision hangover behind little by little, everything that finally happened at the final gala on May 14 continues to be analyzed and debated, even in the semi-final. One of the most controversial issues has to do with the non-involvement of Israel at the final gala, something many branded as ‘disqualification’ when the reality was very different.
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In media and networks, The hoax spread that Michael Ben David, representative of Israel in the contest, was disqualified for “inappropriate behavior”, referring to the moment when the presenters (Laura Pausini, Mika and Alessandro Cattelan) approached him and his team to speak with them. David, with the flag of Israel in one hand and a cup in the other, approached them and gave Pausini and Cattelan a kiss on the cheek.
Many eurofans commented negatively on his behavior on networks, but the real reason that supported the spread of the false news was the statements to the press. The EBU (European Broadcasting Union) confirmed: “Israel has not been disqualified from the Eurovision Song Contest” but “There was a misunderstanding at a May 13 press conference with the hosts of the show”.
In the video of the press conference, it can be seen how the Israeli journalist hesitates when saying the word: when asking about “disqualification” when he was referring to “non-classification” (disclassification). Namely, the question referred simply to the fact that Israel did not go through to the finalwhose reason was the same as that of the rest of the countries that did not qualify in the semi-final: because he did not receive enough points from the jury.
The confusion regarding the term extended to the presenters themselves: “Have you been disqualified? [Michael Ben David]? I didn’t know,” commented Pausini and Mika. “Yes, of course,” Mika answered finally.
The erroneous use of the word was picked up by Italian media (and later spread by Spanish media), where headlines with the alleged disqualification and the alleged reasons for it did not take long to appear.
The organization of the festival has clarified the issue regarding this translation error, even the presenters commented that there was no problem with David’s attitude: “Honestly, he was a guy having a good time (…) It was fun,” said Cattelan. “What’s the problem with the kiss? It’s a kiss, just a kiss,” Pausini added. “It was nice and fun.”