Eichmann on the Air: Radio and the Making of a Historic Trial

intellectuals a well as of the layperson, already encapsulates much
of the substance of future debates about the trial. While there is a
definite sense of the hegemonic voice in the words of many of the
speakers, there is still a considerable measure of variation, both in
terms of what might be at stake as well as what is already under
debate with respect to the imminent trial. The public atmosphere
at the eve of the trial was more multifarious than what might be
expected by reading many of the ex-post facto studies of the trial.
Broadcasting during the Trial
Historians and critics have often mentioned Israeli radio as having
a predominant role in making the <strong>Eichmann</strong> trial a formative event
in Israeli history. Indeed, it was through the radio that most Israelis
had encountered personal testimonies of Holocaust survivors for
the first time. 19 As Tom Segev notes, 'much of the trial was carried
live on the radio; everywhere, people listened—in houses and
offices, in cafés and stores and buses and factories'. 20 Shoshana
Felman adds that 'Broadcast live over the radio and passionately
listened to, the trial was becoming the central event in the
country's life'. 21 Idith Zertal states that: 'The trial, the full sessions
of which were broadcast live on national radio, changed the face of
Israel, psychologically binding the pastless young Israelis with their
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