Using the Media to Give Voice to Disabled Israelis

More than 1.5 million people in Israel live with disabilities in some form, a number representing 20% of the country’s population. Yet individuals with disabilities continue to be underrepresented in mainstream media. And although demands for employment services for young adults with disabilities are increasing substantially, there are few specialized services available, and not much is known about how best to support those with different needs in achieving long-term professional success. Young adults across the wide scope of physical, cognitive, and mental disabilities remain unnecessarily dependent on support networks and unable to reach their full potential, lacking appropriate pathways to professional success.

Worldwide, according to the World Health Organization, roughly 1.3 billion individuals face significant disabilities, amounting to approximately 16% of the global population, which translates to 1 in every 6 people.

Shavvim is an organization centered around a revolutionary platform, an inclusive community of news and information-sharing for Israelis with physical, cognitive, communicative, and mental disabilities. Our mission is to utilize the media industry for the benefit of people with disabilities - to train and employ them, serve as a mouthpiece for the disabled community throughout the State of Israel, and cover issues of importance and relevance to disabled people and their families.

Through a year-long professional training course, Shavvim recruits, trains, and mentors individuals with disabilities for work in the media industry. Each “journalist apprentice” who begins working on the Shavvim website is assigned an expert editor/mentor who provides essential tools for journalistic work including tips on turning information into a news article; writing news openings and reports; the ethics and laws that apply to journalists; and more. Editors supply trainees with practice work, provide continuous feedback to help trainees hone their skills, and ultimately assign journalist trainees to cover real-time stories and other issues of interest to be published on the Shavvim website, which has quickly become the home site of the disabled community, their families, and professionals in the field with nearly 1 million visits last year. 

These newly trained journalists, alongside the publishing of their work on the site, receive salaries as formal employees of Shavvim. When our journalist trainees gain professional skills and confidence, and for those not continuing as professional journalists on the Shavvim site, our mentors encourage and support the trainees in pursuit of work in mainstream media outlets, assisting and connecting our alumni as they search and network to secure meaningful employment.

To date, eight journalists have been trained and employed through this program over the course of the last few years. They are currently employed as journalists on the Shavvim news site. Our goal is to continue expanding the program in 2024.

Our vision is to transform Israel into an accessible and inclusive country for people with disabilities across all spheres: legal, physical, cognitive, social, and occupational. We aim to do this by amplifying our voice in Israeli media and public spaces for the more than 1.5 million disabled Israelis. Our goal is to integrate talented people with disabilities into the national media with the underlying belief that there will be greater exposure to the issues that affect people with disabilities in Israel on a national level. 

The Shavvim news website is the hub of our activity. Currently, we employ eight writers on the site with a variety of disabilities: brain injury, visual impairments, autism, mental challenges, and more. Some work as reporters covering various topics, while others write personal columns or conduct interviews. The impact of Shavvim’s reporting is evident. On May 2, 2023, Shavvim discovered that relocating the pension fund of disabled children automatically canceled a vital financial benefit: the child's entitlement to lifelong survivor's benefits. This revelation prompted media coverage and a debate in the Knesset Welfare Committee. Shortly after, the Capital Market, Insurance, and Savings Authority ensured that disabled children would retain their survivor's benefits, even if their parents moved their pension fund. This move potentially saved these families hundreds of millions, if not billions, of shekels.

In addition to the newly-trained journalists themselves, this project positively impacts the journalists’ families and support networks by affording the trainees skills to further independence, as well as future places of employment that benefit from the training and expertise acquired. Like compelling, informative, and effective news coverage does, articles published by Shavvim’s journalists - highlighting challenges that face people with disabilities and their families - have propelled wide-scale change by putting pressure on institutions and authorities to address and solve problems. This impacts hundreds of thousands of people with disabilities and their families across the country. At Shavvim, we continuously receive feedback, stories and testimonials about how coverage on our site helped resolve a longstanding, difficult challenge.

In 2023, 1.3 million Israelis read articles on the Shavvim site. Since the outbreak of the Iron Swords War in October 2023, the site has seen approximately 623,000 page views, 486,000 visits, and 253,000 unique visitors on average per month, making it the primary news site for people with disabilities, their families, and professionals in the field.

I am the founder Shavvim (which means “equal” in Hebrew). My name is Idan Motola, and I am driven by two profound passions in life. Firstly, like any father, my greatest love is my children, Ohad and Libby. Ohad was diagnosed with autism at the age of 3½, and despite the challenges he faced as a child on the spectrum, he currently attends a regular school in Hod Hasharon, Israel, and participates in the school’s choir. Secondly, my other passion is journalism, which has been my profession for the past 25 years. Over the years, I've served as an editor at The Marker, coordinated correspondents at Yedioth Ahronoth, edited the economic supplement Mamon, and worked as an editor for The Morning News on channel 12.

With Shavvim, I've merged these two loves into an inspiring venture. Three years ago, alongside media personality Yaron Frost, we made the decision to leverage the power of the media for the benefit of the disabled community in Israel. Our mission was clear: to provide a voice for the 1.5 million Israeli residents with disabilities and their families, who often go unheard. This encompasses individuals with physical, cognitive, communicative, and mental disabilities. Our goal is for Shavvim to become the journalistic home for all of them, ensuring their stories and voices are represented and heard.

Working on the assumption that people with disabilities have the right and ability to express themselves, all content on our Shavvim news site is written by people with disabilities, identified and trained by Shavvim to work in journalism. Currently, there are eight writers on the site with a variety of disabilities: brain injury, visual impairments, autism, mental challenges, and more. Some work as reporters covering various topics, while others write personal columns or conduct interviews. Each journalist writes with a "personal touch" that suits them, and receives a salary for their efforts. The writers are trained, led, and supported daily by experienced and senior editors.

Shavvim is training a new generation of journalists with disabilities who can integrate into "regular" media outlets. In February 2024, we learned that the most veteran writer of Shavvim, Avichai Haim, has been appointed as the welfare and health writer for the Walla news website. Specifically, our goal is to integrate talented people with disabilities into the national media with the underlying belief that there will be greater exposure to the issues that affect people with disabilities in Israel on a national level.

The Shavvim news website is the hub of activity for Shavvim, an association that gives voice to people with disabilities in Israel using the media as its main tool. The site, launched in August 2019, is written by people with disabilities for people with disabilities, providing journalistic coverage of current events that touch the lives of Israelis with physical, mental, communicative, and cognitive challenges.

Our Shavvim news site is up and running and seen by thousands each month. 

Our vision is to transform Israel into an accessible and inclusive country for people with disabilities across all spheres: legal, physical, cognitive, social, communal, and occupational. We aim to do this by being the megaphone in Israeli media and public spaces for the more than 1.5 million disabled Israelis.

The year 2023 was a successful year for the Shavvim website. The website, dedicated entirely to covering the lives of people with disabilities, recorded in the last three months of the year (October-December) a new record of about 600,000 page views per month on average. Throughout 2023, approximately 1.3 million Israelis read Shavvim, marking a rise of tens of percentage points compared to 2022.

In addition to the traffic surge, there was also a noticeable increase in the public impact of Shavvim and its ability to make a difference for Israelis with disabilities, all through a significant journalistic leverage. Two articles from 2023 can illustrate this well:

1. Investigation: Pension Neglect for Children with Disabilities 

In the wake of the disability pensions reform in pension funds, a growing number of parents shifted their pensions between funds in the last fifteen years. Shavvim's investigation on May 2, 2023, spearheaded by journalist Dana Cohen-Yonash (an alumna of the "Adopt a Journalist" program), exposed a crucial financial setback faced by parents of children with disabilities opting for fund transfers. Unbeknownst to these parents, the state automatically revoked the child's essential entitlement to a survivor's pension for their entire life after the parents' demise due to the pension reform.

The investigative report generated widespread public interest and garnered extensive coverage across various media platforms. Meir Cohen, a member of the Knesset, triggered an urgent debate in the Knesset's Labor and Welfare Committee, seeking responses from authorities within a 45-day timeframe.

Following the committee deliberation, the Israel Securities Authority declared that the right of children with disabilities to a lifelong survivor's pension would remain intact, even if their parents shifted pension funds. This development translated into the return of hundreds of millions of shekels dedicated to enhancing the well-being of children with disabilities.

September 7, 2023 - Following Shavvim's exposure: The pension utilized for the entire lives of children with disabilities 

2. Against the backdrop of the war: The Welfare Services Law for People with Disabilities Postponed for a Year and a Half 

The Welfare Services Law is legislation aimed at promoting the rights of people with disabilities, with a crucial reform at its core to transfer residents with disabilities from hostels to community living. The law was initially planned to come into effect in 2024; however, during the course of the war, it was revealed that the Ministry of Welfare decided to postpone its implementation to July 2025. This delay "saved" the ministry's budget around 700 million shekels for the next year and a half. On the morning of December 4, 2023, an article by our journalist Avichai Hayim was published on the website, and as a result, significant pressure was exerted on the Minister of Welfare, Yaakov Margi, including by the opposition leader, Member of Knesset Yair Lapid, himself a father of a child with disabilities, who sent him a letter urgently requesting a reconsideration of the decision.

Later that afternoon, the Minister of Welfare announced that the delay was canceled, and the law would proceed as planned. The pressure worked: Postponement of the Welfare Services Law revoked 

How we measure the effectiveness of the site 

1. Impact on people with disabilities – To measure or at least estimate the number of people with disabilities and their families whose lives have improved due to articles published on Shavvim; this is done by tracking the results of publications on the site.

2. Influence on other media outlets – Measured by examining the number of media mentions and quotes of Shavvim in these outlets. More media mentions = more influence.

3. Influence on decision-makers – In several cases, Shavvim publications prompted public officials (ministers, Knesset members, local authorities, government officials, and influencers) to take action for the benefit of people with disabilities. This can be in the form of a publication in Shavvim reaching these decision-makers' platforms, a parliamentary question, raising a topic for discussion in a Knesset committee, or, ideally, actions taken by a regulatory authority to address an issue or situation affecting people with disabilities.

4. Influence on the general public (including people with disabilities and their families) – This impact is measured through site traffic. The larger the number of visits to Shavvim's content, the greater its potential influence.

Right now our mission is to transform Israeli society by serving as the voice of the disabled community in Israel through our news platform, Shavvim. Consider the profound impact we could achieve with increased resources, more skilled journalists who themselves have disabilities and can shed light on issues affecting their peers, and additional mentors to guide aspiring journalists in effectively articulating challenging topics.

Now envision the global implications of this concept. Our aim is to extend our influence beyond Israeli borders to countries where disabled youth are marginalized and overlooked. We aspire to elevate this silenced community, infusing their lives with vibrancy and potential. To accomplish this, we must persuade broader society to recognize our significance, and through our dedication to shaping the narrative, we are confident in our ability to effect change.

The Shavvim website stands out for its innovative approach in several key ways:

1. User-Centered Content: Unlike traditional news outlets, Shavvim's content is created by people with disabilities for people with disabilities. This ensures that the information provided is relevant, relatable, and addresses the unique challenges and experiences of the disabled community.

2. Inclusive Reporting: Shavvim covers a wide range of topics that impact the lives of individuals with disabilities, including social issues, policy changes, accessibility initiatives, and personal stories. By focusing on these subjects, Shavvim promotes awareness and understanding of disability-related issues in society.

3. Accessibility Features: The Shavvim website prioritizes accessibility, offering features such as alternative text for images, captioned videos, and compatibility with screen readers. This commitment to accessibility ensures that individuals with various disabilities can access and engage with the content effectively.

4. Community Engagement: Shavvim fosters a sense of community among individuals with disabilities by providing a platform for them to share their experiences, perspectives, and achievements. Through forums, comment sections, and interactive features, users can connect with one another and support one another's journeys.

5. Advocacy and Empowerment: Beyond reporting news, Shavvim serves as a platform for advocacy and empowerment. By amplifying the voices of individuals with disabilities and advocating for their rights, Shavvim aims to drive positive change and promote greater inclusivity and accessibility in society.

Shavvim's website serves as a platform for individuals with disabilities, created by individuals with disabilities. Through the production and publication of news content tailored to the needs and interests of this community, Shavvim aims to increase awareness and understanding of disability-related issues among the general public. By prioritizing accessibility features, such as alternative text and screen reader compatibility, Shavvim ensures that individuals with disabilities can access and engage with the content effectively. Moreover, the website fosters a sense of community and support by providing interactive features and forums for individuals to connect and share their experiences. Through these activities, Shavvim expects to empower individuals with disabilities, increase societal inclusivity, drive policy changes, and ultimately improve the quality of life for this population. By amplifying the voices and perspectives of individuals with disabilities, Shavvim strives to create a more equitable and inclusive society where everyone has the opportunity to thrive.

Shavvim's impact goals center around empowering individuals with disabilities, fostering societal inclusivity, driving policy changes, and ultimately improving the quality of life for this population. To measure progress towards these goals, Shavvim employs a multi-faceted approach. Firstly, we track website analytics to assess the reach and engagement of its content, including the number of visitors, page views, and interactions with interactive features and forums. Additionally, Shavvim conducts surveys and gathers feedback from its target audience to evaluate the relevance, effectiveness, and accessibility of its content and platform. We also monitors changes in public discourse and policy discussions related to disability rights and inclusion, aiming to identify instances where its advocacy efforts have made an impact. Through ongoing evaluation and reflection, Shavvim seeks to continuously refine its approach and maximize its effectiveness in driving positive change for individuals with disabilities and their communities.

Shavvim's solution is powered by a robust and user-friendly online platform that leverages various technologies to ensure accessibility, engagement, and effectiveness. At its core, the website employs a content management system (CMS) that enables easy creation, editing, and publishing of articles, multimedia content, and interactive features. This CMS is designed with accessibility in mind, incorporating features such as alt text for images, keyboard navigation support, and compatibility with screen readers to ensure that individuals with disabilities can navigate and consume content effectively.

In addition to the CMS, Shavvim utilizes responsive web design principles to ensure that the website is optimized for viewing across a range of devices, including desktop computers, tablets, and smartphones. This responsiveness enhances the accessibility of the platform, allowing users to access content anytime, anywhere, and on any device.

Shavvim also integrates social media sharing functionalities to facilitate the dissemination of content and encourage user engagement and interaction. Users can easily share articles, videos, and other content across various social media platforms, helping to amplify the organization's message and reach a broader audience.

Behind the scenes, Shavvim employs data analytics tools to track user engagement, measure the impact of its content, and identify areas for improvement. These analytics provide valuable insights into user behavior, preferences, and demographics, enabling the organization to tailor its content and outreach efforts to better serve its target audience.

Overall, Shavvim's solution combines cutting-edge technology with a user-centric approach to provide individuals with disabilities and their communities with a powerful platform for advocacy, information sharing, and social change.

The number of individuals working on Shavvim's solution team can vary over time due to factors such as project needs, funding, and organizational growth. As of the latest available information, Shavvim may have a core team consisting of several key members responsible for various aspects of the organization's operations, including content creation, website development, community outreach, administration, and management. Additionally, Shavvim may collaborate with external partners, volunteers, and contributors who support the organization's mission and contribute to its activities on a project-by-project basis.

Shavvim's journey began three years ago when its founder, Idan Motola, alongside media figure Yaron Frost, embarked on a mission to empower Israel's disabled community through media representation. Since then, they've tirelessly worked to bridge the gap between the media and the 1.5 million Israelis with disabilities, ensuring their voices are heard and their stories shared. This dedication underscores Shavvim's commitment to creating a more inclusive and accessible society for all.

At Shavvim, diversity and inclusion are not just buzzwords; they are fundamental values that guide our team-building efforts. We prioritize diversity in our recruitment processes, actively seeking out candidates from different backgrounds, experiences, and perspectives. By fostering a diverse team, we ensure that our solutions are more inclusive and representative of the communities we serve.

Moreover, we strive to minimize barriers to opportunity for our staff members by offering flexible working arrangements, accommodating individual needs, and providing ongoing support and training. We understand that each team member may have unique challenges and circumstances, and we are committed to addressing them proactively.

Creating a welcoming and inclusive environment is also a top priority at Shavvim. We promote open communication, mutual respect, and collaboration among team members. We provide opportunities for all staff to contribute their ideas and feedback, ensuring that everyone feels valued and heard. Additionally, we offer regular diversity and inclusion training to raise awareness and foster understanding among team members.

Overall, Shavvim is dedicated to building a team that reflects the diversity of the communities we serve, minimizing barriers to opportunity, and creating an environment where everyone feels respected, supported, and included.

Shavvim operates under a hybrid business model that combines elements of nonprofit and for-profit structures. While we are driven by our mission to empower people with disabilities and create a more inclusive society, we also recognize the importance of financial sustainability to support our operations and growth.

One aspect of our business model involves generating revenue through various sources, such as advertising, sponsored content, and partnerships with organizations that share our mission. These revenue streams help cover the costs of running our platform, including website maintenance, content creation, and staff salaries.

At the same time, we actively seek out grants, donations, and philanthropic support to supplement our income and fund specific projects or initiatives that align with our mission. These contributions enable us to expand our reach, invest in new technologies, and develop innovative solutions to address the needs of our community.

Overall, our business model is designed to balance financial sustainability with our social impact goals, ensuring that we can continue to fulfill our mission of empowering people with disabilities and promoting inclusivity in society.

Shavvim's plan for achieving financial sustainability involves diversifying revenue streams, increasing audience engagement, and optimizing operational efficiency. To accomplish this, we are focused on several key strategies:

1. Diversifying Revenue Streams: We continue to explore new opportunities for revenue generation, including advertising, sponsored content, events, and partnerships with businesses and organizations aligned with our mission. By diversifying our sources of income, we reduce reliance on any single revenue stream and create a more stable financial foundation.

2. Audience Growth and Engagement: We are actively expanding our audience through targeted marketing efforts, content optimization, and community outreach. By increasing our reach and engagement, we attract more advertisers and sponsors while providing value to our audience.

3. Operational Efficiency: We continually evaluate and streamline our operations to minimize costs and maximize efficiency. This includes optimizing our website and content production processes, negotiating favorable contracts with service providers, and implementing cost-saving measures wherever possible.

4. Grant Funding and Philanthropic Support: We actively pursue grants and philanthropic donations to support specific projects, initiatives, and operational expenses. We seek out opportunities from government agencies, foundations, and individual donors who share our vision and values.

5. Monitoring and Evaluation: We regularly track key performance indicators, such as revenue growth, audience metrics, and operational expenses, to measure the effectiveness of our financial sustainability efforts. This allows us to identify areas for improvement and adjust our strategies accordingly.

Evidence of our success in achieving financial sustainability can be seen in our growing revenue streams, increasing audience engagement metrics, and ability to fund ongoing operations and strategic initiatives without relying solely on grants or donations. Additionally, our track record of securing partnerships and sponsorships with reputable organizations demonstrates the value we provide to both our audience and business partners.