Keshet 12 is private, Reshet 13 goes to the Merit Spread Foundation, Channel 14 is Mirilashvili's, plus Adelson, Mozes, Schocken and Drahi in print. Who owns Israel's media.
Israeli television and newspapers are held by a handful of families and one new foundation. Keshet 12 is owned by the private Keshet Media Group, Yitzchak Mirilashvili owns Channel 14, and the Second Authority approved the sale of Reshet 13 to the tech-backed Merit Spread Foundation in mid-September 2026, a transfer the government has said it will not recognize. In print, the Adelson, Mozes and Schocken families dominate.
Last updated: November 3, 2026.
Who Owns Israel's Media?
| Outlet | Controlling owner | Status |
|---|---|---|
| Keshet 12 | Keshet Media Group (private); older reports name Moshe Wertheim as main shareholder; current split not public | CEO Avi Nir since 2002 |
| Reshet 13 | Merit Spread Foundation (about 75%, backed by Assaf Rappaport); Access Industries and Warner Bros. Discovery retain about 25% | Second Authority approved in mid-September 2026; government disputes the decision |
| Channel 14 | Yitzchak Mirilashvili | Since the sole 2013 license tender |
| Israel Hayom / Makor Rishon | Adelson family | Ongoing |
| Yedioth Ahronoth / Ynet / Calcalist | Mozes family | Ongoing |
| Haaretz / TheMarker | Schocken family, plus Leonid Nevzlin | Ongoing |
| i24NEWS | Patrick Drahi | Ongoing |
Sources: Calcalist, Globes, Jerusalem Post, Times of Israel and Olam research. Status as of November 2026. For the full channel-by-channel map, see Who Owns Israeli TV Channels?
Who Owns Keshet 12?
Keshet 12, Israel's top-rated commercial channel, is owned by Keshet Media Group, a private company. Longtime CEO Avi Nir has run it since 2002 and built its international arm, Keshet International, into an Emmy-winning global format exporter (Homeland began as a Keshet Israeli format). Older reports named Moshe "Mozi" Wertheim, whose family built its wealth as Coca-Cola's Israeli representative, as the main shareholder, and Globes once reported that a regulator ordered him to reduce his stake to the legal 51%. Olam could not confirm the current shareholder split. Businessman Yitzhak Tshuva sold his family's 22% stake in 2021 to a new investment fund, Rakiah, with other private investors, according to Calcalist.
Who Owns Reshet 13?
Reshet 13 has had an unusually turbulent ownership fight since 2025. Access Industries and Warner Bros. Discovery first announced in April 2025 a management-led buyout that would have handed CEO Emiliano Calemzuk's investor group a 74% stake, per Globes. That did not close. By February 2026, Access Industries' board chose a competing offer led by Patrick Drahi, according to the Jerusalem Post, but his bid ran into regulatory trouble because he already owns Hot and i24NEWS.
Access then agreed to sell control to the Merit Spread Foundation, a public-benefit company founded in December 2021 by Alon Tal of the Alpha Investment Group. Wiz co-founders Assaf Rappaport and Yinon Costica, along with entrepreneurs from Wix and Riskified, back the deal, which Calcalist reported includes an investment of about $120 million. Merit is expected to hold about 75% of the channel, with Access and Warner Bros. Discovery keeping about 25%.
The Second Authority for Television and Radio approved the transfer of control in mid-September 2026, according to the Times of Israel and Haaretz, which Calcalist described as the final regulatory hurdle. The communications minister called the approval unlawful, and the cabinet voted not to recognize the council's decisions, a clash the Times of Israel and Ynet describe as a constitutional dispute. Olam could not confirm that the deal has closed.
Who Owns Channel 14?
Channel 14 was won in a 2013 government tender by Yitzchak Mirilashvili, son of Watergen owner Mikhael Mirilashvili, whose family's post-Soviet capital and philanthropic footprint Olam has profiled. Channel 14 was the only bidder in its original 2013 license tender, which underscores how small and closed Israeli broadcast licensing has historically been. See Mikhael Mirilashvili: Owner of Watergen and Yitzchak Mirilashvili, Watergen, VK, Channel 14.
Who Owns Israel's Newspapers?
Print maps onto largely the same small set of families. Israel Hayom and Makor Rishon are controlled by the Adelson family (Sheldon and Miriam Adelson). Yedioth Ahronoth, along with Ynet, Calcalist and several other outlets, is controlled by the Mozes family (Arnon Mozes). Haaretz and TheMarker belong to the Schocken family, alongside Leonid Nevzlin. i24NEWS, the English, French and Arabic international channel, is owned by French-Israeli telecom billionaire Patrick Drahi, who also owns Hot. Altice sold Hot Mobile in October 2026, while the rest of Hot remains Altice's, with sale talks reported; see Who Owns Israel's Telecoms?
Why Does Media Concentration Matter?
A small number of family-controlled companies set the terms of Israeli public discourse across broadcast and print. Cross-holdings make the picture more consolidated than a channel-by-channel view suggests, and the collapse of Drahi's Reshet bid over cross-ownership concerns, given his existing Hot and i24NEWS holdings, is a live illustration of how tightly concentrated the sector already is. The Reshet 13 fight also shows how ownership is now a political question: the buyer's critics in government opposed the sale.
שורה תחתונה בעברית
טלוויזיה ועיתונות בישראל מוחזקות בידי קומץ משפחות וקרן אחת חדשה. קשת 12 בבעלות קשת מדיה גרופ הפרטית, ערוץ 14 בבעלות יצחק מירילשוילי, והרשות השנייה אישרה באמצע ספטמבר 2026 את מכירת רשת 13 לקרן Merit Spread Foundation, החלטה שהממשלה אמרה שלא תכיר בה. בעיתונות המודפסת שולטות משפחות אדלסון (ישראל היום, מקור ראשון), מוזס (ידיעות אחרונות, ynet, כלכליסט) ושוקן (הארץ, דהמרקר).
Frequently asked questions
Who owns Keshet 12?
Keshet Media Group, a private company led by CEO Avi Nir. Older reports named Moshe Wertheim as main shareholder, and a 22% stake formerly held by Yitzhak Tshuva's family was sold in 2021 to the investment fund Rakiah and other private investors. The current split is not public.
Who owns Reshet 13?
The Merit Spread Foundation, backed by Wiz co-founder Assaf Rappaport and other tech entrepreneurs, is acquiring about 75% after the Second Authority approved the transfer in mid-September 2026. Access Industries and Warner Bros. Discovery keep a minority. The government disputes the approval.
Who owns Channel 14?
Yitzchak Mirilashvili, son of Watergen owner Mikhael Mirilashvili, who won the channel's license in a 2013 tender in which he was the only bidder.
Who owns Haaretz and Yedioth Ahronoth?
Haaretz and TheMarker belong to the Schocken family, alongside Leonid Nevzlin. Yedioth Ahronoth, Ynet and Calcalist are controlled by the Mozes family.
Related Olam Coverage
- Who Owns Israeli TV Channels? Keshet, Reshet, Channel 14
- Who Owns the Israeli Story
- Who Owns Israel's Telecoms? Bezeq, Cellcom, Partner, Hot
- Yitzchak Mirilashvili, Watergen, VK, Channel 14
Sources
Wikipedia, Keshet Media Group; Calcalist, Tshuva's Keshet stake sale (2021); Globes, Reshet 13 buyout announcement (2025); Jerusalem Post, Drahi's Reshet bid (Feb. 2026); Calcalist, Merit Spread Foundation replaces Drahi (Mar. 2026); Calcalist, Merit Foundation Reshet 13 stake; Calcalist, Second Authority approves Reshet 13 transfer; Times of Israel, sale of Channel 13 approved; Ynet, government vote on Second Authority decisions; Wikipedia, Channel 14 (Israel); Wikipedia, news media ownership in Israel.
How we report: Olam stories draw on public filings, company disclosures and named sources, checked by our editors. Read our methodology · Corrections
