13.05.2026 20:31
{"text":"The 70th Eurovision Song Contest, held in Vienna, Austria, was rocked by protests over Israel's participation and a "censorship" scandal. While slogans like "stop the genocide" echoed through the hall during the Israeli representative's performance, their censorship on official channels drew widespread backlash, and viewership ratings in many countries hit rock bottom due to boycott decisions."}
The 70th Eurovision Song Contest, held in Vienna, the capital of Austria, was overshadowed not by art but by censorship and boycott slogans. It was revealed that the shouts of "stop the genocide" echoing in the hall during the performance of Israeli representative Noam Bettan were censored in the video shared on the contest's official YouTube channel.
SLOGAN PROTEST AGAINST ISRAELI REPRESENTATIVE
Israeli singer Bettan, who took the stage in the first semi-final, faced harsh protests from the audience. The cries of "stop the genocide" rising from the hall were directly reflected in the live broadcast, while some viewers opened Palestinian flags to show solidarity with Gaza. However, it was noticed that these sounds were removed and the protests were ignored in the video shared on the contest's official account.
SHARP DECLINE IN VIEWERSHIP
Interest in the contest, where many countries called for a boycott due to Israel's attacks on Gaza, decreased to historic levels.
Netherlands: Viewer numbers dropped by 42% compared to last year, falling to the lowest level since 2012 (541 thousand).
Italy: The number of viewers, around 2.5 million last year, fell to 1.8 million this year.
POLISH SINGER'S "MESSAGE" INDECISION
The political pressure on contestants also reflected behind the scenes. Polish singer Alicja Szemplinska struggled to answer an Israeli media question, "Can you send a message to your fans in Israel?" After consulting with her team, Alicja only said, "I greet all Eurovision fans."
FBI PROTECTION IN VIENNA
In the contest, where security measures were maximized, it was announced that the FBI also supported the Austrian police. The US Embassy in Vienna confirmed that FBI experts were on the ground to defend against "various threats."
The second semi-final of the contest, where pro-Palestinian protesters were forcibly removed from the hall, will be held tomorrow, and the grand final on May 16.