Channel 10 broadcasts content that is unsuitable for children to watch and encourages them to become homosexuals, MK Anastasia Michaeli (Yisrael Beytenu) said on Thursday. Speaking before the Knesset Committee on the Status of Women, and broadcast on Army Radio, Michaeli said: "To my regret, when I turn on Channel 10, I see so-called entertainment shows about how nice it is to be homosexual." Michaeli, a mother of eight, went on to say, "We must examine why Channel 10 has the right to broadcast content like this, that shows and tells children how fun and nice it is to wear a dress and put on makeup. Why does Channel 10 show these types of things-" The Knesset committee was discussing sexual harassment in the workplace, and Michaeli tried tying the two issues together. "On [one] show they interviewed a mother of a homosexual about how miserable she is and how she divorced her husband," said Michaeli. "I want to ask, what did the father do to the child at a young age, when the child was three or four years old, and why did they divorce? I really think that most homosexuals are people who are going through a very difficult time because they were sexually harassed from a very young age." Michaeli also offered some proposals to solve "the problem," saying that "a Knesset committee on the status of the family should be created to clarify why there are so many cases of sexual harassment. A campaign must be initiated to include professionals and psychologists." Channel 10 responded to Michaelis remarks on Thursday, saying, "We are of course happy that MK Michaeli regularly watches Channel 10 with her children, but we don't know what she is referring to exactly. Channel 10, according to its charter, espouses equality of rights for all and providing a place for all sectors of the population to have a voice, including minorities and those living in the periphery." Yisrael Beytenu released a statement saying, "Michaeli's comments are her own opinion and do not represent the views of the party."
