Irish, Slovenian, and Spanish broadcasters will skip Eurovision

Public broadcasters in Ireland, Slovenia, and Spain said they will not air the 70th Eurovision Song Contest. The decision is a protest over Israel's participation. The broadcasters linked the protest to the Gaza war. The announcements were made on May 11.

The Eurovision Song Contest is an annual televised competition in which countries enter songs and the public and juries vote. The 70th edition is this year's contest. A public broadcaster is a state or publicly funded network that would normally carry the show. Refusing to air it means audiences in those three countries will not see it on those channels.

Israel's participation is the stated reason for the refusal. The Gaza war is the context the broadcasters gave. The report does not say that Israel has been expelled by the contest organizer. It says these three broadcasters will not transmit the program. Other countries' broadcasters are not listed as joining the boycott in this account.

A decision not to air is different from withdrawing a national song entry. The report speaks of airing, which is transmission, and does not say whether Ireland, Slovenia, or Spain still have a competing act. Viewers in those countries might still reach the show through other means, but that is not discussed. The news is the three refusals.

Eurovision has often been drawn into political disputes because it is both a cultural event and a broadcast with a large audience. This protest uses the broadcast, not a stage invasion. The Gaza war is the conflict named. No viewing figures or contract penalties are included.

Ireland, Slovenia, and Spain's public broadcasters will not show the 70th Eurovision Song Contest. They are protesting Israel's place in the event amid the Gaza war. The organizer's lineup is not described as changed by these decisions. The announcements came on May 11.