At the height of the storm surrounding the appointment of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s former adviser Rami Sadan to Channel 10 News chairman, Shas Party deputy mayors appealed to the High Court of Justice (HCJ) June 9 against the decision.

The petition, which was widely reviewed by media outlets, states, “It is inconceivable that a person appointed with accordance to the Second TV Authority law — a person whose position has such a distinct and significant public influence, a person who bears direct responsibility for determining the public agenda — expresses ‘dark views’ against an entire community, already at the early stages of the running, and in a derisive tone that has not been heard for a very long time in our environs.”

The person orchestrating the struggle against Sadan’s appointment is the movement’s chairman, Interior Minister Aryeh Deri. When Sadan presented his candidacy at a Channel 10 News board meeting, he stated that he “hates the Shas movement and that thief Aryeh Deri.” And so, ever since the media disclosed Sadan's words, Deri has not passed up the opportunity to campaign against persecution and racism.

This affair has raised weighty issues to public discussion, headed by the issue of Sadan’s closeness to Netanyahu's family. Presumably, Sadan’s appointment to Channel 10 would give the prime minister a foothold in a news company that is very critical of him. In the background is also Deri’s threat of a coalition crisis if the prime minister doesn’t order revocation of the appointment. The Shas chairman even declared a voting moratorium for his party in the Knesset until the invalidation of Sadan’s appointment. Nevertheless, everyone knows that Shas will find a way to remain in the government under any and all scenarios. So long as the cloud of criminal suspicion hovers above Deri, quitting the coalition is not an option for him.