‘Leave us alone!’: Representation of social work in the Russian immigrant media in Israel

Abstract

This article examines the representation of social workers in the Russian-language immigrant press in Israel. Social work is a public service that did not exist in the USSR and most Russian immigrants were not familiar with it before immigration. This lack of basic knowledge underscores the importance of reliable representation of this major public service in the immigrant media. Nevertheless, the findings show that by taking the immigrants’ side under any circumstances, while distorting the function of the social work services, the immigrant press fails to fulfill its socialization role and does not facilitate its readers’ integration in their new society.