Israeli Bytes
Our conversations on Israeli Bytes explore the nuance and complexity of Israel today.
Tune in Now:
18:10
18:10
33:44
26:39
22:20
31:48
15:47
21:01
21:16
7:52
23:55
26:13
20:28
14:42
26:56
16:59
Israeli Bytes – Ep. 17: “They’re Coming Home”
Oct 9, 2025
In this special episode of Israeli Bytes, William Kolbrener and Ronit Eitan reflect on a moment Israel has been waiting for — the news that the hostages are coming home.
From disbelief to cautious joy, they explore what it means to celebrate amid grief, how the country has been reshaped since October 7th, and why creativity and complexity still matter in telling Israel’s story.
Israeli Bytes – Ep. 16: “Stories in Food”
Oct 4, 2025
In this episode of Israeli Bytes, Bill and Ronit sit down to reflect on BALAGAN’s Food Issue — a project they call a labor of love with a touch of defiance.
They discuss how food can be more than recipes: a mirror of memory, identity, and resilience. From Tel Aviv’s shifting realities to the global perception of Israeli cuisine, they explore why food matters now more than ever, and how BALAGAN is cultivating a community of voices that refuse to be silenced.
Israeli Bytes – Ep. 15: “Questions and Kippahs”
Jul 30, 2025
Israeli Bytes – Ep. 14: “Haredi Draft Showdown: Anger, Politics, and the Costs of Exemption”
Jul 12, 2025
Israeli Bytes
Bill and Ronit unpack the backlash against draft exemptions for ultra-Orthodox Israelis after four Haredi soldiers were killed. From coalition arithmetic and public fury to lived experience inside the yeshiva world—and the daily ritual of doom-scrolling—they trace how one fault-line now threatens to upend Israeli politics.
Israeli Bytes – Ep. 13: “Keep Calm and Carry On”
Jun 25, 2025
Bill and Ronit discuss life after the so-called ceasefire between Israel and Iran, and the strange pressure to return to “normal” — whatever that means.
Israeli Bytes – Ep. 12: “Day 3: Life Under Fire” #Israel #Iran #War
Jun 15, 2025
A raw, unscripted conversation between two Israeli parents—William Kolbrener in Jerusalem and Ronit Eitan in Tel Aviv—recorded during the third day of the latest wave of Iranian missile attacks.
We talk fear, faith, phones, bomb shelters, and the strange choreography of routine in crisis. This is what it sounds like when you’re trying to keep your kids calm, while your building shakes.
No punditry. No spin. Just real voices, mid-sentence, mid-war.
Israeli Bytes – Ep. 11: “The Drones are Coming” #Israel #Iran #war
Jun 13, 2025
This episode captures the fear, absurdity, and preparation on the ground—sirens, pitchers of water, biblical references, and kids half-asleep in living rooms. A war within a war, as lived from Jerusalem and Tel Aviv.
Israeli Bytes – Ep. 10: “600 Days” #HostageCrisis #Israel #Gaza
May 28, 2025
Bill and Ronit reflect on the 600-day mark of the hostage crisis—on showing up, even in silence.
They speak about despair, unfinished stories, and the right to speak—even from positions of privilege.
Israeli Bytes – Ep. 9: “Wait, They Like Us?” #Eurovision #Israel
May 20, 2025
This week, Bill and Ronit talk Eurovision, post-vote euphoria, and what happens when Israelis feel — briefly — embraced.
What does it mean when the world cheers? And what happens the day after?
Listen now.
Israeli Bytes – Ep. 8: “Who Do You Trust Now?” with Prof Kolbrener and Ronit Eitan
May 12, 2025
In this special edition of Israeli Bytes, Ronit and William respond to the expected release of American hostage Edan Alexander.
Gratitude meets grief, and a deeper disillusionment sets in: what does it mean when release depends on a foreign passport? What happens when governments—ours, theirs—stop making sense?
We talk about trust, anxiety, the limits of leadership, and the unbearable accumulation of grief. From Gaza to Syria to Qatar, the stories keep multiplying, but the feeling stays the same: saturated, heart-worn, still waiting.
Israeli Bytes – Ep. 7: “Missiles, Boycotts, and What It’s Like Right Now”
May 10, 2025
Bill and Ronit talk through what it feels like to live inside a war—airport missile alerts, boycotts, wildfires, and everything in between. No big claims, just the small, strange facts of daily life in a place that keeps going even when it doesn’t make sense.
Israeli Bytes – Ep. 6: “Between Sorrow and Celebration” with Prof. William Kolbrener and Ronit Eitan
Apr 30, 2025
Memorial Day and Independence Day in Israel stand side by side, forcing a difficult emotional passage — from the deep grief of loss to the cautious joy of independence. This reflection by Prof William Kolbrener and Ronit Eitan explores how, especially this year, the sirens, the silences, and the celebrations together shape a national memory and hope.
Israeli Bytes – Ep. 5: “The Aftermath” with Prof. Kolbrener and Ronit Eitan
Oct 7, 2024
Prof. William Kolbrener and Ronit Eitan reflect on the aftermath of the October 7th attacks one year later, discussing how the events profoundly changed them, reshaping their identities, and how it inspired the creation of Writing on the Wall.
Israeli Bytes – Ep. 4: “Iranian Nights” with Ronit Eitan and William Kolbrener
Oct 3, 2024
Ronit Eitan and William Kolbrener come together for an impromptu conversation on the missile attack from Iran on Israel just hours ago, sharing stories from the miklat (shelter) and reflecting on the challenges of moving forward during the Rosh Hashana holiday and beyond.
Israeli Bytes – Ep. 3: “Hiding in Closets Again” with Prof. Vered Tohar
Sep 29, 2024
In Episode 3 of Israeli Bytes, we speak with Vered Tohar, a professor in the Department of the Literature of the Jewish People at Bar-Ilan University. As a third-generation Holocaust survivor, Prof. Tohar reflects on her poem “Miklat,” dedicated to her grandmother, and discusses the devastating events of October 7th, drawing parallels to history repeating itself.
Israeli Bytes – Ep. 2: “Similes and Sacrifices” with Geula Geurts
Sep 18, 2024
In her discussion of her poem, ‘Jerusalem Caesarean,’ dedicated to Rachel Goldberg-Polin, the poet Geula Geurtz talks about language, identity, the creative process of writing, and the sacrifices of a mother since October 7th.
Israeli Bytes – Ep. 1: “From a Face to a Story” with Dr. Yaakov Mascetti
Sep 12, 2024
Dr. Yaakov Mascetti, Chair of the Comparative Literature Department at Bar-Ilan University, reflects on presence—both human and divine in his poem ‘Tell Me,’ dedicated to the memory of Hersh Goldberg-Polin, a 23-year-old American-Israeli hostage killed in captivity in Gaza.