“Israel hires university students, as well as non-students, to post pro-Israel messages on social media networks — without needing to identify themselves as government-linked. The Israeli prime minister's office said in a statement that students on Israeli university campuses would receive full or partial scholarships to combat anti-Semitism and calls to boycott Israel online. It said students' messages would parallel statements by government officials. "This is a groundbreaking project aimed at strengthening Israeli national diplomacy and adapting it to changes in information consumption," the statement said. An Israeli official said that scholarship recipients would be free to decide whether or not to identify themselves as part of the program, which would begin within months. Public image is also a paramount concern to Israeli officials. The prime minister's office oversees a national initiative for "hasbara" — a Hebrew term that officials translate as public diplomacy and critics call propaganda. This initiative is intended to combat what officials see as popular discourse that goes beyond legitimate criticism of Israeli policies and constitutes hate speech that threatens the very legitimacy of Israel's existence. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu praised the volunteer media recruits in a video conference. "We are (operating) on four fronts: The military front, the home front, the diplomatic front and the public diplomacy front," Netanyahu said. "We must fight for the truth, for the facts, and your help is worth more than gold … refuting the industry of lies." -JERUSALEM (AP