CNN —The Eurovision Song Contest is a glittery and eccentric spectacle that rivals the Super Bowl for its attraction to audiences. When combined with the jury vote, Israel’s impressive public vote tally saw Golan finish in fifth place overall. Despite this, the EBU has always insisted that Eurovision is an apolitical music competition between broadcasters, rather than a political competition between governments. The 2023 contest in Liverpool was a moving display of unity — so much that Liverpool’s slogan, “United By Music,” was adopted by Eurovision for all future contests. On Saturday, there was very little sense that Eurovision was “united by music.” Some fans boycotted, while others mobilized online to vote for Israel.

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Persons: Louis Staples, Celine Dion, Louis Staples Louis Staples, Greta Thunberg, Eden Golan, Israel, —, Lasagna, Golan, Nemo, Russia —, ”, Turkey, Isaac Herzog, Bambie, Joost Klein, AVROTROS, Martin Österdahl Organizations: Guardian, Rolling Stone, Wired, CNN, Super Bowl, Hamas, European Broadcasting Union, Eurovision, EBU, “ United, Music, Israel, Ukraine, Twitter, Facebook Locations: London, Slate, Switzerland, Swedish, Malmö, Gaza, Europe, Turkey, Israel, Russia, Greece, Cyprus, Ukraine, Liverpool, United Kingdom, Italy, France, Germany, Netherlands, Dutch