Why Hebrew News Sounds So Passive (And Why That Is Not a Mistake)

Many learners of Hebrew notice it very quickly: Hebrew news sounds passive.

Prizes are awarded. Decisions are made. People are moved, smuggled, announced.

This often creates frustration. Students ask why Hebrew avoids saying who did something, why passive forms appear so frequently, and whether this is just another grammatical hurdle that must be memorized.

The assumption is often that Hebrew is vague or evasive. In reality, something much more systematic is happening. I explain this distinction in more detail in a short video using a real example from Hebrew news.

Hebrew Does Not Choose Verb Forms Randomly

Hebrew does not choose verb forms randomly. It chooses them based on focus.

The central question is not which binyan is “correct,” but what the sentence wants the reader to pay attention to. Grammar in Hebrew is a tool for directing attention, not a collection of interchangeable forms.

One Event, Two Perspectives

Consider two sentences that describe the same reality:

1. Maria received the prize.

2. The prize was awarded to Maria.

The event is identical, but the perspective is different. In the first sentence, the focus is on the person. In the second, the focus is on the event itself.

Hebrew makes this distinction very deliberately. When Hebrew uses the active voice, attention is placed on the person acting. When Hebrew uses the passive voice, attention shifts to what happened, regardless of who performed the action.

Why News Hebrew Prefers the Passive

This explains why the passive voice is so common in news Hebrew.

News reporting is primarily concerned with facts, outcomes, and events. Who exactly carried out an action is often obvious, secondary, or intentionally left in the background. The language reflects this priority. The passive voice allows Hebrew to highlight the occurrence itself rather than the actor.

This is not avoidance and it is not imprecision. It is a journalistic choice encoded into grammar.

A Mental Model That Helps Hebrew Make Sense

Many learners struggle with binyanim because they are taught as isolated forms or rigid rules. When verb patterns are presented without context, students are left memorizing tables and guessing which form to use.

A more useful mental model is to think of binyanim as a camera lens. The active voice zooms in on the person. The passive voice zooms in on the event.

Once this perspective is understood, Hebrew verbs stop feeling arbitrary. Instead of asking which form to use, learners begin to ask what they want to emphasize. This shift changes how Hebrew is read, understood, and produced.

Final Thought

Hebrew is not passive. It is precise.

And when learners understand where Hebrew places attention, the verb system begins to make sense as a coherent whole.