When Australian runner and content creator Joel Solomon arrived in Tel Aviv for the first time, he expected to find a country defined by the headlines.
Instead, he found strangers striking up conversations before he had even unpacked his bags.
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Australian runner and content creator Joel Solomon, center, is filmed during a volunteer activity in Israel as part of Birthright Israel’s Storytellers program
(Photo: Courtesy)
"I arrived with my suitcases on the Tel Aviv promenade that afternoon," said Solomon, 21, who studies at Wagner College in New York on a track and field scholarship. "Within the first few hours I'd already made friends."
From abroad, he said, Israel had often seemed synonymous with conflict.
"Israel has a really bad name on the outside," he said. "Then you get here, and it genuinely felt like the best place I've ever been."
Solomon was one of dozens of Jewish creators invited to participate in Birthright Israel's Storytellers program, an initiative launched after Hamas' Oct. 7, 2023, attack to bring social media creators to Israel and let them experience the country firsthand before sharing it with audiences in their own words.
Joel poses while another participant photographs him at a Birthright Israel Storytellers site
(Photo: Courtesy)
Birthright offers educational experiences and is not like traditional advocacy programs, participants on this new program are not given scripts, talking points or posting quotas. Instead, they are encouraged to document and share whatever resonates with them, whether that's food, nightlife, religion, fitness, music or conversations with Israelis.
For Solomon, authenticity became the guiding principle.
"My goal was to be authentic and not hide anything," he said.
His videos captured morning runs along Tel Aviv's beachfront, coffee shops, beaches and the rhythm of daily life rather than the version of Israel he believed many people abroad expected to see.
Joel, standing in the back row, joins fellow Storytellers participants for a group photo
(Photo: Courtesy)
"I wanted to show what it's really like," he said. "Israel is such a small country, but it has everything — the desert, the city, the beach, the religious parts. It's a beautiful country."
Some of the moments that stayed with him never made it into a carefully planned piece of content.
Floating in the Dead Sea after growing up swimming in Australia's oceans felt "cleansing," he said. Walking through Jerusalem's Old City and the Muslim Quarter left him overwhelmed by the weight of history. On Shabbat, wandering Jerusalem's streets became what he called a "pinch me moment."
Yet the biggest surprise was more personal.
Joel, seated near the center, listens during a visit to Jerusalem’s Old City
(Photo: Courtesy)
"I've never felt more connected to my Judaism," Solomon said.
Growing up in Australia, he said, Jewish identity often revolved around organized events, synagogue or community programs.
"In Israel, I didn't have to try," he said. "Whether I was walking on the promenade, swimming at the beach or eating in Jerusalem, I just felt Jewish. It was the most natural feeling I've ever had."
'I wasn't looking for a story—I wanted to meet other people'
Participants greet one another during a networking session at Birthright Israel’s Storytellers program
(Photo: Courtesy of Birthright Israel)
Participants attend a storytelling workshop during Birthright Israel’s Storytellers program
(Photo: Courtesy of Birthright Israel)
"I wasn't really looking for a story," he said. "I wanted to meet other people making content and meet other Jews. At that point in my life, I needed more of that than I was getting."
Unlike many influencers, Orly says he rarely approaches a project with a predetermined message.
His work revolves around conversations with strangers, allowing them to shape the story rather than arriving with conclusions of his own.
"I don't come in with a story I'm trying to tell," he said. "I create an environment where someone else tells me their story."
Participants record content during a workshop in Birthright Israel’s Storytellers program
(Photo: Courtesy of Birthright Israel)
Participants conduct a mock television interview during a media workshop at Reichman University as part of Birthright Israel’s Storytellers program
(Photo: Courtesy of Birthright Israel)
That philosophy carried into Israel.
Rather than filming constantly, he spent much of the trip listening — to fellow creators, speakers and guides offering sharply different perspectives.
A discussion on the Temple Mount between an Israeli and a Palestinian guide particularly stood out.
"It was a fantastic example of discussion in action," he said.
He also described meeting young Jewish creators from across the political spectrum, saying the conversations challenged his own thinking while reinforcing the importance of listening.
"I think the world needs more people who are open-minded enough to hear other people's experiences," he said.
Participants gather for a discussion during Birthright Israel’s Storytellers program
(Photo: Courtesy of Birthright Israel)
Participants in Birthright Israel’s Storytellers program take part in a panel discussion with Israeli speakers
(Photo: Courtesy of Birthright Israel)
The relationships extended beyond the trip itself.
Through Storytellers, Orly met another creator named Vlad. The two later lived together in the United States for four months while producing content and developing a new show.
"That connection completely changed the direction my career was taking," he said.
'The experience made me prouder of my Jewish identity'
For musician Kate, the most significant change wasn't creative but personal.
Before Oct. 7, she occasionally shared performances at Jewish events but rarely spoke publicly about Judaism.
Musician and content creator Kate participated in Birthright Israel’s Storytellers program, where she said the experience strengthened her Jewish identity and inspired her to share more Jewish-themed content online
(Photo: Courtesy)
After the Hamas attack, she wanted to become more vocal but found herself hesitating after difficult conversations within the music industry.
" I wanted to speak more openly and become more involved," she said. "But I also had some difficult conversations within the music industry that left me feeling isolated and hesitant to share that part of myself publicly."
Storytellers introduced her to other young Jewish creators navigating similar questions.
"It opened my eyes to other young Jews who care deeply about Judaism and Israel, each in their own way, and who incorporate those values naturally into their lives," she said.
A musician performs during a live social media broadcast overlooking the Dead Sea as participants in Birthright Israel’s Storytellers program create content throughout their trip
(Photo: Courtesy of Birthright Israel)
Participants in Birthright Israel’s Storytellers program pose for a group photo in Jaffa during an educational tour across Israel
(Photo: Courtesy of Birthright Israel)
The experience, she said, made her more comfortable expressing her Jewish identity online.
"The experience made me prouder of my Jewish identity and more comfortable creating Jewish content."
At the same time, it also helped clarify what she did — and did not — want to say.
"I am not a political activist or a researcher," she said. "I do not believe it is my role to comment on every issue."
Instead, she said, she wants to create Jewish content that feels authentic to her work as a musician and meaningful to her audience.
Participants volunteer in southern Israel, helping restore communities affected by the Oct. 7 Hamas attack as part of Birthright Israel’s Storytellers program
(Photo: Courtesy of Birthright Israel)
A participant plants a tree during a volunteer activity in southern Israel as part of Birthright Israel’s Storytellers program
(Photo: Courtesy of Birthright Israel)
Birthright Israel created Storytellers after concluding that younger audiences increasingly receive information through social media personalities rather than governments or traditional news outlets.
The initiative brings creators from North America, Latin America, Europe, Australia and elsewhere to Israel for immersive trips combining travel, meetings with Israelis, workshops and time to create content independently.
Participants also join an alumni network that already has 8 million cumulative followers on their social media channels that offers continued mentoring, workshops and support for future projects.
Ilan Wagner, Birthright Israel's vice president for Onward programs, said the goal is not to turn creators into spokespeople.
Participants in Birthright Israel’s Storytellers program enjoy the Dead Sea during their visit
(Photo: Courtesy of Birthright Israel)
Participants in Birthright Israel’s Storytellers program gather for dinner in Jerusalem during the initiative
(Photo: Courtesy of Birthright Israel)
"It's one thing to try to explain a policy," Wagner said. "It's another thing to generate goodwill, identification, affinity and sentiment."
Participants, he said, are encouraged to integrate Israel and Jewish identity into the platforms they have already built, whether those focus on food, music, travel, fashion, sports or lifestyle.
"They’ve built up their followers by doing something in particular," Wagner said. "We want them to integrate, in their own voices, these themes about Israel and the Jewish people."
That freedom was one of the things Solomon appreciated most.
Joel poses during a visit to the Judean Desert
(Photo: Courtesy)
"There were no prerequisites," he said. "Nobody told us what we had to post. They didn't even make us film one video."
The absence of pressure, he said, made the content feel more genuine.
"It never felt like a job," Solomon said. "It was simply an opportunity. What we chose to do with it was completely up to us."