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Depoliticising Eurovision 'impossible', experts say

The 2025 Eurovision Song Contest will start next week in Basel, Switzerland, with 37 countries competing until the finale on May 17.
Despite the official ban on political topics, the contest has frequently been affected by ongoing disputes, including recent events such as the conflict involving Israel in Gaza and Russia’s military actions in Ukraine.
Organisers adopted a new flag policy banning contestants from displaying non-national flags while easing audience flag restrictions amid planned protests against Israel's participation.
Historian Dean Vuletic and professor Jess Carniel argue that depoliticising Eurovision is impossible, noting that the contest draws attention for causes and that last year's anti-Israel campaign failed.
Experts warn the new policy might backfire amid backlash against identity politics and attempts by conservative forces to change Eurovision's LGBTQ-friendly identity.

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FOX 28 Spokane

Center

Depoliticising Eurovision ‘impossible’, experts say

The Eurovision Song Contest is meant to be about celebrating music and cultural diversity, but politics inevitably seeps in, challenging the competition's long-standing claim to neutrality. Hopeful artists drawn from 37 countries will compete in this year's contest in the Swiss city of Basel starting next week, with the big finale on May 17. Politics

9 hours ago

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Watauga Democrat

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Lean Left

Depoliticising Eurovision 'impossible', experts say

The Eurovision Song Contest is meant to be about celebrating music and cultural diversity, but politics inevitably seeps in, challenging the competition's long-standing claim to neutrality.

9 hours ago·Calhoun, United States

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infosperber

countertext: Eurovision Song Contest – with and without politics

"The ESC is not a music competition, but a political show!" We heard this in Russia, especially when the country was excluded from the competition of 2022 together with Belarus. More than that: the Eurovision was degenerated without Russia, it said. Now it would be foolish to deny the political component of the competition. We finally remember the debates about the victory of Ukraine in 2022 and the numerous excitements about the participation o…

7 hours ago

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