‘Big Brother’ swamps Shalit film on Israeli TV

The Israeli version of “Big Brother” was an easy TV ratings winner in Israel over a film about Gilad Shalit’s family trying to secure his release.

Some 10.6 percent of television viewers watched the heavily advertised documentary “A Family in Captivity” on Channel 10, Ha’aretz reported. The documentary about the family of Shalit, the Israeli soldier who was captured by Hamas in 2006 and has been held since in Gaza, was broadcast Sunday night without commercials.

By contrast, some 26.1 percent of viewers tuned in to the popular reality series “Big Brother” on Channel 2.

The documentary originally had been scheduled to air a month ago in a better time slot, but was postponed after a request from the Shalit family, a Channel 10 official told Ha’aretz.