Dear Friends,
In the wake of the recent controversy surrounding the Jewish Standard, a weekly newspaper based in Teaneck, NJ, BJPA @ NYU Wagner is highlighting its holdings related to topics of Jewish journalism. In case you missed the ruckus (which made the New York Times), it all began after the Standard printed a same-gender couple's wedding announcement in its September 24th issue. A "firestorm" of protest from the Orthodox community prompted the Standard to print an apology from the editors. A subsequent counter-firestorm prompted the editors to issue an apology for the apology.
Stephen Fried writes that American Jewish newspapers too often shrink from controversy. He expresses dismay that his book about a congregation's search for a new rabbi was considered too "controversial." Larry Cohler-Esses charges Jewish community newspapers with being "lap-dogs," and argues that Jewish journalism needs more aggressive reporting on Jewish communal issues. The Forward's J.J. Goldberg, too, maintains that compelling journalism is in short supply within the Jewish community precisely because the community is ambiguous towards robust reporting.
Samuel G. Freedman laments the "intellectual asymmetry" of Jewish journalists who lack a solid knowledge base of Jewish history and religious concepts. David Kraemer opines that the American Jewish press shows little tolerance for dissent from the "party line" of support for all of Israel's policies, and challenges American Jewish papers to print English translations of Israeli articles, in order to demonstrate the full range of Israeli views of Israeli policy. Andrew Silow-Carroll wishes that journalists would move beyond their serial habit of assessing the "Jewishness" of various public figures. Striking a less critical note, Ira Stoll of the New York Sun defends Jewish journalism from the charge that it is "dull and mediocre," pointing out that American journalism in general often suffers from the same malady.
Asking how Jewish values should inform and influence how journalists operate, the journal Sh'ma invites four Jewish journalists to respond to Leviticus 19:16, "You shall not be a gossipmonger among your people; you shall not stand aside while your fellow's blood is shed." Yossi Elituv of the Haredi weekly Mishpacha, who discusses the function of the Haredi press, posits a duty to respect the public's right not to know certain things.
Sizing up economic, technological and cultural trends, Bob Goldfarb warns that a "slow-motion disaster" is confronting all but a few Jewish media outlets in America. In a public email exchange, Daniel Sieradski of Jewschool.com and Rob Eshman of the Jewish Journal of Greater Los Angeles argue over who owns the future: bloggers or traditional journalists. (Sieradski to Eshman: "the new media will co-opt the old media's tricks... And when that becomes the norm, you guys are finished." Eshman to Sieradski: "Nah, old media never die, they just become new media.") Barbara Kirshenblatt-Gimblett predicts that new media will not only affect the distribution of the journalistic product, but will contribute new processes and content types. Marc S. Klein, editor and publisher of the former Jewish Bulletin of Northern California, explains his publication's transition from a newspaper to a magazine format, along with changes in content., and the renaming of the publication to j. Esther D. Kustanowitz advises Jewish media to take greater note of online social media platforms. Josh Nathan-Kazis wonders if small, niche-market-targeted publications such as Heeb are more likely to succeed than typical Jewish magazines in the tradition of Commentary.
Stephen J. Whitfield examines some of these issues, and others, within a broader context. Exploring the history of American Jewish participation in journalism, he finds the relationship between the Jewish and the secular identities of Jewish journalists to be too entangled for a neat analysis of the "Jewish contribution" to American journalism.
As Jewish communities and Jewish journalists continue to debate, and to strive for a definition of journalistic quality and integrity in Jewish life, the BJPA @ NYU Wagner will be there to provide content and context to the discussion.
With best wishes,
Steven
Prof. Steven M. Cohen
Director, Berman Jewish Policy Archive @ NYU Wagner