On Giving Tuesday, Take a Stand For a Gutsy Jewish Publication

Samuel Norich November 29, 2016

Dear Forward Reader:

We’re no strangers to criticism. Our independent journalism is often provocative — as good journalism should be. And for 120 years, our readers have never been shy about telling us what they think.

We can take the heat. In fact, we welcome it. Respectful, lively debate is a quintessentially Jewish tradition—one that the Forward cultivates and even celebrates.

But the attacks we’ve received lately are anything but respectful.

Breitbart, the media outlet of the so-called “Alt-Right,” has recently singled out the Forward for special condemnation. In an effort to undermine our legitimacy, we were accused of running a “smear campaign” against the president-elect to further our “socialist agenda.”

We’ve done no such thing, as our fearless editor-in-chief, Jane Eisner, known for her sharp pen and her backbone, wrote in her point-by-point rebuttal. We are journalists. We publish well-sourced stories, supported by facts. We do not “smear.” We never endorse candidates. And our “agenda” is to report the news and seek out truth.

It gets worse. Forward journalists have also received hundreds of anti-Semitic tweets, emails and phone calls—even letters at their home addresses—containing the most vile and offensive Holocaust imagery imaginable. We’ve informed the police, and we’ve tightened our security procedures.

But we won’t be intimidated by threats or by hate. In fact, we’ve never been more determined to continue publishing journalism that meets the highest standards of the profession, grounded in facts, without fear or favor.

Giving Tuesday is on November 29, so if you’ve been waiting for the right moment to support the Forward’s mission with a financial contribution, this is it.

Take a stand for a gutsy Jewish publication by making a generous gift to the Forward. Please know how grateful we are. Your vote of confidence inspires us to work harder than ever to bring you the best reporting and the most intelligent analysis of the issues our community cares about most.

Give Now

Sincerely yours,

Samuel Norich President, Forward Association

Samuel Norich serves on the board as the president of the Forward and has served as executive director of the Forward Association since 2000. He was the publisher of the English and Yiddish Forward for 19 years until 2016.

The views and opinions expressed in this article are the author’s own and do not necessarily reflect those of the Forward. Discover more perspectives in Opinion. To contact Opinion authors, email [email protected].

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