March 15, 2009

Broadcast Date: 
Mar 15 2009

Debate over the Israel lobby is revived with the scuttling of Charles Freeman's nomination to the National Inteligence Council; Israel is on the cusp of forming a far-right government; N+1 looks at the new generation of Jewish magazines.

Episode segments
  • The Israel Lobby and the Obama Administration
    American Politics, Foreign Policy, National Politics, International Politics, Middle East, Israel/Palestine
    Phillip Weiss is an investigative journalist whose blog, Mondoweiss, is at phillipweiss.org.
    Esther Kaplan and Josh Nathan-Kazis

    When Charles (Chas) Freeman, the experienced former foreign service officer, ambassador to Saudi Arabia, and outspoken critic of Israel and its close ties to the U.S., withdrew his nomination to the national intelligence council he and his supporters blamed the Israel Lobby.  Beyond the Pale talks with Phillip Weiss about the trajectory of the campaign against the Freeman nomination and the apparent persistence of the pro-Israel litmus test for high office in the Obama administration.

  • How Right Wing Will Israel's Next Government Be?
    Israeli Politics, Israel/Palestine
    Daniel Levy is a member of the Advisory Board of J Street, the Washington DC liberal Jewish lobby, and a Senior Fellow and Co-Director of the Middle East Task Force at the New America Foundation.
    Esther Kaplan and Josh Nathan-Kazis

    As Benjamin Netanyahu tries to form a new government in Israel, Beyond The Pale, talks with Daniel Levy about just how right wing that government is likely to be. 

  • A New Generation of Jewish Magazines Targets Younger Readers
    Arts & Culture, News media, Literature
    Keith Gessen is the co-editor of N+1 and author of novel, All the Sad Young Literary Men.
    Esther Kaplan and Josh Nathan-Kazis

    In recent years several new Jewish magazines have appeared on the scene, all aimed at young Jews,  Heeb, Guilt and Pleasure, Nexbook, and Zeek.  The seed money for these new ventures came from established Jewish family foundations who share an obsession with the problem of "Jewish continuity."

    We talk with Keith Gessen about his essay for N+1, The People of the Magazine, which takes a critical look at these new literary ventures.