Moment (magazine)

Moment

March–April 2016 issue
Editor Nadine Epstein
Deputy Editor Sarah Breger
Former editors Leonard Fein
Hershel Shanks
Categories Religion, Politics, Culture[1]
Frequency Bi-monthly[1]
Circulation 65,000[1]
Publisher Nadine Epstein
Founder Elie Wiesel
Leonard Fein
Year founded May 1975 (1975-05)
First issue 1975 (1975)
Company Center for Creative Change
Country United States
Based in Washington, D.C.[1]
Language English
Website momentmag.com
ISSN 0099-0280
OCLC number 610402552

Moment is an independent magazine for a Jewish-American audience and is not tied to any movement or ideology.[2] The award-winning publication[3][4] features investigative stories[5], cultural criticism and highlights the thoughts and opinions of diverse groups of scholars, writers and policymakers.[6] [7] [8] Moment was founded in 1975, by Nobel Prize laureate Elie Wiesel and Jewish activist Leonard Fein,[9] who served as the magazine's first editor from 1975 to 1987. In its premier issue, Fein wrote that the magazine would include diverse opinions “of no single ideological position, save of course, for a commitment to Jewish life.”[10] Hershel Shanks served as the editor from 1987 to 2004.[11] In 2004, Nadine Epstein took over as editor and executive publisher of Moment.[12][13]

History and Background

Moment was founded in 1975, by Nobel Prize laureate Elie Wiesel and Jewish activist Leonard Fein,[14] who served as the magazine's first editor from 1975 to 1987. In its premier issue, Fein wrote that the magazine would include diverse opinions “of no single ideological position, save of course, for a commitment to Jewish life.”[15] The magazine was named in honor of an independent Yiddish-language newspaper, entitled Der Moment.[16][17][18] Founded in Warsaw in 1910, Der Moment remained in operation until the eve of Yom Kippur 1939, when the building housing the newspaper was destroyed by a German bomb. At the time, the publication was one of two Yiddish-language newspapers in the city.[1][19]


Hershel Shanks served as the editor from 1987 to 2004.[20] In 2004, Nadine Epstein took over as editor and executive publisher of Moment[12][21] Moment magazine is an independent journal that publishes articles on Jewish culture, politics, and religion.[16] It is not affiliated with any Jewish organization or religious movement: its editorial staff, writers, and articles represent a diverse range of political views.[1][17] Moment publishes a print magazine once every other month, maintains an online blog, runs literary contests, and hosts esteemed events. The magazine is a publishing project of the Washington D.C.-based Center for Creative Change. Moment contributors include Calvin Trillin, Chaim Potok, Isaac Bashevis Singer, Abba Eban, Cynthia Ozick, Wolf Blitzer, Yossi Klein Halevi, Theodore Bikel, Jerome Groopman, Ron Rosenbaum, Sherwin Nuland, Erica Jong, Dara Horn, David Margolick, and Rebecca Goldstein.[22]

Programs & Contests

Daniel Pearl Investigative Journalism Initiative

In 2010, Moment launched the Daniel Pearl Investigative Journalism Initiative (DPIJI), which gives grants to young journalists doing stories on modern anti-Semitism and other forms of prejudice. The DPIJI is in memory of Daniel Pearl, the Wall Street Journal reporter, who was murdered by terrorists while on assignment in Pakistan in 2002. The winners of this contest are mentored by prestigious journalists including: Wolf Blitzer, Linda Feldmann, Martin Fletcher, Glenn Frankel, Bill Kovach, David Lauter, Charles Lewis, Clarence Page, Robert Siegel, Paul Steiger, Lynn Sweet and David Wessel. Past articles have included Jacob Kushner’s story Birthright Denied on the Dominican Republic’s efforts to take away citizenship from tens of thousands of Haitians who were born in the country; A House Divided, by Eve Fairbanks, which tells the story of the integration and subsequent re-segregation of the dorms at the University of the Free State in Bloemfontein; An Olympian Struggle, by Emily K. Alhadeff, which explores the complex story of anti-Israel campaigns in Olympia, Washington.[23]

The Karma Foundation-Moment Magazine Fiction Contest

Established in 2000, the annual Moment Magazine-Karma Foundation Short Fiction Contest is open to writers to submit stories related to Judaism or Jewish culture or history. Judges have included Walter Mosley, Nicole Krauss, Erica Jong, Jonathan Safran Foer, Geraldine Brooks, Dara Horn and Nicholas Delbanco. [24]

Moment Cartoon Caption Contest

Moment’s bi-monthly caption contest for cartoons was founded by New Yorker editor and humorist Robert Mankoff. The magazine asks its readers to suggest captions for the cartoon online and vote for your favorite submission.

Symposiums

In 2010, Moment began publishing symposiums. Some of their past symposiums have included:

Series

In addition to its regular sections and featured articles, Moment occasionally runs series of articles on a specific topic. These articles are published in a few consecutive issues of the magazine.

Democracy in Retreat

This series explores how democracy is declining in ostensibly democratic countries. Through highlighting one country at a time, this series aims to provide insight into the ways in which elected governments do not always hold democratic values. This series has included articles on Ukraine, Hungary and Turkey.

Israel's Arab Citizens

Beginning in Moment's September/October 2009 issue, the special series "Israel's Arab Citizens" has examined aspects of the social, economic, and cultural life of the 1.5 million Arab citizens of the State of Israel. The first installment, written by New York Times and Associated Press reporter Dina Kraft, profiled three generations of Arab Israeli women, titled "From Arab to Palestinian Israeli: One Family's Changing Identity".

The second, "Separate But Not Equal", which appeared in the September/October 2010 issue, examined the performance of Arab Israeli children in segregated public schools. "Separate But Not Equal" tied for first place in the Best Investigative News category of the Ethnic Media Awards, sponsored by the American University School of Communication and New America Media.[25][26]

Editor and executive publisher Nadine Epstein wrote of her motivation for initiating the series and the importance of focusing attention on the Arab Israelis in a letter from the editor:

Our lack of knowledge has serious consequences: I regularly meet Jews and non-Jews who view Israel's Arab citizens as, at best, suspect and at worst, terrorists. The reality is that this is a largely peaceful population—very few have been associated with terrorism—with a complex identity. They speak Hebrew, sometimes even better than Arabic, and many vote in Israeli elections. They support a Palestinian state, but their lives are in Israel and most have no intention or desire to leave. At the same time, they are often considered collaborators by some of their Arab brethren.[27]

Events

Moment hosts multiple events every year, focused on a large array of topics related to Jewish culture, life, and politics. Past events include:

A Great Civil Rights Partnership

A celebration in honor of the struggle for racial equality, commemorating the 50th Anniversary of the Voting Rights Act. This event was hosted in partnership in May, 2015. It was moderated by Steven V. Roberts and featured Congressman Barney Frank and Congresswoman Eleanor Holmes Norton.

Jews and Science Symposium

This event took place at the Oshman Family JCC of Palo Alto in April, 2015. Symposium participants included Joel R. Primack, Professor of Physics; Nancy Ellen Abrams, author and philosopher of science; Nadine Epstein, editor and publisher of Moment; Lord Rabbi Jonathan Sacks, emeritus chief rabbi of the United Hebrew Congregations of the British Commonwealth and 2015 Moment Magazine Creativity Award Winner; event moderator Michael Krasny of KQED; Ronit Widman-Levy director of Arts & Culture, Oshman Family JCC; Marcus Feldman, Professor of Biological Sciences; and John Efron, Koret professor of Jewish History.


References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 Karesh, Sara E.; and Mitchell M. Hurvitz (2005). Encyclopedia of Judaism, Infobase Publishing, page 337. ISBN 978-0816069828
  2. ↑ https://books.google.com/books?id=Z2cCZBDm8F8C&pg=PA337&lpg=PA337&dq=%22moment+magazine%22+and+independent&source=bl&ots=vKqZ2vQKA4&sig=Dj_lIgGMCgPUNYmosalGKIl6LdI&hl=en&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwjJ0ZGGvK_UAhWL6YMKHXk4C0k4ChDoAQgnMAE#v=onepage&q=%22moment%20magazine%22%20and%20independent&f=false
  3. ↑ http://www.rna.org/?page=previous_winners
  4. ↑ http://www.womcom.org/content.aspx?page_id=22&club_id=903060&module_id=194707
  5. ↑ https://www.momentmag.com/category/series/daniel-pearl-investigative-journalism-initiative/
  6. ↑ http://www.momentmag.com/religion-violence-a-moment-symposium
  7. ↑ https://peacenow.org/entry.php?id=17533#.WTnOkRiZPq0
  8. ↑ https://wassermanschultz.house.gov/latest-news/symposium-is-there-a-jewish-way-to-parent/
  9. ↑ Becky Tuch. "L'chaim! Lit Mags for Jewish Thought". The Review Review. Retrieved August 16, 2015.
  10. ↑ https://www.amazon.it/Leonard-Fein-Vision-Passion-English-ebook/dp/B01BVXDW6I
  11. ↑ https://www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org/jsource/judaica/ejud_0002_0018_0_18181.html
  12. 1 2 "Staff". momentmag.com. Retrieved November 10, 2013.
  13. ↑ "Living in the Moment". University of Pennsylvania. Retrieved November 10, 2013.
  14. ↑ Becky Tuch. "L'chaim! Lit Mags for Jewish Thought". The Review Review. Retrieved August 16, 2015.
  15. ↑ https://www.amazon.it/Leonard-Fein-Vision-Passion-English-ebook/dp/B01BVXDW6I
  16. 1 2 Howe, Irving (2010). Politics and the Intellectual: Conversations with Irving Howe, Purdue University Press, page 27. ISBN 978-1557535511
  17. 1 2 Baskin, Judith R. (2011). The Cambridge Dictionary of Judaism and Jewish Culture, Cambridge University Press, page 472. ISBN 978-0521825979
  18. ↑ Shanks, Hershel (2010). Freeing the Dead Sea Scrolls: And Other Adventures of an Archaeology Outsider, Continuum, page 118. ISBN 978-1441152176
  19. ↑ "Moment, Der". Yivo. Retrieved October 10, 2013.
  20. ↑ https://www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org/jsource/judaica/ejud_0002_0018_0_18181.html
  21. ↑ "Living in the Moment". University of Pennsylvania. Retrieved November 10, 2013.
  22. ↑ http://search.opinionarchives.com/Moment_Web/DigitalArchive.aspx
  23. ↑ http://www.momentmag.com/the-daniel-pearl-investigative-journalism-initiative/
  24. ↑ "Moment Magazine Announces Winners of Moment-Karma Foundation Short Fiction Contest - Hebrew Union College - Jewish Institute of Religion". huc.edu. Retrieved 2016-06-20.
  25. ↑ Crowe, Adell (February 17, 2011). "SOC Co-Hosts Ethnic Media Awards | American University School of Communication". American.edu. Retrieved October 10, 2013.
  26. ↑ "Muslim Media Honored in Nation’s Capital". Azmuslimvoice.info. Retrieved October 10, 2013.
  27. ↑ Letter from the Editor, Nadine Epstein, September/October 2009 at the Wayback Machine (archived March 25, 2012)
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