Jewish World Review

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Jewish World Review (JWR)[1] is an online magazine that espouses a conservative political ideology and speaks from a Jewish religious perspective.[1]

Binyamin L. Jolkovsky is the editor-in-chief of this online magazine.[2] The office was, in 2002, based in an apartment in Borough Park, Brooklyn, NY. [3]


Jewish and non-Jewish Constituents

In a 2001 interview, Jolkovsky explained the demographics of JWR in this way: "Our most popular columnists are black and the nicest letters we get are from non-Jews…What bonds us is not race but our values. It is time for all people of faith to unite."[4]

A 2002 Wall Street Journal profile of Jolkovsky explained the contrast between articles by Orthodox Jews and non-Jews: “…you expect JWR to carry religious commentary, ethical reflections, kosher recipes and cultural articles like ‘Jews on Jazz.’ And it does. You aren't surprised, either, to find pieces by Jewish commentators like Michael Medved, Mona Charen and Dr. Laura Schlessinger. But Cal Thomas, the Evangelical Christian? Rush Limbaugh's brother, David? Who let those guys into the minyan? ... This is the key to understanding Jewish World Review's ecumenical appeal to religious and social conservatives: It's not a review of the Jewish world; it's a review of the world from an Orthodox Jewish perspective. Mr. Jolkovsky treasures an e-mail from a grateful Christian reader in Alabama who said that he was the first contemporary Jew she'd ever heard of who believed in God.” [5]


Controversial Statements

Jolkovsky and JWR first gained notoriety during the 2000 Presidential election because of Jolkovsky’s comments about Vice Presidential candidate Sen. Joe Lieberman (D.-Conn.). Jolkovsky said in a commentary piece that Lieberman’s political position on issues such as abortion, gay marriage, and religious intermarriage went against the Torah. "We are urged to marry among ourselves," Jolkovsky said. "When a Jewish guy marries a Catholic person, what binds them, other than love, is not their religion but their failure to practice their religion." [6]


References

  1. D'Agostino, Joseph A. "Jewish World Review." Human Events 57.14 (2001): 18-18. Print.
  2. D'Agostino, Joseph A. "Jewish World Review." Human Events 57.14 (2001): 18-18. Print.
  3. Dreher, Rod. "Houses of Worship: World on a Shoestring." Wall Street Journal [New York, N.Y] 1 Jan. 2002, Eastern Edition, Taste sec.: W15-15. Print.
  4. D'Agostino, Joseph A. "Jewish World Review." Human Events 57.14 (2001): 18-18. Print.
  5. Dreher, Rod. "Houses of Worship: World on a Shoestring." Wall Street Journal [New York, N.Y] 1 Jan. 2002, Eastern Edition, Taste sec.: W15-15. Print.
  6. D'Agostino, Joseph A. "Jewish World Review." Human Events 57.14 (2001): 18-18. Print.