Israeli journalist resigns posts amid new harassment claims
The Israeli writer stood down from positions at Haaretz and Channel 10 following allegations of sexual misconduct
Israeli journalist Ari Shavit resigned from his positions at Haaretz and Channel 10 after another woman accused him of sexual harassment.
Shavit issued a statement Sunday, shortly after the New York-based Jewish Daily Forward published the allegations of a former J Street staff member. The unnamed woman, 29, had been assigned to take Shavit to deliver a lecture sponsored by J Street at Johns Hopkins University. On the way she said he asked to stop for coffee and then took her hand and rubbed it in a suggestive way. He said he would like to meet with her, “alone” and not with one of her tour groups, in Israel, she said.
She said Shavit later called her on her cell phone, on a number provided by J Street.
“I am ashamed of the mistakes I made with regards to people in general and women in particular,” Shavit said in the statement released later Sunday. “I am embarrassed that I did not behave correctly to my wife and children. I am embarrassed about the consequences of what I did.”
He also said: “In the last few days I have understood that I have been afflicted by blindness. For years I did not understand what people meant when they spoke of privileged men who do not see the damage that they cause to others. Now, I am beginning to understand.”
He added that he would “devote more time to being with my wife and children, who are most valuable to me, and to make personal amends.”
“I understand that it is not a quick process and I am committed to doing it truly. I will do everything in my power to ensure that I will never again be embarrassed by my actions,” he said.
The resignations come several days after Jewish-American journalist Danielle Berrin accused a prominent Israeli writer of sexually harassing and assaulting her as she tried to interview him in the recent past in the lobby of a hotel in America.
Shavit then acknowledged that he was the journalist in question, issuing a statement of apology and stating he would “take time off” from his journalistic work. He said he thought of their interaction as constituting “courtship” or “flirtation” not sexual assault.
Berrin slammed Shavit’s original statement. “That Shavit would claim it was ‘flirtation’ is not only misguided, it suggests I was participating in his scheme when, indeed, I was the victim; I was afraid he’d further assault me if I did not escape,” she wrote.
On Sunday Berrin praised Shavit for his new statement.
I'm grateful for Ari Shavit's powerful, honest statement. His resolution to do 'heshbon hanefesh' – an accounting of the soul – is admirable https://t.co/OOGMIOuNHD
— Danielle Berrin (@danielleberrin) October 30, 2016
A day later, another Jewish-American journalist, Avital Chizhik, a contributor to Haaretz, The New York Times and Tablet magazine, revealed on Twitter that she had an almost identical experience to the one described by Berrin with another Israeli journalist, whom she did not name.
On Thursday, Hillel International, the Jewish campus group, announced it was suspending a speaking tour it arranged for Shavit in the United States “in keeping with our strong position against sexual assault.”
J Street decided to stop inviting Shavit to speak at the group’s events following the incident with its staffer in Baltimore, the Forward reported.
Thank you for helping to make Jewish News the leading source of news and opinion for the UK Jewish community. Today we're asking for your invaluable help to continue putting our community first in everything we do.
For as little as £5 a month you can help sustain the vital work we do in celebrating and standing up for Jewish life in Britain.
Jewish News holds our community together and keeps us connected. Like a synagogue, it’s where people turn to feel part of something bigger. It also proudly shows the rest of Britain the vibrancy and rich culture of modern Jewish life.
You can make a quick and easy one-off or monthly contribution of £5, £10, £20 or any other sum you’re comfortable with.
100% of your donation will help us continue celebrating our community, in all its dynamic diversity...
Engaging
Being a community platform means so much more than producing a newspaper and website. One of our proudest roles is media partnering with our invaluable charities to amplify the outstanding work they do to help us all.
Celebrating
There’s no shortage of oys in the world but Jewish News takes every opportunity to celebrate the joys too, through projects like Night of Heroes, 40 Under 40 and other compelling countdowns that make the community kvell with pride.
Pioneering
In the first collaboration between media outlets from different faiths, Jewish News worked with British Muslim TV and Church Times to produce a list of young activists leading the way on interfaith understanding.
Campaigning
Royal Mail issued a stamp honouring Holocaust hero Sir Nicholas Winton after a Jewish News campaign attracted more than 100,000 backers. Jewish Newsalso produces special editions of the paper highlighting pressing issues including mental health and Holocaust remembrance.
Easy access
In an age when news is readily accessible, Jewish News provides high-quality content free online and offline, removing any financial barriers to connecting people.
Voice of our community to wider society
The Jewish News team regularly appears on TV, radio and on the pages of the national press to comment on stories about the Jewish community. Easy access to the paper on the streets of London also means Jewish News provides an invaluable window into the community for the country at large.
We hope you agree all this is worth preserving.
