In a shocking development, five prominent writers have resigned from the Jewish Chronicle (JC), citing concerns over the newspaper's editorial direction and recent controversies.
Jonathan Freedland, a columnist since 1998, expressed deep disappointment in his resignation letter: "Too often, the JC reads like a partisan ideological instrument, its judgements political rather than journalistic."
Hadley Freeman and David Aaronovitch announced their departures on social media, with Freeman stating that "recent events have made it impossible for me to stay." David Baddiel and Colin Shindler, a professor of Israel studies who has contributed to the paper for over 50 years, also joined the exodus.
The resignations follow a scandal involving articles by Elon Perry, which claimed to provide detailed accounts of Israeli military operations and intelligence. These articles were later described as "fabrications" by Israeli media, prompting an IDF investigation.
In response, the Jewish Chronicle said that it had "conducted a thorough investigation into freelance journalist Elon Perry, initiated after concerns were raised about aspects of his background. While we acknowledge his service in the Israel Defense Forces, we found some of his claims to be unsubstantiated" as reported by Jewish News.
The JC has since removed Perry's articles and ended their association with him, stating, "We have reviewed our internal procedures to prevent this from happening again."
Freedland and others have raised concerns about the JC's secretive ownership, calling for transparency. The identity of the paper's owner, who intervened to prevent a merger with Jewish News in 2020, remains unknown.
Founded in 1841, the Jewish Chronicle is the oldest continuously published Jewish newspaper, but its future now looks uncertain in light of these departures.