Talking Atlanta and Politics on Israeli TV

The night before the June 27 presidential candidate debate in Atlanta, I was interviewed in my home office by Neria Kraus, the White House correspondent for Israel’s Channel 13.

Before Kraus arrived, my wife did what she could to make my workspace presentable, while I shaved and put on a clean shirt.

The interview came about when a Channel 13 producer in Israel contacted the Atlanta Jewish Times, seeking an interview via video about Atlanta and the debate between President Joe Biden and former President Donald Trump.

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As it happened, Kraus was in Atlanta and, despite the relatively late hour, came to our house. She set up one phone on a tripod and another on a bookcase. Framed newspaper pages, photographs, and other tchotchkes in my office were on display in the background.

Kraus asked about the significance of the event being held in Atlanta.
This city is hardly phased by a presidential debate, I said. In my 37 years here, Atlanta has hosted the Democratic National Convention, the summer Olympic Games, collegiate and professional sports championships, and visits by numerous presidents, prime ministers, and potentates. In two years, Atlanta will welcome the world for the men’s soccer World Cup.

I suggested that Kraus’ audience might be interested to know that Atlanta’s estimated Jewish population of 140,000 includes upwards of 15,000 Israelis.

During our 45-minute conversation, we discussed Georgia’s ascension to a place of prominence in presidential politics, the competing claims by Biden and Trump of being the better friend of Israel, the impact of the Oct. 7 terror attacks on the psyche of Jewish Americans, the public debate in the United States over Israel’s war against Hamas in Gaza, and the protests in Israel against the government of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

I explained to Kraus that I have written several columns about the hostages in Gaza, in part out of personal interest, as three of those killed and seven of those kidnapped on Oct. 7 (including one still being held hostage) represent leaves on an Israeli branch of my family tree.

The debate was to be held on a closed set, without an audience, at the midtown campus where the Cable News Network was born in 1980 and to which it has returned after many years in downtown Atlanta. Kraus and more than 800 other journalists, representing 173 news organizations and 35 countries, were kept across the street, in McCamish Pavilion, as the home of Georgia Tech’s basketball teams was transformed into a media filing center and interview “spin rooms.”

Twenty-four hours later, Biden’s poor performance had disrupted — to say the least — whatever post-debate reporting plans journalists brought with them to Atlanta.

Given the frenzied tone of coverage in the aftermath, I would not have been surprised to learn that my interview wound up on the cutting room floor, but Kraus found a minute’s worth of my comments — translated with Hebrew subtitles — worthy of inclusion in a nearly 10-minute piece she prepared.

From my past lifetime in television news I know that one minute is a significant amount of time to give any one voice. I can only wonder what the Israeli audience thought of the political punditry from a writer for the Atlanta Jewish Times.

A couple of days later, I wrote an article for the AJT surveying local Jewish reaction to the debate. Not surprisingly, the responses were divided along party lines, with an added dose of Democratic worry about their standard bearer’s well-being.

Amid the ongoing war in Gaza and an escalating conflict with Hezbollah that has forced tens of thousands of Israelis from their homes in the north, as well as large demonstrations calling on him to secure a deal to release the hostages, Netanyahu is scheduled to address a joint session of Congress on July 24 and presumably also meet with Biden.

These are consequential times for Israelis and Americans. I’ve suggested to Kraus that she return to Atlanta before Election Day on Nov. 5, to take a broader look at the Jewish community, to see how it lives, and gauge Israel fits as a consideration when voting. Such reporting might give Israelis a more nuanced view of Jewish life in this country, something sorely needed, just as Jewish Americans would benefit from a more expansive, less black-and-white view of Israel.

I have been interviewed before and always find it strange to see my face and, in particular, hear my voice. I hope I sound reasonably intelligent. As much as I enjoyed Kraus’ visit and the invitation to talk about Jewish life and politics in Atlanta, I remain more comfortable being the interviewer than the interviewee.