Talks & Entertainment

Anti-Semitism is on the rise, along with broader hate speech and actions against almost all minority populations. The gulf between Israeli and Diaspora Jews is growing, and generations of bipartisan support for the government of the Jewish state is shifting. The refugee crisis is reminiscent of darker days of Jewish history. American politics is as polarized as it has ever been.

Michael Barbaro, host of The New York Times’ pillar podcast “The Daily,” and Jodi Rudoren, editor-in-chief of The Forward, will have a lively discussion of the 2020 political landscape. With primary voting about to start, and three Jewish candidates in the crowded Democratic field, they’ll talk about how the issues many Jews care about are playing out in the race and how they view the campaign as journalists — who are both Jewish.

A longtime political reporter, Barbaro has interviewed the leading Democrats and helped the world navigate the fractious and frantic news of the past several years as host of “The Daily.” With nearly 2 million downloads per episode, the podcast is The Times’ most successful digital innovation. He was the City Hall bureau chief of The New York Times during the Bloomberg administration, and in 2016 co-authored the first investigative stories showing Donald Trump’s mistreatment of women. Last year, People Magazine included him on its list of the 15 Sexiest Newsmen Alive.

Rudoren took the helm of The Forward in September 2019 after more than two decades as a reporter, editor, and innovator at The New York Times. She is helping the storied institution, which has for generations been the leading Jewish voice in American journalism, reinvent itself as a digital-only publication. At The Times, she served as Jerusalem bureau chief from 2012 through 2015, and covered the 2004 presidential election.