The Jewish Defense League has protested to the producers of NBC-TV’s “Tomorrow” show for permitting an American Nazi leader to appear on the show with Tom Snyder. The JDL, is a telegram to the producers, demanded both an apology to the Jewish community and a change in policy regarding the scheduling of “Nazis and Klansmen.”
The telegram of protest was prompted by the appearance last Wednesday of Harold Covington, 27, of Raleight, N.C., who heads the National Socialist Party of America, an offshoot of the American Nazi Party. In its telegram, the JDL stated:
“Yours (NBC-TV) is a dangerous policy of allowing such a person to spew hate before an audience of millions, thereby endangering the future of the American Jewish community and a change in policy regarding the scheduling of guests such as Nazis and Klansmen.”
The Nazi leader and his bodyguard were attacked by four persons in the lobby of NBC minutes before Covington’s scheduled TV appearance. JDL members claimed responsibility for the attack. According to the JDL, Covington was knocked down then kicked and punched, resulting in lacerations on his face. His bodyguard was hit with a lead pipe and also sustained lacerations. Both were treated by an NBC nurse. There were no arrests.
Covington appeared on the TV show but it was taped without the usual live studio audience. Last year the Nazi leader received 56,000 votes–43 percent of the total–in the Republican primary for North Carolina Attorney General.
The Archive of the Jewish Telegraphic Agency includes articles published from 1923 to 2008. Archive stories reflect the journalistic standards and practices of the time they were published.
