Between the Lines

The sudden death of Adolph S. Ochs, the publisher of the New York Times, is a loss not only to the newspaper world, but also to world Jewry.

The New York Times has often been called by anti-Semites “a Jewish newspaper,” not only because its publisher, Mr. Ochs, was a Jew, but also because it paid more attention to news concerning Jewish life than any other newspaper in the United States.

This policy of paying proper attention to Jewish activities in the United States and to events concerning Jews in Europe, has been pursued by the Times due to the direct influence of Mr. Ochs and of the late Louis Wiley.

WATCHING JEWISH NEWS

With the death of these two pillars of the New York Times, the Jews of the world have lost two of its most influential friends. Though not very active in Jewish affairs, Mr. Ochs, and with him Mr. Wiley, watched with interest the developments of Jewish life, especially recently since the Nazis came into power in Germany.

In taking the lead in reporting news concerning Jewish life, the New York Times was also instrumental in the fact that other papers and news agencies in America followed his lead. It was the New York Times, under the ownership of Adolph Ochs, that actually created a demand for Jewish news in the American newspaper field.

EYE ON GERMANY

As one of the very few who had a chance to watch closely the work of the New York Times from Berlin during the first year of the Nazi regime, I can only say that it was the ambition of the New York Times not to miss a single item on the mistreatment of the Jews in Germany.

Very often the New York office of the Times cabled its office in Berlin a summary of the day’s news from Germany as reported by the Jewish Telegraphic Agency, in order to have these reports supplemented by extensive cables from its own correspondent.

In America, Mr. Ochs was especially interested in the Hebrew Union College of Cincinnati. He was the chairman of a committee for a $5,000,000 endowment for the college, and several years ago donated $200,000 to the college. Mr. Ochs was also a member of the Executive of the Union of American Hebrew Congregations.

OCHS AND PALESTINE

Although he visited Palestine, Mr. Ochs had no interest in Zionism. From time to time certain Zionist circles complained to him about the correspondent of the New York Times in Palestine, Joseph Levy, whose reports were not liked by Zionists in America. Mr. Ochs, however, never paid attention to these complaints. His policy was always to place complete confidence in his correspondents and to ignore the complaints of politicians.

A FRIEND OF J. T. A.

Mr. Ochs was one of the sympathetic friends of the Jewish Telegraphic Agency. In one of his letters he speaks of the Jewish Telegraphic Agency as “showing a keen sense of news value, impartiality with respect to controversial questions, fairly reporting all sides, with no signs of propaganda and with a sincere effort to present the news without color.”

Perhaps the best characterization of Adolph Ochs is his own views expressed on the meaning of life in a letter written in October, 1931, to Will Durant Emphasizing in this letter the influence which his Jewish home life had on his future, Mr. Ochs wrote as follows:

“. . . I found pleasure in work that came to my hand and in doing it conscientiously; I found joy and satisfaction in being helpful to my parents and others, and in thus making my life worth while found happiness and consolation. My Jewish home life and religion gave me a sense of responsibility to my subconscious better self—which I think is the God within me, the Unkowable, the Inexplicable. This makes me believe I am more than an animal, and that this life cannot be the end of our spiritual nature.”