American Jewish, Yiddish Press to Receive Aid from Israel

The Jewish press in the United States will receive aid from Israel in the form of advertising from the Israeli government and non-governmental firms, it was announced here by Arye Tzimuki, coordinator of the World Union of Jewish Journalists.

Addressing a meeting of Jewish journalists at the Israeli Consulate General, Tzimuki said that a special public committee to support the Jewish press in the U.S. was established recently in Israel. Among its members are Finance Minister Pinhas Sapir, Tourism Minister Moshe Kol and Jewish Agency Treasurer Leon Dultzin. Tzimuki said the committee concluded that the Jewish press is an essential tool in the battle against assimilation and deserves economic support. The Israeli journalist was in the U.S. to attend the annual meeting of the American Jewish Press Association in San Francisco.

Ambassador David Rivlin, Israel’s Consul General who hosted the meeting here, accused the Israeli leadership and the Israeli press of not knowing “what American Jewry is like.” He also stated that the Israeli press is negligent in its coverage of the American Jewish scene and called for greater efforts from Israel for American Jewry.

The journalists representing the Jewish and Yiddish press in this country who attended the meeting complained of the lack of rapport and viable relationship between the Israeli and the Jewish and Yiddish news media in this country. They urged economic support to aid the press to help fulfill its function as news gathering agencies.

The first group of summer visitors from Jordan crossed the Jordan River bridges for a month’s stay in the administered territories. Israeli authorities expect several thousand visitors to arrive next month. the 4 1/2 month period during which Arabs from all over the world are permitted to visit relatives in the administered territories and Israel proper will be extended to a year-round basis next year.