L.A. Times praises ‘Hollywood Jews’ for ‘blacklist’ statement

Picking up on the Toronto controversy, Patrick Goldstein weighs in on the impact of the Federation ad.

He writes on his blog, The Big Picture, that he’s “not a big fan of political action letter writing and protest ads,” because “too many celebrities either go whichever direction the wind is blowing or have no real grasp of the complexity of political issues in the first place.” But Goldstein lauds the Federation campaign for striking “the right chord” with its focus on artistic free expression and not the political complexities of the Middle East conflict.

He also gives due praise to Dan Adler, one of the behind-the-scenes figures who helped gather support for the ad.

Read more at The Big Picture:

Dan Adler, an L.A. based entrepreneur and former CAA executive, was one of the driving forces behind the ad, which is officially sponsored by Jewish Federation of Los Angeles and the UJA Federation of Toronto. “We all spent a lot of time talking about the original protest letter, in the sense that it seemed to be going after the wrong target by attacking Israel and its film artists,” said Adler. “When I sat down at my computer and started asking for people to sign on, all I got was passion and enthusiasm. Everyone said, ‘I’m in,’ and then, even better, added, ‘Can I get you someone else?’ “

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Israel’s role in the mess in the Middle East is, for example, far too endlessly complicated to be accurately captured in a protest letter or counter-protest ad. But I think this ad strikes the right chord, since as Adler puts it: “This was a cut and dried issue—it’s important to stand up for the rights of artists, wherever they are, especially in the film community of Israel which has been a beacon of open, often critical free expression.”