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JLTV Creates First Global Jewish TV Channel At 18th Israel Maccabiah
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Darryl Egnal Kfar Maccabi - Ramat Gan, Israel ---- July 17, 2009 ...... The 18th Jewish Maccabiah Games in Israel is being broadcast in its totality outside of Israel for the first time in the event’s history by the first TV station airing throughout the United States dedicated to Jewish life and culture. The American television station, Jewish Life TV (JLTV), secured the exclusive rights to cover the entire 18th Maccabiah Games. The JLTV network is airing live and video taped content on cable TV, satellite and Internet streaming, covering the opening and closing ceremonies live as well as many sports and cultural events during the games, a milestone for the young Jewish TV station “No other international TV station has ever dedicated its programming entirely to the Maccabiah Games in the history of the event,” says Roxanne Mehrian, JLTV director of engineering and facilities. “Most of our day’s programming is focused on the events surrounding the games. This includes various sports events, but also the many human interest stories that are coming out of 18th Maccabiah.” JLTV was founded three years ago by media entrepreneur and founding president, Phil Blazer. It was Blazer's objective to develop a television station dedicated to Jewish life in North America, Europe, the Middle East and Asia. JLTV is broadcast free via satellite and on cable TV to more than 100 million homes across the US, Middle East, North Africa and Europe, as well as on the Internet. Broadcast is made possible in the countries outside the US through the Hotbird satellite. “We’ve covered some amazing events over the past few years,” says Mehrian. “The largest, most successful and rewarding events have been the US election night; Hatikva Live, which saw the largest number of people worldwide singing Hativka at one time and, of course, the 18th Jewish Maccabiah Games here in Israel." “Jewish Life TV has national affiliation agreements with Direct TV, Comcast and Time Warner, cable companies in the US. Our coverage of the 18th Maccabiah has reached millions of people over the past week and Comcast Sports Net has been picking up feeds as well,” she says. JLTV has become more a family than anything else.
“We have great working relationships and we all get along so well that it makes it so much easier to get the job done,” says Brad Pomerance, JLTV news director and anchor. “Not everyone at the station is Jewish, and nor are all of our viewers,” he says. “We are not a religious network to the extent that some Christian TV stations have become dedicated to only to prayer. Jewish Life TV focused primarily on Jewish culture. That being said, we believe that a large part of our viewers are Evangelical Christians who actively support us.” The youngest member of the management team, Adam Blazer, is, at 22, the head of operations. “Adam is the most remarkable young man I’ve ever met,” says Pomerance. “Jewish Life TV would not exist without him. He is the driving force behind so much of what happens at JLTV." US born Pomerance, who has received two Emmy Award nominations, one for the City of Los Angeles’ Channel 35 and the most recent for the Local Edition of CNN Headline News, has worked for JLTV since October 2008, while Mehrian, from Israel, has been around longer. She met Phil Blazer while working at LA18, a multi ethnic television station. Pomerance and Mehrian work so well together that their team efforts and coverage of the 18th Maccabiah Games has resulted in an incredibly smooth operation. “We have an excellent working relationship,” he says. “Our news instincts are really similar and we complete each other in our professional relationship.” "We share the same room almost all the time and the synergy could not be better," says Mehrian. Pomerance, who is married and lives with his two children, Ivy 7 and Paige 5, responds with a smile that they share the same office, as he shyly corrects her Israeli English with a warm smile. Pomerance transcends his JLTV work on the Internet as he uses SKYPE to talk and see his children daily. “With Brad’s legal, entertainment and professional news background, and my technical experience, we make things work,” she says. And at the 18th Maccabiah, having an Israeli on the team hasn’t hurt the process. Mehrian cross cultural experience as an American in the States and as an Israeli in Ramat Gan has created a well oiled bridge for JLTV's operations on both sides of the Atlantic. JLTV’s “Production Bible” is a work of art, according to Mehrian. “Brad did such a good job with the human interest stories,” she says. “He created a Production Bible and when I read it, I got goosebumps. I’m really happy to see all his beautiful features coming together.” “We have covered some really incredible human interest news stories since we’ve been here,” says Pomerance. “One of the most moving stories is that of the head of the Hungarian Delegation, Joszef Horvath. He only found out he was Jewish when he was 20. His mother grew up during the Holocaust and didn’t want to tell her children they were Jewish because of it. Later, he chose to become a committed Jew and he got involved in the Maccabiah movement in 1993. “Recently, Joszef's family reconnected with a relative living in Israel his mother didn’t know about – she thought all her family had been wiped out during the war. He’s bringing his mother to Israel this week to meet her. While he was telling us this story, this 6’7” man had tears rolling down his face.”
Pomerance and his team of Jewish Life TV editors and reporters Jamie Grant, Todd Segal, Keren Aroni, Steve Grad and Igal Hecht have written, anchored and produced news stories on 40 athletes from many different countries, including Argentina, Hungary, Israel, Mexico, the US, Sweden, Canada, India, the UK, Costa Rica, South Africa and even Kazakhstan. He has spoken to the oldest Maccabian, Isaac Joffe (84), who plays tennis for South Africa and has a 15-year-old grandson competing in the golf, and Andi Murez whose grandfather competed in the Maccabiah Games in Vienna in 1932 and 1936. Andi is expected to go to the 2012 Olympics. “The goal of JLTV is to broadcast as much quality content as possible. We are showing Israel in a real and positive light to the world because we have so much to illustrate,” says Mehrian. “The country has so much to offer and our focus here is on the sports and the human interest stories.” One of the main JLTV anchors is LA resident and Olympic award-winning gymnast, Mitch Gaylord. “In the 1981 Maccabiah, Mitch one seven gold medals and one silver – he lost the gold to his brother!” says Pomerance. “And in 1984 Olympics in Los Angeles, he one a gold, a silver and two bronze medals in the gymnastics.” One of Mehrian’s most rewarding experiences of the Maccabiah Chai (18) was working on the opening ceremony as the broadcast engineer and producer. “We worked with the Israel Broadcasting Authority (IBA) and it was amazing to work with them,” she says. “Brad directed the event, but we were co-producers. The main challenge was coordinating the event from the US and continuing it here in Israel. It was an amazing experience to be involved in it.” Mehrian has the best of both worlds, working in the US “as an American” and then coming to Israel as an Israeli. “There are many benefits to being an Israeli on an American TV station. It makes a big difference in getting things done,” she says. The World Maccabiah Games are a quadrennial event that takes place in Israel. The 18th World Maccabiah Games, taking place July 12 – 23, 2009 are the world’s third largest international athletic competition. As the world’s
third largest sports event after the Olympics, the 18th Maccabiah
Games in Israel plays host to 3,000 junior Maccabiah athletes,
aged 15 -18; 5,000 open athletes, 2,000 masters and Paralympics. Sports for which competitors will be going for Gold include: artistic gymnastics, badminton, baseball, basketball, beach volleyball, bridge, cricket, chess, fencing, golf, gymnastics, handball, half-marathon, field hockey, judo, karate, netball, lawn bowls, rowing, rugby, squash, soccer, softball, swimming, table-tennis, taekwondo, tennis, triathlon, track and field, ten-pin bowling, volleyball, water polo, wrestling and windsurfing. The 18th Maccabiah Games is utilizing powerful Web 2.0 new media social networking to connect in real time with millions in Israel and worldwide. There are Twitter news channels: israelmaccabiah and maccabiah and two official Facebook groups. In addition to Maccabiah.com, a new state of the art Web 2.0 Maccabiah Web site has been launched. With very little money, limited resources and a highly dedicated staff, Maccabiah World Union organizers Eyal Tiberger, Amir Peled, Jeanne Futeran, Igal Carmi, Itamar Herman, Rabbi Carlos Tapiero, Avinoam Caspi-Greenfield, Nirit Harel French and Tmira Shafran provided Israel and the world's Jewish community with an 18th Maccabiah that we shall remember and cherish for many years to come. Maccabi is active in Jewish communities throughout the world. More than 400,000 Jews in 400 institutions in 60 countries over five continents are part of the Maccabi family. Significantly, this is the 18th Maccabiah that has taken place since the first Maccabiah in 1923. In Hebrew numerology, Chai signifies the number 18 and is also the Hebrew word for “life”, adding a special meaning to these games for the organisers and the participants. The JLTV media family is well on its way to becoming the next big thing for the Jewish world internationally, and if they continue to put 100 percent of their Jewish hearts and minds into the TV station, the rest of the Jewish world will be the better for it. You can watch JLTV on Direct TV Channel 366 or check your local cable system. If your cable system does not carry JLTV, call and tell them you want your JLTV.
Joel Leyden contributed to the above news story.
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