Skip to main content

400+ Entertainment Leaders Release Open Letter Calling Out Lies and Deadly Consequences of Anti-Israel Incitement

Notable entertainment leaders from around the globe including Debra Messing, Julianna Margulies, Mayim Bialik, Sharon Osbourne, Jerry O’Connell, Patricia Heaton, Uzo Aduba, Sherry Lansing, Haim Saban, Rebecca De Mornay, Ynon Kreiz, Rick Rosen, Gary Barber, Ben Silverman, Emmanuelle Chriqui, Leo Pearlman, Diane Warren amongst many others, demand an end to amplification of anti-Israel propaganda.

LOS ANGELES, May 29, 2025 — More than 400 entertainment leaders signed an open letter released by the non-profit entertainment industry organization Creative Community For Peace (CCFP) calling for a rejection of extremist rhetoric and the spread of misinformation.

The letter comes in response to the deadly shooting of two young people outside a Jewish Museum in Washington, D.C. and after the release of multiple open letters from the entertainment and literature communities filled with fallacious claims and incendiary accusations.

Actress Mayim Bialik said: “History repeats itself: peddling lies about Jews has deadly consequences. For the past two years, public figures and influencers with millions of followers have consistently promoted fallacious and menacing anti-Israel propaganda masquerading as advocacy. This stream of lies against the Jewish people and the Jewish ancestral homeland has now – unsurprisingly to anyone watching closely – turned deadly in the United States. This moment requires public figures to use their platforms responsibly. We implore these individuals to lend their voices to those of moral clarity, peace and tolerance, instead of division, distortion and delegitimization.”

Since October 7th, the rhetoric and actions from anti-Israel activists around the globe routinely embrace extremism and antisemitism.

Following the shooting in Washington, D.C., the suspect repeatedly yelled, “Free Palestine,” showcasing how the anti-Israel movement has been radicalized to violence.

Saban Capital Group Chairman and CEO Haim Saban said: “When public figures accuse Israel of genocide, call for intifada, or claim Jews are colonizers, they may not understand the history they’re invoking — but the people who act on those words often do. This open letter is a plea for truth, for accountability, and for responsibility — especially from those with powerful platforms.”

The letter highlights how celebrities unknowingly platform dangerous propaganda, “Some well-meaning celebrities and public figures have been manipulated by this constant stream of misinformation, which they have also helped to amplify.”

CCFP Chairman/Co-Founder David Renzer and Executive Director Ari Ingel said, For the past 600 days, the anti-Israel movement has espoused an unrelenting stream of extremist rhetoric to demonize Israel and anyone who supports the country — it’s a toxic mix of distortion, bigotry and incitement. Given the power of social media, it’s incumbent on entertainers and public figures, with their ability to influence millions around the world, to use their platforms responsibly. Without a course correction, we will only see more hate, more violence, and more innocent people targeted simply for being Jewish.”

The statement is the first of its kind – a call from the entertainment community to unequivocally condemn the anti-Israel movement’s role in scapegoating and endangering Jews around the globe.

The letter states: “Hamas, Iran, and their allies and ideological sympathizers in the West have flooded the world with their hateful lies and antisemitic incitement since October 7 — lies designed to demonize Israel, the Jewish people, and their supporters.”

The letter concludes: “We call on all our colleagues to reject this extremist rhetoric and the spread of misinformation so that we can all work toward a future in which all Israelis and Palestinians can live side by side in peace and dignity.”

Signatories Include:

Debra Messing, Actress; Uzo Aduba, Actress; Julianna Margulies, Actor, Producer, Author; Jerry O’Connell, Actor; Mayim Bialik, Actor, Writer, Producer; Sharon Osbourne, Manager & TV Host; Patricia Heaton, Actress; Rebecca De Mornay, Actress; Sherry Lansing, Former CEO of Paramount Pictures; Haim Saban, Chairman and CEO, Saban Capital Group; Rick Rosen, Co-Founder, Endeavor; Gary Barber, Hollywood Executive; Ynon Kreiz, Chairman and CEO, Mattel, Inc.; Ben Silverman; Chairman & Co-CEO, Propagate Content; Diane Warren, Songwriter; Aaron Bay-Schuck, CEO/Co-Chairman Warner Records; Fernando Szew, CEO, FOX Entertainment Global; Julie Greenwald, Former Chairman & CEO, Atlantic Records Group; Lyor Cohen, Global Head of Music Google and YouTube; Diane Warren, Songwriter; John Ondrasik (Five For Fighting), Artist; David Draiman, Lead Singer of Disturbed, Artist; Emmanuelle Chriqui, Actress; Danny Cohen, President of Access Entertainment; Jonathan Shalit OBE, Chairman InterTalent Rights Group / Chosen Music / Project 30 Studios;  Matisyahu, Musician; Fred Savage, Actor; Modi Wiczyk, Co-Founder, MRC; Leo Pearlman, Co-CEO, Fulwell Entertainment; David Renzer, Former CEO/Chairman Universal Music Publishing; Michael Rotenberg, Partner, 3 Arts Entertainment; Dean Cain, Actor; Neil Blair, Partner, The Blair Partnership;  Blair Kohan, Partner, UTA; Billy Ray, Writer, Producer; amongst many others.

Add Your Name: If you are a member of the entertainment community (only), you can sign onto the letter here: [Link]

FULL OPEN LETTER

We, the undersigned, are saying enough! Enough with the lies, and enough with the extremism.

Hamas, Iran, and their allies and ideological sympathizers in the West have flooded the world with their hateful lies and antisemitic incitement since October 7 — lies designed to demonize Israel, the Jewish people, and their supporters.

Some well-meaning celebrities and public figures have been manipulated by this constant stream of misinformation, which they have also helped to amplify.

On May 21, 2025 we saw that these lies can have deadly consequences when two young people were murdered outside a Jewish Museum in Washington D.C., as the perpetrator chanted “Free Palestine” — a chant that has now become a call to violence.

War is horrific — where far too many civilians suffer — which is why even though Hamas launched wars against Israel in 2008, 2012, 2014, 2018, and 2021, the wars were short-lived.

But the gruesome Hamas massacre on October 7, 2023 changed everything.

Tragically, the suffering of civilians in Gaza is a strategy of Hamas, with one Hamas official stating that it is “a small price” to pay.

When Russia launched its war on Ukraine, it was the women and children that went underground in the metro system for safety while the men fought above ground.

In contrast, in Gaza —  after Hamas launched their genocidal war on Israel —  it was their fighters who went underground into the Gaza “metro,” while leaving women and children above ground to be used as their human shields.

This is a war Hamas started, and one that they can end by releasing the hostages, by laying down their arms, thereby freeing the Palestinians of Gaza from their tyrannical rule as well.

Yet, Hamas refuses to relent on their demand to have all of the land between the river and the sea cleansed of Jews, as they state in their own charter:

“The Day of Judgment will not come about until Moslems fight Jews and kill them. Then, the Jews will hide behind rocks and trees, and the rocks and trees will cry out: ‘O Moslem, there is a Jew hiding behind me, come and kill him.’ (Article 7).

The anti-Israel campaign shares this extremism.

The anti-Israel campaign refuses to hold Hamas accountable for the death and destruction caused by their illegal and repeated use of hospitals, mosques, schools, and UN facilities to launch attacks and shield their command centers.

The anti-Israel campaign refuses to acknowledge that the vast majority of “journalists” pumping out propaganda in Gaza are, in fact, members or supporters of the terrorist organizations themselves — even joining Hamas on October 7th to help broadcast their massacre inside Israel to the world.

The anti-Israel campaign spreads the antisemitic blood libel that the Jewish state – and all the Jews that support Israel – are bloodthirsty, intentionally targeting civilians, and committing “genocide.”

The anti-Israel campaign makes outrageous claims — such as Israel seeking to murder 14,000 babies in a 48-hour period — claims so egregious they should collapse under the weight of its own absurdity. Yet, these claims are amplified by the media, in addition to celebrities who share this disinformation to their millions of followers on social media.

The anti-Israel campaign claims that Jews are colonizers, when they are indigenous to the land of Israel and have the right to self-determination in their historical homeland as enshrined by the UN Charter.

We reject all these lies.

We reject the anti-Israel movement co-opting every social justice cause — outrageously claiming that to stand with the LGBTQIA+ community, or with anti-racist, anti-colonialist, anti-Islamophobic and anti-antisemitic movements, is to stand against Israel.

This is all done to paint Israel — and Jews around the world — as embodying the world’s ultimate evils. This is antisemitism.

We call on all our colleagues to reject this extremist rhetoric and the spread of misinformation so that we can all work toward a future in which all Israelis and Palestinians can live side by side in peace and dignity.

SIGNATORIES

Ari Ingel, Executive Director, Creative Community for Peace

Aaron Bay-Schuck, CEO/Co-Chairman Warner Records

Rakefet Abergel, Actor

Michael Abrams, Talent Manager, Constellation Media Group

Jason Adelman, VP, Brand Innovators Labs

Orly Adelson, Former President of ITV Studios, America

Marty Adelstein, CEO, Tomorrow Studios

Dan Adler, Producer

Uzo Aduba, Artist

Shir Aharon, Talent Manager

Michael Auerbach, Partner, Jackoway Austen

Dean Bahat, Attorney, Ziffren Brittenham LLP

Andrea Ballas, VP Communications, CBS/Paramount

Craig Balsam, CEO, RT Industries

Gary Barber, Executive

Eve Barlow, Writer

Jackie Barrie, A&R Executive

Jonathan Baruch, President, Rain

Richard Baskind, Partner & Head of Music, Simons Muirhead & Burton

Aton Ben-Horin, Executive VP A&R, Warner Music Group/CEO, Plush Mgmt.

David Bercovici-Artieda, Director/Producer, EQUINOX DREAM PROJECT

Adam Berkowitz, Founder and President, Lenore Entertainment Group

Mayim Bialik, Actor, Writer, Producer, Sad Clown Productions

Sharon Bialy, Casting Director/Co-Owner, Bialy/Thomas & Associates

Hillary Bibicoff, Transactional Entertainment Attorney, Feig Finkel LLP

David Bickel, Writer/Producer

Allison Binder, Partner, GGSS&C

Joshua P. Binder, Partner, Rothenberg, Mohr, & Binder, LLP

Neil Blair, Partner, The Blair Partnership

Evan Bogart, Songwriter & CEO, Seeker Music

Sarah Bremner, Partner, Prologue Entertainment

Joanne Bressler, SVP, Attorney

Kevin Bright, Producer, Just Bright Productions.

Drew Buckley, Group President, COO, Propagate Content

Benjamin Budde, CEO, Budde Group

David Byrnes, Partner, Ziffren Brittenham LLP

Dean Cain, Actor

Emily Cameron, Manager, Plush Management

Sarah Camlett, Agent

Civia Caroline, Industry Impact Consultant, CLiC Impact Entertainment

Markell Casey, Founder & Manager, Worldwide Tracks

Cliff Chenfeld, Co-Founder, Razor & Tie

David Chesnoff, Partner, Chesnoff and Schinfeld

Emmanuelle Chriqui, Actor

Danny Cohen, President, Access Entertainment

Emily Cohen, Director

Gabriella Cohen, Musician

Lyor Cohen, Global Head of Music, Google and YouTube

Tanya Cohen, Partner, Range Media Partners

Leanne Coronel, President, The Coronel Group

Raye Cosbert, Managing Director, Metropolis Music

Ben Cosgrove, CEO, Leviathan Productions

Avi Dahan, Attorney, Boyarski Fritz LLP

Robin Davids, Publicity, Sony Pictures Entertainment

David Davis, Lawyer

Doug Davis, Attorney and Founder, The Davis Firm

Mirelle Davis, Artist Manager, Wind Up Bird Ltd

Rebecca De Mornay, Actress

Linda Deal, Social Work

Danielle Del, Partner, D2 Management

Jamie Denbo, Writer/Actor

Kurt Deutsch, President, Broadway Music Group

Avi Diamond, Director, Film & TV Licensing, Warner Music Canada

Michael Diamond, Talent Manager/Partner, Range Media Partners

Ro Diamond, Vice President, SDB Partners

Craig Dorfman, Owner/Manager, Frontline Management

Rachel Douglas, Manager, Range Media Partners

Brian P. Drach, Attorney, Lewis Brisbois

David Draiman, Frontman of the band Disturbed

A.M. Driver, Actress

Jeremy Drysdale, Screenwriter

Linda Edell Howard, Attorney, Edell Howard Enterprises LLC

Jessica Elbaum, Producer, Gloria Sanchez Productions

Talya Elitzer, Co-Founder, Godmode Music

Craig Emanuel, Executive, The Kid From Downunder Inc.

Emma Engers, Agent, Emma Engers Associates Ltd

Dvora Englefield, Partner and Head of Music Artist Strategy, WME

Hannah Epstein, Agent, CAA

Rami “Kosha Dillz” Even-Esh, Artist/Comic/Filmmaker

Ron Fair, Record Producer & CEO, Faircraft Inc.

Sharon Farber, Film Composer

Eric Feig, Partner, Feig/Finkel, LLP

Joel Feigenbaum, Vice President, Warner Music Group

Patti Felker, Partner, Felker Toczek Suddleson McGinnis Ryan LLP

Jacob Fenton, Partner, UTA

Ken Fermaglich, Partner, UTA

Mark Feuerstein, Actor

Bradley Fischer, Producer

Erica Forster, COO, Pendulum

Jordan Frazes, Founder, Frazes Creative

Jennifer Freed, Artist Management

Hilary Freeman, Journalist and Author

Adam Friedman, Executive, Creative Artists Agency

Adina Friedman, Manager, Artist House

Daryl Friedman, Former Chief Advocacy & Industry Relations Officer, The Recording Academy

Siri Garber, CEO and Founder, Platform Public Relations

David Gardner, President, Artists First

Jeremy Garelick, Writer/Director/Producer

Barbara Garshman, Writer/Producer, Garshman ProductionsLLC

Andrew Genger, Manager, Red Light Management

Maya Giladi, Business & Legal Affairs, Netflix

Gary Ginsberg, Author and TV Producer

Jordan Glickson, VP, Music & Talent, Vevo

Elissa Gold, Creative Event Producer & Cultural Programmer

Michael Goldstein, Executive Producer

Michael Goldwasser, President/Co-Founder, Easy Star Records

Robert Golenberg, President, Pivot Artists Group

Jonathan Gordon, Producer

Michael Gordon, Partner, Creative Artists Agency

Andrew Gould, President, Music Publishing, Roc Nation

Marc Graboff, Media Consultant

Westside Gravy, Artist

Scott Greenberg, Manager and Partner, LBI Entertainment

Julie Greenwald, Music Executive

Daniel Grindlinger, Writer

Julie Gurovitsch, Producer, NBC

Elle Hamilton, Stuntwoman, Stuntwomen’s Association

Lynn Harris, Film Producer

Ronnie Harris, Partner, Harris & Trotter LLP

Ronny Hatchwell, Industry Relations Manager, CCFP

Patricia Heaton, Actress

Noreena Hertz, Writer

Joanne Horowitz, Talent Management/ Producer, Joanne Horowitz Management

Sammy Horowitz, Writer/Producer

Josh Howie, Comedian/Writer

Richard “BournRich” Ingram, Artist/Creative Director

Neil Jacobson, CEO, Hallwood Media

Jonathan Jakubowicz, Writer & Director

Sara Johnson, Access Consultant

Heather Kadin, President, Scripted Television, Range Media Partners

Dan Kanter, Musical Director

Michael Kaplan, Writer-Producer

Zach Katz, CEO & Co-Founder, Fixated

Melanie Kessler, Production Co-ordinator

Dana Klein, Writer, EP

Sam Kling, Chief Creative Officer for SESAC

Keetgi Kogan Steinberg, Writer/Producer/Showrunner

Blair Kohan, Partner, United Talent Agency

David Kohan, Writer-Producer

Eric Kranzler, Co-Founder, Entertainment 360

Ynon Kreiz, Chairman and CEO, Mattel Inc.

Rick Krim, CEO, Krim Music + Media

Sherry Lansing, Former CEO, Paramount Pictures

Estelle Lasher, President, Lasher Group

Adam Leibner, Partner/Agent, UTA

Allan Leicht, Writer

Colin Lester OBE, Chairman/CEO, JEM Music Group

Ben Levine, Partner/Link Entertainment, Link Entertainment

Robert Levine, Editor At Large, Billboard

Avi Liberman, Entertainer

Sharon Lieblein, Casting Director, Sharon Lieblein Casting

Sean Liebowitz, Agent

Robin Lippin, Owner, Lippin/Block Casting

Cory Litwin, Managing Partner, Music, Range Media Partners

David Lonner, CEO, The David Lonner Company

Jane Lush, Former BAFTA Chair and Former BBC Head of Ent.

Ben Maddahi, President, Unrestricted Publishing/Management

Gabriel Mann, Composer/Producer

Deborah Marcus, Executive, CAA

Ashlee Margolis, Founder & Managing Partner, The A List

Julianna Marguiles, Actor, Producer, Author

Orly Marley, President, Tuff Gong Worldwide

Rafael Marmor, Partner, Delirio Films

Matisyahu, Musician

Nancy Matalon, Manager

Debra Messing, Actor/Producer

Max Michael, Head of Asia Business Development, UTA

Darren Michaelson, Director, L25 Entertainment

Petra Miller, Account Director, Alive Activation

Gev Miron, Director

Elizabeth Much, CEO, East to West Collective PR

DJ Nash, Showrunner/Executive Producer/Director, Next Thing You Know, Inc.

Stefi Novo, Songwriter

Lisa Nupoff, Manager, iminmusic management

Jerry O’Connell, Actor

John Ondrasik, Five for Fighting

Sharon Osbourne, Manager & TV Personality

Howard Owens, Co-CEO, Propagate

Scott Packman, Founder and Managing Member, SSP Partners LLC

Sharon Paz, Manager/Founder, Paz Talent

Leo Pearlman, Co-CEO, Fulwell Entertainment

Mark Pinkus, President, Rhino Records

Jonah Platt, Creator/Host, Being Jewish with Jonah Platt

Wendy Plaut, SVP, Celebrity Talent, Paramount Global

Rhonda Price, Managing Partner, Gersh Agency

Jeff Rabhan, CEO, Bored-of-ed.com

Sylvie Rabineau, Co-Head, Book to Film/TV, WME

Golan Ramraz, Writer-Producer, EGX Film Factory

Billy Ray, Writer/Director

David Renzer, Former CEO/Chairman Universal Music Publishing

Bruce Resnikoff, President & CEO, Universal Music Enterprises

Frederic Richter, Archive Producer, Researcher, Writer

Doug Robinson, Producer, DRP

Dan Rosen, President, Warner Music Australasia

Rick Rosen, Co-Founder, WME

Aaron Rosenberg, Partner, Myman Greenspan Fox Rosenberg Mobasser Younger & Light

Erez Rosenberg, Attorney

Shani Rosenzweig, Partner, Talent Agent, UTA

Brian Ross, Writer-Producer

Gregg Rossen, Screenwriter

Michael Rotenberg, Partner, 3 Arts Entertainment

Lynn Roth, Writer. Producer, Director, Lynn Roth Productions, Inc.

Joshua Rothstein, CEO/Founder, Ice Cream For Dinner

Susan Rovner, Producer, Aha Studios

Jonathan Ruggiero, Filmmaker

Haim Saban, Chairman and CEO, Saban Capital Group

Wendy Sachs, Director/Producer, October 8 Film

David Sacks, Executive Producer

Laura Salvato, Director, Publicity, Paramount Pictures

Nicola Saul, Personal Assistant, Warner Music

Anna Savage, Manager, Full Stop Management

Fred Savage, Actor/Director/Producer

Leslie Schapira, Writer/Producer

William Schmidt, TV Writer

Steve Schnur, Worldwide Executive & Music President, Electronic Arts

Jordan Schur, CEO & Chairman, Mimran Schur Pictures & Suretone Entertainment

Sam Schwartz, Co-principal, Gorfaine/Schwartz Agency

Teddy Schwarzman, CEO, Black Bear

Jay Schweid, Founder/CEO, ephelants / Village

Adam J. Segal, President, The 2050 Group – Publicity

Rick Senat, Producer

Stefi Shabashev, Songwriter

Professor Jonathan Shalit OBE, Chairman, InterTalent Rights Group / Chosen Music / Project 30 Studios

Carly Shear, Head of Legal, Hat Trick Productions

Ben Silverman, Chairman and Co-CEO, Propagate Content

Tamar Simon, Film Distribution/PR, Mean Streets Management

Marty Singer, Managing Partner, Lavely & Singer

Danielle Solzman, Film Critic, Solzy at the Movies

Jeff Sosnow, EVP A&R, Warner Records

Donna Spievak, VP of Strategic Marketing, Interscope Records

Halle Stanford, President, Executive Producer, 7 Crow Stories

Mimi Steinberg, Writer and Producer

Jonathan Steinsapir, Attorney

Tracy Steinsapir, President, Main Title Entertainment

Deena Stern, Marketing Executive

Caroline Stevens, Director, iSolutions Ltd

Gary Stiffelman, Founder, GSS Law

Estee Stimler, Writer

Lee Stone, Entertainment Lawyer, Lee & Thompson

Alison Stover, Actor/Filmmaker, Luminous Pictures

Daniel Sussman, Talent Manager, Brillstein Entertainment Partners

Aaron Symonds, Film Composer, AJS Music

Fernando Szew, President, Fox Entertainment Studios

Traci Szymanski, President of Co-Star Entertainment

Sharon Tal Yguado, Founder & CEO, Astrid Entertainment

Nina Tassler, Prodicer, Kismet Creative Group

Adam Taylor, President, APM Music

Suzanne Tenner, Photographer

Fred Toczek, Partner, Felker Toczek Suddleson Abramson LLP

Lee Trink, CEO, Game Theory Ventures

Eric Tuchman, Writer/Producer, MGM-TV

Montana Tucker, Singer/Actress/Dancer/Social Media Activist

Noa Vinshtok, Streaming Manager, Range Media Partners/Range Music

Alex Voihanski, President, Paramount Business Group

Vera Wagman, Producer

Katie Walder, Actress

Evan Warner, Senior Partner/Agent, WME

Diane Warren, Songwriter, Producer

Joshua Washington, Artist/Producer

Jon Weinbach, President, Skydance Sports

Jenni Weinman, Strategist, The Current Co.

Nola Weinstein, Entertainment Executive

Jarred Weisfeld, President, Objective Entertainment

Joshua Weisleder, Global Music Rights

Ilana Wernick, Writer/Producer

Modi Wiczyk, Co-Founder, MRC

Cindy Wiener, Music Executive, Realsongs, Realsongs

Evan Winiker, Managing Partner, Music, Range Media Partners

Cara Wodnicki, Founder, CSW Publicity

Seth Yanklewitz, Casting Director, Yanklewitz Pollack Casting

Hilary Zaitz Michael, Co-Head & Partner, Literary Packaging at WME

Kari Zalik, Publicist, Bad Parade

David Zedeck, Global Co-Head of Music, UTA

Oran Zegman, Film/TV Director, Van Zegman Films

ADDITIONAL SIGNATORIES

Mika Aharfi, Composer, Echomusicfarm

Susie Arons, President, 42West

Bob Bergen, Voice Actor

Brent Brotine, Writer

Avigail Cenci di Bello, Director of Development

Sadaf Cohen Muncy, SVP, Development and Production, HappyNest Entertainment

Adrianna Costa, Journalist/Host

Howard Davine, COO, Wiip Productions

Jon Ehrlich, Composer

Samantha Ettus, Author

Diana Golan, Make Up Artist

Heidi Haddad, Writer/Producer/Actress, Best Case Scenario Productions

Simon Halfon, Producer, Nemperor Ltd

Elizabeth Hepworth, Actress

Dana Landman, Management

Micha Liberman, President/Lead Music Editor, Mind Meld Arts, Inc.

Alexandra Lumerman, Photographer, Alexandra Lumerman Photography

Molly Madden, Manager/Partner, 3 Arts Entertainment

Arnon Manor, Producer, Chemical Soup

Laurence Miller, Producer/Commercial Director, Nimax Theatres

Brad Pomerance, Executive Vice President, Jewish Life Television/JLTV

Chris Queen, Editor, PJ Media/Townhall Media

Lisa Randleman, Actor

Fred Raskin, Film Editor

Itay Reiss, Partner, Artists First

Teme Ring, Writer, Comedians Defying Gravity

Florina Rodov, Writer

Nathan Ross, Film/TV Producer, lilyrose productions inc

Jonathan Rubenstein, Producer, Crystal City Entertainment

Jordan Rush, Writer/Producer

Yuri Rutman, Director-EP, Filmdemand

Brett Ruttenberg, SVP, imPRint

Sammy Scher, Executive Producer, Film & TV

Adam Silverman, SVP, Legal, Head of Legal for Programming and Advertising

Jennifer Smith, Music Supervisor, Rat Dance Party Inc

Susan Stremple, Producer

Richard Trank, Filmmaker, Sea Point Films and Media

Gabriela Tscherniak, Director, Cohensisters Entertainment Ltd

Dena Waxman, Executive Producer/Writer, Wax Poetic Productions

Guri Weinberg, Actor

Jay Weisleder, Producer, Fuego Films

Michele Weisler, Producer, Clearblack Films

Sherri Ziff, Writer/Producer

Elena Zilberman, SVP

Judie Aronson, Actress

Gail Banack, SVP, Travel Edge

Maya Bar-Lev, Associate Producer, ESPN

Rachel Bendavid, EVP Scripted Programming, BBC Studios LA

Ross Boyask, Writer-Director

Airion Chantel, Musician, Actress, Multi-media Artist

Hilary Cherniss, Writer

Lisa Cohen, President, Associated Booking Corp

Ben Daniels, Screenwriter

Yuval David, Actor, Filmmaker, Journalist

Shula Daws, Development Producer, Plum Pictures

Mandana Dayani, Creator, I Am A Voter and Calanet Foundation

Ron Dicurcio, President, CineFex

Stefanie Epstein, Producer

Charles Evered, Writer, Ordinance 14

Lisa Feldsher, Writer and Founder, Mind Over Media

Mollie Fermaglich, Writer

Michael Garlin, Radio Host and Comedian

Ben Goldsmith, Performing Artist & Songwriter

Malcolm Green, Filmmaker and Writer, Green AFM Ltd

Abe Gurko, Producer, Won’t Be Silent LLC

Andi Howard, President, Peak Records and Andi Howard Entertainment

Jennifer Lanter, Artistic Director, SHTARKcontrast

Fredric London, Actor

Peter Macklin, Actor/Playwright

David Prior, Writer/Director, DreamLogic Pictures

Phillip Ramati, Writer

Abbe Raven, Media Executive

Orly Ravid, Founder/Co-Executive Director, The Film Collaborative

Thane Rosenbaum, Novelist

Jeff Sackman, President, Quiver Distribution

Charlie Sanders, Attorney/Chair, National Music Council of the United States

Joseph Schick, Producer, Schick Pictures

Steven Schub, Actor/Singer/Writer

Michelle Shine, Author

Lori Silfen, Executive

Artur Sumarokov, Playwright and Cinema Critic

Beth Ellyn Summer, Author

Kimberly Wallis, Actress

Pearl Wexler, President, Kohner Agency

Arnie Zipursky, CEO, Neshama Entertainment

Lucy Abrahams, Literary Scout, Lucy Abrahams Literary Scouting

Anne-Marie Asner, Co-Founder, Animation Israel

Howard Benson, Music Producer and CEO, Judge&JuryRecords

Allison Bibicoff, Intimacy Coordinator

Jordan Bielsky, Actor and Writer

Lori Blackman-Master, Supervising Producer, The Tonight Show starring Jimmy Fallon

Aaron Brander, Editor

Anthony Bregman, Producer, Likely Story

Corey Breier, President, Yiddish Theatrical Alliance

Paul Burger, CEO, Soho Artists

Layla Chaab Bellenstein, Writer / Film & Creative Producer

Conrad Cohen, Theatre Director & Acting Teacher

Neil Cohen, Founder, 1948 Talent

Nina Colman, Writer

Matt Einstein, CEO, Producer, Tradition Pictures

Jane Elias, Writer/Actor

David Faigenblum, Producer, Concept Entertainment

David Faiman, Managing Director, Odessa Mama Records

Matt Finkelstein, Partner, ArentFox Schiff LLP

Sara Flatow, Assistant Editor, Producer

Seth Fradkoff, AmazonMGMStudiosTheatrical

Simon Friend, Producer, Melting Pot

Fritz Froehlich, Manager

Sara Fruman, Founder, Soul Evolution Media

Robert Ftiedman, CEO, Bungalow Media+Entertainment

Jeffrey Gandel, Lawyer, The Law Office of Jeffrey B Gandel

Deborah Gilels, Publicist

Elizabeth Goodstein, VP, Strategy and Content Partnerships, Madison Wells

Anna-Sue Greenberg, Producer, Facet4 Media

Matthew Greenberg, Managing Partner, Greenberg, Chopurian-Valencia & Associates, LLP

Susan Gurman, Agent, Gurman Agency

Brett Gursky, Writer / Director / Producer

Ronnie Harris, Partner, Harris and Trotter

Michael Kalifa, Sound Mixer

Annie Kaplan, Screenwriter

Mitchell James “Chip” Kaplan, Novelist

Jonathan Kier, Co-Founder, Upgrade International

Steve Kline, President/COO, Better Noise Music

Delia Kropp, Actor

Evan Lamberg, President, North America, Universal Music Publishing

Scott Lieberman, Actor, Podcast Host

Kate Mannix, Actor

Amanda Markowitz, Actor/Producer

Natalia Maus, Founder/Executive Producer, Nudnik

Berry Meyerowitz, President, Quiver Distribution

Norma Morrow, Founder/Artistic Director, Jewish Repertory Theatre of Nevada

Robyn Okrant, Writer/Actress

Chris Pollack, President/Partner, A Penny for Your Thoughts

Julia Radochia, Actor, Filmmaker

Adva Reichman, Writer, Director

Ilene Rosenzweig, Writer

Edward Sabin, Founder, Cypher Content

Ari Shagal, Bandleader/Composer, The Summarily Dismissed

Marc Sheinman, Artist /Producer-Manager, 7980 Music / Red Light Management

Matt Sherman, Talent Manager, Matt Sherman Management

Maya Sigel, Production Designer

Michael Swerdlick, Writer

Natalie Tamar, Writer, Artist

Roberto Thesea, Executive, CAA

Rebecca Thomas, Agent

Gabriela Tscherniak, Showrunner, Director, Writer

Darah Wagner Boaz, Executive Producer

Nicole Weinroth, Agent, WME

Rebecca Windsor, Producer

Ali Axelrad, Actor

Elisa Baum, Writer

John Ross Bowie, Actor/Writer

Sheva Elliot, Singer/Songwriter/Composer/Producer

Sheyna Galyan, Award-winning Author

Leslie Kendall Dye, Actress

Cathy Lawrence, Production Manager

Adrienne Ross Scanlan, Writer/Editor

Susanna Speier, Actor | Journalist | Publisher

** Note – The signers of this statement do so as individuals on their own behalf and not on behalf of their companies or organizations. All organizations and companies listed are for affiliation purposes only.

Cover Photo: Shutterstock 2117805590

Kneecap’s Anti-Israel Coachella Show Roils Music Industry, Jewish Groups: Multiple Warnings ‘Totally Ignored’

Read the original article here.

Organizers were reportedly blindsided by the hip-hop trio’s “Fuck Israel” display – but one advocacy group says it sounded the alarm days in advance

Coachella organizers were warned in advance by multiple people that the Irish hip-hop trio Kneecap would take an aggressive anti-Israel stance when they were booked at the festival but failed to act, according to music industry insiders who spoke to TheWrap after “Fuck Israel” messages and chanting dominated the group’s act last weekend.

 

“Goldenvoice and AEG are claiming they were blindsided by the band and had no clue,” Ari Ingel, executive director of pro-Israel entertainment nonprofit Creative Community for Peace, told The Wrap on Tuesday. “This is a lie. They knew, and they refused to act.”

 

The concert organizer Goldenvoice and its owner AEG did not return multiple attempts by TheWrap to respond.

 

Kneecap kicked up a “Free Palestine” chant during the festival’s second weekend along with shouts of “Fuck Israel” and other antisemitic messaging projected onstage, to raucous chanting by the crowd. Festival organizers have yet to comment on the display, but reportedly said privately that they were “blindsided.”

 

The naked antisemitism of the moment at a music festival – with echoes of the Nova Music Festival massacre by Hamas still ringing in the air – has divided the music industry and roiled Jewish advocacy groups.

 

Ingel said he emailed Goldenvoice and AEG executives on April 13 and again April 15, according to an internal communication to his nonprofit’s advisory board obtained by TheWrap. Emails were sent to Goldenvoice CEO and president Paul Tollett, AEG/Goldenvoice COO Melissa Ormond and Goldenvoice owner and COO Jay Marciano, alerting them that the political provocateurs from West Belfast would bring what it called their strident pro-Hezbollah and pro-Hamas messages to the festival stage.

 

“You had a band here that is an extremist band that supports Hezbollah and Hamas that whipped this crowd of thousands into an anti-Israel, anti-Zionist, antisemitic frenzy at a music festival that could have led to who knows what,” Ingel told TheWrap. “Say there was some young kid with a Star of David on his neck. Could that kid have gotten beat up and lynched?”

Some uncensored messaging to Coachella 🤝🇵🇸 pic.twitter.com/WbHZBrCZl5

— KNEECAP (@KNEECAPCEOL) April 19, 2025

A representative for Kneecap did not respond to TheWrap’s outreach. The band has been known to support the ideology of terrorist groups such as Hamas and Hezbollah in the past, including the attacks of October 7, 2023.

 

In addition to his work at CCFP, Ingel is an entertainment attorney and music manager. Other music industry insiders were similarly critical of AEG and Goldenvoice.

A veteran music manager who didn’t want to be identified told TheWrap: “It was a bad f—king booking. AEG didn’t have to be geniuses to know if you book this group they’ll support Hamas. If you book Pussy Riot you should expect them to say something critical of Putin.”

 

Yet another music industry insider said they were in touch with AEG ahead of the festival, and also warned them about Kneecap: “We said this is going to be a disaster. They’ll do something crazy – and of course they did. Maybe he [Tollett] was naïve, but they f–ked up.”

 

The performance sent shockwaves through Jewish advocacy groups, including the Brigade, a community of PR executives fighting against antisemitism in entertainment.

“It is one thing for artists to use their stages to protest war and express free speech, but quite another to promote hate – and at Coachella, which is billed as a haven for inclusivity and peace,” the group said in an exclusive statement to TheWrap. “Perhaps AEG/Goldenvoice have already forgotten Nova, the site of the largest music festival massacre. And your silence AEG, it’s almost as triggering as the terror fueled display you enabled. Many in the audience and beyond cannot afford the luxury of forgetting.”

 

The band’s live feed was cut during the first weekend due to extreme remarks about Margaret Thatcher and offensive on-screen anti-Israel statements. After that, Ingel said he and CCFP colleagues reached out again, laying out “who this band was, what they stood for, what they were planning” and urged the higher ups to cancel their performance or ensure that it would not turn into a spectacle for hate and violent speech. They received no response, he said.

 

Surprisingly, Tollett, one of the co-founders of Coachella, recently visited a Los Angeles exhibit memorializing Nova, the trance music festival held in southern Israel that was attacked on Oct. 7, 2023 by Hamas militants. An estimated 380 attendees – mostly young people who had gathered to dance – were slaughtered. The meeting was said to be a poignant moment, as Tollett made the connection between the Hamas terror attack and his own music gathering.

 

Nova issued a statement reacting to the Kneecap performance – as well as the ongoing silence from Coachella’s leaders:

“When our exhibit first came to Los Angeles, the founder of Coachella himself, Paul Tollett, was one of our first visitors. He did not know our story, but after witnessing, he saw his own humanity and his own festival within ours. He sat with us, cried with us, and advocated for us. Today we will do the same for him. Coachella like Nova is a place of love.”

The Nova exhibit was a project of superstar producer and manager Scooter Braun, who defended Tollett, a personal friend, writing Sunday in an Instagram post: “Let’s not lose sight of who this man is, and let us stand with him in this moment when a group, without his knowing, took advantage of his festival and created hate in a place that’s filled with love.”

Ingel called Braun’s post out-of-bounds.

 

“While I appreciate Scooter’s sentiment and sticking up for his friend — sadly, and unfortunately —  it’s misguided,” Ingel said. “Paul and Jay Marciano — along with Melissa — were all briefed by me and CCFP about who Kneecap was, what they stood for, their affinity for terrorist groups and their plans to do a stunt like this. Those warnings were totally ignored. Silence.”

Kneecap took the stage Saturday as the words “Israel is committing genocide against the Palestinian people” appeared above them. Other messages included “Fuck Israel” and “Free Palestine.” Later in the set, rapper and singer Mo Chara, known for his flow between Irish and English languages, led the crowd in a “Free Palestine” chant.

 

There were other warnings of trouble ahead, including during Kneecap’s first-weekend performance. The Times of Israel reported that the band’s livestream was cut off over its messaging – including a screed against the late Margaret Thatcher. After posting on X that it wouldn’t happen again, Kneecap made sure to capture and post images and video of last weekend’s performance.

Mo chara speaking to thousands of Americans at coachella.

The young people of America don’t support genocide, get out on the streets and show this to that cunt Trump. 🇵🇸 pic.twitter.com/fExyAn7GA6

— KNEECAP (@KNEECAPCEOL) April 19, 2025

“Coachella understood that from weekend one – and still allowed it for weekend two,” Ingel said. “The only reason I can come up with is that they were scared of the backlash they may face from the anti-Israel community, and they were more scared of that than they were scared of what the pro-Israel and Jewish communities would think.”

 

It wasn’t clear whether any of Saturday’s performance came through Coachella’s livestream, but leftist social media influencer Hasan Piker joined the band onstage and streamed to his own Twitch channel with nearly 3 million followers. The band also posted several of its most strident on-stage messages on its X account.

 

Ingel said his nonprofit continues to track Kneecap as they prepare for summer tour season, with nearly two-dozen dates booked in the U.S. and beyond.

Our October US/Canada tour will see us joined by the brilliant Bricknasty on support for all shows 🔥

Only two dates with a handful of tickets left pic.twitter.com/KI1wbT7c0z

— KNEECAP (@KNEECAPCEOL) April 22, 2025

Sharon Waxman and Tess Patton contributed to reporting of this story.

 

Cover Photo: London, United Kingdom – December 8, 2024: Liam Óg Ó Hannaidh, Naoise Ó Cairealláin and JJ Ó Dochartaigh of Kneecap attend the 27th British Independent Film Awards at The Roundhouse in London.

 

Why Are Companies Still Doing Business With Kanye West?

Read the original article here.
“Those who have … deals with Ye need to understand the message it sends and should not profit off his hate,” writes Creative Community for Peace founders

March 12, 2025

Like witnessing a bad car crash, Ye’s (formerly known as Kanye West) latest episodes of hate speech and misogyny have been painful to watch and continue to elicit shock and dismay from every corner of the entertainment world.

After an earlier disingenuous apology to the Jewish community for previous antisemitic comments and actions, Ye has now doubled down on intolerance via social media missives that include “I Love Hitler,” “I’m a Nazi,” and “I’m never apologizing for my Jewish comments.” But perhaps most disturbing was his Super Bowl commercial that linked to yeezy.com, where the sole item for purchase was a T-shirt emblazoned with a Nazi swastika.

Prior to these recent events, our organization, Creative Community for Peace (CCFP), along with other organizations countering and educating about antisemitism, had already laid out the real-life consequences of his previous antisemitic actions, with the ADL claiming that numerous incidents – including violent attacks – were tied to Kanye’s previous antisemitic rants.

Many companies didn’t hesitate to immediately sever ties with him. Talent agency CAA dropped him, while Adidas severed ties. Independent studio MRC shelved a West film/documentary project, publicly stating “We cannot support any content that amplifies his platform.” In the wake of Ye’s Super Bowl stunt, e-commerce platform Shopify deleted his online account.

We echo the words of entertainment industry leaders Ari Emanuel (CEO of Endeavor) and Jeremy Zimmer (CEO of United Talent Agency) who in 2022 both stated unambiguously that no one, and no companies, should be in business with Ye. But they went further than that, as Emanuel stated that “silence is dangerous” and that “West’s business partners across the fashion and entertainment industries also need to speak out and take action.”

Yet, Fox and Fox Television Stations (FTS) so far have remained silent beyond an internal memo that we feel did not go far enough.

Fox and FTS has not made a public apology for platforming Ye after a weeklong antisemitic tirade, regardless of where his website eventually linked to.

Fox and FTS have not publicly disavowed Ye’s actions and statements.

And Fox and FTS have not agreed to donate the money paid to them by Ye to counter and educate about antisemitism. (A rep for Fox and FTS did not reply to a request for comment.)

Sadly, Fox and FTS are not alone, as several companies continue to do business with Ye and/or profit from previous business relations with him.

No companies should be in business with him. Period.

While business contracts are complicated, those who have lingering or existing deals with Ye need to understand the message it sends and should not profit off his hate and instead need to think about how they can invest those monies to effect positive change.

The Super Bowl fiasco should be a cautionary tale to all companies — that doing business with Ye is bad business.

This has nothing to do with ‘cancel culture’; free speech is a fundamental right, but it does not come without consequences.

Ye is free to say whatever he wants, but businesses should not be platforming and thus endorsing his hatred — this includes companies, agents, distributors, artists, festivals, and producers who continue to work with him.

This is not about silencing someone because of their identity or political beliefs. This is about the moral decision by businesses to continue profiting off someone who is directly sowing and amplifying hatred. There is a stark contrast between defending artistic freedom and endorsing an individual who weaponizes their platform to spread bigotry.

As the leaders of the entertainment industry non-profit organization Creative Community for Peace, we believe in the power of using arts and culture to build bridges between disparate communities to encourage a more tolerant and brighter future.

CCFP now urges all corporations and entertainers who continue to do business with Ye to ask themselves these questions: Do you believe that music and culture can be a force for positive change? If so, can you in good conscience continue to profit from someone who is unapologetically fueled by hate?

The choice you make may save lives. It will most certainly make our world a more reasonable place to begin a few rational discussions.

David Renzer
Chairman / Co-Founder, Creative Community for Peace

Steve Schnur
Co-Founder, Creative Community for Peace

Ari Ingel
Executive Director, Creative Community for Peace

Photo Credit: Matt Winkelmeyer/Getty Images/The Recording Academy

Oscar-Winning ‘No Other Land’ Undermined by ‘No Other Information’

Read the original article here.

The documentary contrasts the hardships that Basal Adra faces as a Palestinian with Yuval Abraham’s “freedom and security” as an Israeli, conveniently ignoring that Israelis have been subjected to relentless terror campaigns for decades.

By: Ari Ingel

“No Other Land” won the Oscar for Best Documentary. 

But does it present an accurate picture of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict?

Not quite. 

“No Other Land” is a 2024 Palestinian documentary co-directed by a group of Israeli and Palestinian activists. 

The widely acclaimed film deals with the evictions of Palestinians from the area of Masafer Yatta in the West Bank, interweaving the stories of Palestinian activist Basal Adra and his friend Yuval Abraham, an Israeli journalist. 

Though Palestinians claim to have lived in Masafer Yatta “for centuries” – or even longer – the historical facts on the ground are much different.

Neither Ottoman nor British documents show any permanent Palestinian-Arab communities in Masafer Yatta. 

Likewise, aerial photos from the 1980s don’t show any permanent Palestinian structures. 

In fact, Masafer Yatta has been designated a military zone since 1981. 

As part of Area C of the West Bank, Israel has the right to exercise full military and civil control of Masafer Yatta, as agreed upon by the Israelis and Palestinians during the Oslo Accords in the 1990s. 

After a lengthy court case, in a unanimous decision from Israel’s Supreme Court, it found dating back to the 1980’s that there was neither evidence of any freestanding structures that would indicate a permanent Palestinian presence there, nor any “permanent dwellings” in the region. 

The court also noted that the Palestinian petitioners rejected any attempted compromise offered to them.

One rarely discussed issue is that just as the settler movement has been trying to create facts on the ground in Area C of the West Bank, the Palestinians too, with the help of Europeans, have been also trying to create facts on the ground by building illegally, for many decades now. 

“No Other Land” also completely decontextualizes the actions that Israel carries out in the West Bank. 

For example, it does not address the Israeli security concerns that led Israel to designate Masafer Yatta a military zone. 

Because Masafer Yatta is used for firing exercises, illegally built Palestinian structures – which, again, were built after the area was designated a military zone – pose a risk to the lives of civilians. 

“No Other Land” also presents the Palestinian residents of Masafer Yatta, and the West Bank in general, as victims of Israeli aggression. 

And while it’s true that many Palestinians have been victimized during the conflict, the film ignores the many, many times that Palestinians have carried out actions that have heightened tensions in the conflict: namely, Palestinian terrorism that informs virtually all Israeli policies in the West Bank. 

In fact, some of the most recent deadly attacks against Israelis have come from the nearby city of Yatta, including the Sarona Market massacre (2016), where two terrorists from Yatta walked into a busy Tel Aviv market and opened fire, murdering four civilians and wounding at least seven; the murder of Dafna Meir (2016) where a terrorist from Yatta stabbed Dafna Meir to death in front of her children outside her home in Otniel; the Yavneh stabbing attack (2018), where a terrorist from Yatta entered a supermarket, grabbed an Israeli civilian, and stabbed him repeatedly in the neck and chest, leaving him critically wounded, and the Gush Etzion stabbing (2018) where a terrorist from Yatta stabbed and killed Ari Fuld, a well-known Israeli activist.

The documentary contrasts the hardships that Basal Adra faces as a Palestinian with Yuval Abraham’s “freedom and security” as an Israeli, conveniently ignoring that Israelis have been subjected to relentless terror campaigns for decades. 

In 2024 alone, Israeli security forces – the same security forces that the documentary demonizes – thwarted over 1,000 terrorist attacks in the West Bank and East Jerusalem, including bombings, shootings, stabbings, car rammings, suicide bombings, attempted kidnappings, and more. 

While highlighting the plight of Palestinians in the West Bank is important, it’s equally important not to present a one-sided, inaccurate narrative of the situation, which not only demonizes Israelis by not explaining the reasoning behind Israel’s policies in the West Bank but also fosters divisions and undermines dialogue and peace efforts. 

Furthermore, from the stage, Israeli filmmaker Yuval Abraham stated: “Can’t you see that we are intertwined? That my people can be truly safe if Basel’s people are truly free and safe? There is another way. It’s not too late for life, for the living.”

In an ideal world, the above statement would hold true.

However, Palestinian leadership and so-called civil society organizations have repeatedly demonstrated that they have no real interest in lasting peace or a two-state solution.

Israel’s security measures were implemented in direct response to terrorism and the continued Palestinian struggle to establish a state of Palestine in the entirety of the land between the river and the sea, instead of agreeing to live in pace and accepting a state of Palestine in just part of the land, as the Jews themselves have done. 

If Hollywood wants to understand the true security issues Israel faces, perhaps they should watch the Palestinian documentary filmed on October 7, where Hamas and other Palestinian militants broadcast to the world hundreds of hours in which they documented themselves murdering entire families, kidnapping Holocaust survivors and infants, and committing unimaginable horrors, including rape.

The horrors of October 7, 2023 exposed the devastating consequences of Israeli security failures.

In this new reality, empty platitudes, not to mention empty films, no longer suffice.

 

X
Send this to a friend