Editorial: Parting words from Mayer Fertig, Publisher and Editor in Chief

Having not personally written in this space in several weeks, it’s odd to consider that after a little more than four years, I am now doing so for the final time. I’m excited about the challenging and complex new responsibilities that await me in my new position, but I’m going to miss the privilege of writing directly to you on this page. I’m even wondering, just a little, if I have completely appreciated just what a privilege it has been, borrowing your attention and some of your valuable time, for a few minutes each week.

I certainly thought that I did, mainly because (most unusually for me) I can instantly recall the date that I started working on The Jewish Star. It was August 26, 2006, and the date of the first issue that I edited on my own was Sept. 2, 2006.

The first editorial decision I made also springs easily to mind: on my first day I asked to see the list of items planned for inclusion in the community calendar that week. With a pen I crossed out all of the events that involved Chillul Shabbos, Sabbath desecration, and directed that they be removed.

That marked the beginning of a new direction for The Jewish Star — offering unvarnished, objective news, information and opinions that would most directly appeal to Shomer Shabbos readers. While that might seem like a no-brainer of a business decision (and if you’re going to publish a Jewish newspaper based in and around the Five Towns, it is a no-brainer) what some readers might not realize is that this is also highly unusual, even in the New York-New Jersey area.

There are many publications for observant Jews in this region, and several cover the news, but most Jewish newspapers in the United States are directed to the widest possible audience. There is good in this, certainly, because it means that all segments of a local Jewish community share common ground in the pages of the local Jewish paper. Frankly, we have been criticized for failing to provide this common ground. But it’s important to note that this wide appeal is also an economic necessity: there simply are not enough Jews of any one type anywhere in the US, except in New York and New Jersey, to realistically support a newspaper. It’s different here — we New Yorkers are a little spoiled that way, perhaps. Newspapers written for the halachically observant are not just possible, but are expected; for better or worse, they represent an economic necessity of a different sort, for which no apology is required nor offered.

But despite The Star’s fairly narrow focus, its coverage has been anything but narrow and I hope to see that continue.

“Emor m’at v’asei harbei” — say little but do a lot — I quoted in my first editorial. I didn’t make any public promises that first week but I knew that in addition to the responsibility of stewarding a local publication, an editor and publisher of The Jewish Star bore an additional responsibility: to cover items of wider Jewish interest that other publications simply wouldn’t touch with a ten-foot pole.

Why? For one thing, in Pirkei Avos it says, “In a place where there are no men, strive to be a man (2:6).” In this case that meant the responsibility to report news and express opinions that other Orthodox publications would not generally tackle simply because we could: The Jewish Star belongs to an independent, privately held company that values journalism. Therefore the paper has the corporate freedom to publish unpopular opinions and articles on sensitive subjects and regularly does so. I’m proud that we’ve recognized this responsibility and have met it head on, and many, many readers from across the length and breadth of the Torah world have expressed their gratitude and appreciation for it. In turn, I would like to express my gratitude and appreciation to the owners of The Jewish Star, Stuart and Clifford Richner, for affording me the opportunity and privilege.

Some other thanks are in order as well, including to a few people whom I shouldn’t name. They are a self-selecting group of readers and community leaders who have provided tips, information and insights  that have always been appreciated. Not every tip became a story, of course. It’s the editor’s great responsibility to decide when to pursue a matter and when to best leave it alone, but I remain grateful for every call, text message and e-mail.

There have been too many contributors over time to thank everyone and I won’t try, but they are the people who make the paper worth reading and I hope they will continue to do so. Reporters Malka Eisenberg and Sergey Kadinsky have my thanks. I deeply appreciate, too, weekly columnists Rabbi Avi Billet, Alan J. Gerber, Micah Halpern, Aviva Rizel, David Seidemann and Miriam L. Wallach. For each this is a labor of love, and I appreciate every word. Even after deadline. And your friendship, too.

Finally, three people who at different times shared the weekly responsibility — Paul Shapiro, Yaffi Spodek and the current senior editor, Michael Orbach, now the interim editor-in-chief.

Thank you for everything.