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Jeff Jacoby (born February 10, 1959) is a
politically conservative Conservatism is a cultural, social, and political philosophy that seeks to promote and to preserve traditional institutions, practices, and values. The central tenets of conservatism may vary in relation to the culture and civilization ...
American journalist and syndicated newspaper columnist.


Early life and education

Born in
Cleveland Cleveland ( ), officially the City of Cleveland, is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Cuyahoga County. Located in the northeastern part of the state, it is situated along the southern shore of Lake Erie, across the U.S. ...
,
Ohio Ohio () is a state in the Midwestern region of the United States. Of the fifty U.S. states, it is the 34th-largest by area, and with a population of nearly 11.8 million, is the seventh-most populous and tenth-most densely populated. The sta ...
, United States to a
Jewish Jews ( he, יְהוּדִים, , ) or Jewish people are an ethnoreligious group and nation originating from the Israelites Israelite origins and kingdom: "The first act in the long drama of Jewish history is the age of the Israelites""The ...
family, Jacoby received a B.A. degree with honors from The
George Washington University , mottoeng = "God is Our Trust" , established = , type = Private federally chartered research university , academic_affiliations = , endowment = $2.8 billion (2022) , preside ...
and a J.D. degree from the Boston University School of Law. His father, a Holocaust survivor, was born in present-day
Slovakia Slovakia (; sk, Slovensko ), officially the Slovak Republic ( sk, Slovenská republika, links=no ), is a landlocked country in Central Europe. It is bordered by Poland to the north, Ukraine to the east, Hungary to the south, Austria to the s ...
in 1925 and came to the United States in 1948.


Career

Before becoming a columnist, Jacoby worked briefly as an attorney with the firm
BakerHostetler BakerHostetler is an American law firm founded in 1916. One of the firm's founders, Newton D. Baker, was U.S. Secretary of War during World War I, and former Mayor of Cleveland, Ohio. History , the firm was ranked the 73rd-largest law firm in ...
, and as deputy manager of Raymond Shamie's senatorial campaign in 1984. Following Shamie's loss, Jacoby worked for 15 months as an assistant to John Silber, then-president of Boston University. Jacoby is a member of the board of the
Ford Hall Forum The Ford Hall Forum is the oldest free public lecture series in the United States. Founded in 1908, it continues to host open lectures and discussions in the Greater Boston area. Some of the more well-known past speakers include Maya Angelou, Isa ...
, the nation's oldest free public-lecture series.


Journalism

Jacoby's column has been published on the
op-ed An op-ed, short for "opposite the editorial page", is a written prose piece, typically published by a North-American newspaper or magazine, which expresses the opinion of an author usually not affiliated with the publication's editorial board. O ...
page of ''
The Boston Globe ''The Boston Globe'' is an American daily newspaper founded and based in Boston, Massachusetts. The newspaper has won a total of 27 Pulitzer Prizes, and has a total circulation of close to 300,000 print and digital subscribers. ''The Boston Glob ...
'' since 1994. From 1987 to 1994, he was chief editorial writer for the ''
Boston Herald The ''Boston Herald'' is an American daily newspaper whose primary market is Boston, Massachusetts, and its surrounding area. It was founded in 1846 and is one of the oldest daily newspapers in the United States. It has been awarded eight Pulit ...
''. Within months of his debut at the ''Globe'', he was described by the left-leaning ''
Boston Phoenix ''The Phoenix'' (stylized as ''The Phœnix'') was the name of several alternative weekly periodicals published in the United States of America by Phoenix Media/Communications Group of Boston, Massachusetts, including the ''Portland Phoenix'' and ...
'' as "the region's pre-eminent spokesman for Conservative Nation," and a columnist who had "quickly established himself as a must-read." Jacoby has also been a commentator on the local
NPR National Public Radio (NPR, stylized in all lowercase) is an American privately and state funded nonprofit media organization headquartered in Washington, D.C., with its NPR West headquarters in Culver City, California. It differs from other ...
affiliate,
WBUR WBUR-FM (90.9 FM) is a public radio station located in Boston, Massachusetts, owned by Boston University. It is the largest of three NPR member stations in Boston, along with WGBH and WUMB-FM and produces several nationally distributed progra ...
, and for several years hosted a talk show on local television. He is also a public speaker who lectures nationwide. In 1997, Jacoby published "A message to my newborn son". The article became the first in an annual tradition, publishing "Letters to Caleb" until 2009.


2000 suspension

In 2000, Jacoby was suspended by the ''Globe'' for four months without pay for what the paper called his "serious journalistic misconduct" in failing to provide sources for a
Fourth of July Independence Day (colloquially the Fourth of July) is a federal holiday in the United States commemorating the Declaration of Independence, which was ratified by the Second Continental Congress on July 4, 1776, establishing the United States ...
column on the fate of the signers of the
Declaration of Independence A declaration of independence or declaration of statehood or proclamation of independence is an assertion by a polity in a defined territory that it is independent and constitutes a state. Such places are usually declared from part or all of the ...
. Although the themes and ideas in the column had already appeared in other media outlets, Jacoby neglected to mention that the column's content was not original. The ''Globe'' "avoided calling the column a work of
plagiarism Plagiarism is the fraudulent representation of another person's language, thoughts, ideas, or expressions as one's own original work.From the 1995 '' Random House Compact Unabridged Dictionary'': use or close imitation of the language and thought ...
but stated that Jacoby should have alerted readers to similar accounts published elsewhere over the years." On
CNN CNN (Cable News Network) is a multinational cable news channel headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia, U.S. Founded in 1980 by American media proprietor Ted Turner and Reese Schonfeld as a 24-hour cable news channel, and presently owned by ...
's '' Reliable Sources'', veteran journalists
Bernard Kalb Bernard Kalb (born February 4, 1922) is an American journalist, moderator, media critic, lecturer, and author. Life and career Born in New York City, he covered international affairs for more than three decades at CBS News, NBC News and '' The ...
and
Howard Kurtz Howard Alan Kurtz (; born August 1, 1953) is an American journalist and author best known for his coverage of the media. Kurtz is the host of Fox News's ''Media Buzz'' program, the successor to ''Fox News Watch''. He is the former media writer fo ...
concluded that "Jeff Jacoby got shafted by the ''Boston Globe''." ''
Time Time is the continued sequence of existence and events that occurs in an apparently irreversible succession from the past, through the present, into the future. It is a component quantity of various measurements used to sequence events, to ...
'' magazine's
Lance Morrow Lance Morrow (born September 21, 1939, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania) is an American essayist and writer, chiefly for ''Time'' magazine, as well as the author of several books. He won the 1981 National Magazine Award for Essay and Criticism and was ...
wrote that "Jacoby's offense was no offense." Many conservative organizations and commentators expressed outrage, saying that Jacoby had been unfairly held to a far stricter standard than other journalists would be. The ''Boston Phoenix'', often at odds with Jacoby's views, also rose to Jacoby's defense. Jacoby acknowledged having "made a mistake" in not including a disclaimer that the material in the column had been recycled, but called the critical reaction of the ''Globe''
ombudsman An ombudsman (, also ,), ombud, ombuds, ombudswoman, ombudsperson or public advocate is an official who is usually appointed by the government or by parliament (usually with a significant degree of independence) to investigate complaints and at ...
, Jack Thomas, "disgraceful and nonsensical." He told
Fox News The Fox News Channel, abbreviated FNC, commonly known as Fox News, and stylized in all caps, is an American multinational conservative cable news television channel based in New York City. It is owned by Fox News Media, which itself is owne ...
' Bill O'Reilly that he had received an offer from another media outlet. The suspension came two years after the forced resignations of ''Globe'' columnists
Mike Barnicle Michael Barnicle (born October 13, 1943) is an American print and broadcast journalist, and a social and political commentator. He is a senior contributor and the veteran columnist on MSNBC's '' Morning Joe''. He is also seen on NBC's ''Today Sh ...
and Patricia Smith, who were caught fabricating stories and quotes.
Boston University Boston University (BU) is a private research university in Boston, Massachusetts. The university is nonsectarian, but has a historical affiliation with the United Methodist Church. It was founded in 1839 by Methodists with its original campu ...
professor Tobe Berkovitz hypothesized that the scandals surrounding those two columnists had influenced the ''Globe''s decision to suspend Jacoby. "Considering the recent track record with problems with columnists at the ''Globe'', I'm not surprised with the action they took," Berkovitz said. Jacoby claimed that as the only conservative columnist on the otherwise liberal ''Globe'' op-ed pages, he was held to a higher standard. "I've been aware from the outset that I have to be extremely aware of my column," he told the
Associated Press The Associated Press (AP) is an American non-profit news agency headquartered in New York City. Founded in 1846, it operates as a cooperative, unincorporated association. It produces news reports that are distributed to its members, U.S. newspa ...
. In August 2000, Jacoby filed a grievance through his union,
The Newspaper Guild The NewsGuild-CWA is a labor union founded by newspaper journalists in 1933. In addition to improving wages and working conditions, its constitution says its purpose is to fight for honesty in journalism and the news industry's business practices ...
.


Awards and honors

In 1999, Jacoby became the first recipient of the Breindel Prize, a $10,000 award (since increased to $20,000) for excellence in
opinion journalism Opinion journalism is journalism that makes no claim of objectivity. Although distinguished from advocacy journalism in several ways, both forms feature a subjective viewpoint, usually with some social or political purpose. Common examples inclu ...
awarded by Rupert Murdoch's
News Corporation News Corporation (abbreviated News Corp.), also variously known as News Corporation Limited, was an American multinational mass media corporation controlled by media mogul Rupert Murdoch and headquartered at 1211 Avenue of the Americas in Ne ...
. In 2004, he received the Thomas Paine Award of the
libertarian Libertarianism (from french: libertaire, "libertarian"; from la, libertas, "freedom") is a political philosophy that upholds liberty as a core value. Libertarians seek to maximize autonomy and political freedom, and minimize the state's e ...
law firm the
Institute for Justice The Institute for Justice (IJ) is a libertarian non-profit public interest law firm in the United States. It has litigated ten cases before the United States Supreme Court dealing with eminent domain, interstate commerce, public financing for e ...
, an award presented to journalists "who dedicate their work to the preservation and championing of individual liberty." In December 2009, he was presented by the
Zionist Organization of America The Zionist Organization of America (ZOA) () is an American non-profit pro-Israel organization. Founded in 1897, as the Federation of American Zionists, it was the first official Zionist organization in the United States. Early in the 20th centur ...
with its Ben Hecht Award for Outstanding Journalism on the Middle East, an award previously won by, among others, the Jerusalem Post's
Caroline Glick Caroline Glick ( he, קרולין גליק; born 1969) is an American-born Israeli conservative columnist, journalist, and author. She writes for '' Israel Hayom, Breitbart News'', ''The Jerusalem Post'', and ''Maariv''. She is adjunct senior f ...
, syndicated columnist
Cal Thomas John Calvin Thomas (born 2 December 1942) is an American syndicated columnist, author and radio commentator. Early life and education Thomas was born in 1942 in Washington, D.C. He attended the American University for his undergraduate educat ...
, the late
A.M. Rosenthal Abraham Michael Rosenthal (May 2, 1922 – May 10, 2006) was an American journalist who served as ''The New York Times'' executive editor from 1977 to 1986. Previously he was the newspaper's city editor and managing editor. Near the end of his tenu ...
of ''
The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...
'', and
Daniel Pipes Daniel Pipes (born September 9, 1949) is an American historian, writer, and commentator. He is the president of the Middle East Forum, and publisher of its ''Middle East Quarterly'' journal. His writing focuses on American foreign policy and the ...
, founder of the Middle East Forum and publisher of Middle East Quarterly.


Personal life

Jacoby and his wife Laura Weller have two sons, Caleb (born 1997) and Micah (born 2003); Micah was born in
Guatemala Guatemala ( ; ), officially the Republic of Guatemala ( es, República de Guatemala, links=no), is a country in Central America. It is bordered to the north and west by Mexico; to the northeast by Belize and the Caribbean; to the east by H ...
and adopted by the Jacoby family in 2004. They live in
Brookline Village Brookline Village is one of the major commercial and retail centers of the town of Brookline, Massachusetts. Located just north of Massachusetts Route 9 and west of the Muddy River, it is the historic center of the town and includes its major c ...
,
Brookline, Massachusetts Brookline is a town in Norfolk County, Massachusetts, Norfolk County, Massachusetts, in the United States, and part of the Greater Boston, Boston metropolitan area. Brookline borders six of Boston's neighborhoods: Brighton, Boston, Brighton, A ...
. On January 6, 2014, Caleb, a student at the
Maimonides School Maimonides School (Hebrew: ישיבת רמב"ם ''Yeshivat Rambam'') is a coeducational, Modern Orthodox Judaism, Modern Orthodox, Jewish day school located in Brookline, Massachusetts. The school was founded in 1937 by Rabbi Joseph Soloveitchik a ...
, was reported missing. Three days later, he was found safe in
Times Square Times Square is a major commercial intersection, tourist destination, entertainment hub, and neighborhood in Midtown Manhattan, New York City. It is formed by the junction of Broadway, Seventh Avenue, and 42nd Street. Together with adjacent ...
in
New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...
. Brookline police later announced that Caleb had run away from home of his own volition. Jacoby wrote a column about the community's response in the
Boston Globe ''The Boston Globe'' is an American daily newspaper founded and based in Boston, Massachusetts. The newspaper has won a total of 27 Pulitzer Prizes, and has a total circulation of close to 300,000 print and digital subscribers. ''The Boston Glob ...
.


References


External links


Brief bio, video profile, and archive
o
Boston Globe website

Jeff Jacoby's Website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Jacoby, Jeff 1959 births Living people American columnists American male journalists Boston University School of Law alumni George Washington University alumni Jewish American journalists People associated with BakerHostetler The Boston Globe people Writers from Brookline, Massachusetts Writers from Cleveland