Liel Leibovitz (born 1976)
is an Israeli journalist, author, media critic and video game scholar. Leibovitz was born in
Tel Aviv
Tel Aviv-Yafo ( he, תֵּל־אָבִיב-יָפוֹ, translit=Tēl-ʾĀvīv-Yāfō ; ar, تَلّ أَبِيب – يَافَا, translit=Tall ʾAbīb-Yāfā, links=no), often referred to as just Tel Aviv, is the most populous city in the G ...
, immigrated to the United States in 1999, and earned a Ph.D. from
Columbia University
Columbia University (also known as Columbia, and officially as Columbia University in the City of New York) is a private research university in New York City. Established in 1754 as King's College on the grounds of Trinity Church in Manhatt ...
in 2007. In 2014, he was Visiting Assistant Professor of Media, Culture and Communication at
New York University
New York University (NYU) is a private research university in New York City. Chartered in 1831 by the New York State Legislature, NYU was founded by a group of New Yorkers led by then-Secretary of the Treasury Albert Gallatin.
In 1832, the ...
.
Early life and education
Leibovitz was born in Tel Aviv, Israel
to Iris and
Rony Leibovitz. His father, born into a wealthy family, became known in Israel as the "Motorcycle Bandit" who robbed 21 banks and served 8 years in prison during his son's childhood. Leibovitz visited his father weekly while he was in prison, and his family suffered financially after his father's incarceration. When he was aged about 9, he became interested in the United States after visiting relatives resident there.
["Sandy Brawarsky, The Jewish Week, "Giving Up America" January 11, 2006] He received his B.A. from
Tel Aviv University
Tel Aviv University (TAU) ( he, אוּנִיבֶרְסִיטַת תֵּל אָבִיב, ''Universitat Tel Aviv'') is a public research university in Tel Aviv, Israel. With over 30,000 students, it is the largest university in the country. Locate ...
and after moving to New York City, he received an M.S. in journalism and a Ph.D. in communications from
Columbia University
Columbia University (also known as Columbia, and officially as Columbia University in the City of New York) is a private research university in New York City. Established in 1754 as King's College on the grounds of Trinity Church in Manhatt ...
.
Career
Leibovitz was a non-commissioned officer in the Spokesperson’s Unit of the
Israel Defense Forces
The Israel Defense Forces (IDF; he, צְבָא הַהֲגָנָה לְיִשְׂרָאֵל , ), alternatively referred to by the Hebrew-language acronym (), is the national military of the Israel, State of Israel. It consists of three servic ...
. He attended the film school at
Tel Aviv University
Tel Aviv University (TAU) ( he, אוּנִיבֶרְסִיטַת תֵּל אָבִיב, ''Universitat Tel Aviv'') is a public research university in Tel Aviv, Israel. With over 30,000 students, it is the largest university in the country. Locate ...
before moving to New York. He worked at a hardware store and then at the Israeli Consulate as a senior press officer,
producing "Israel Line," a daily summary of significant news taken directly from Israeli media. He served as culture editor of the ''
Jewish Week
''The Jewish Week'' is a weekly independent community newspaper targeted towards the Jewish community of the metropolitan New York City area. ''The Jewish Week'' covers news relating to the Jewish community in NYC. In March 2016, ''The Jewish W ...
'', and has written for ''
The Nation
''The Nation'' is an American liberal biweekly magazine that covers political and cultural news, opinion, and analysis. It was founded on July 6, 1865, as a successor to William Lloyd Garrison's '' The Liberator'', an abolitionist newspaper tha ...
'' and ''
The New Republic
''The New Republic'' is an American magazine of commentary on politics, contemporary culture, and the arts. Founded in 1914 by several leaders of the progressive movement, it attempted to find a balance between "a liberalism centered in hum ...
''.
Leibovitz serves as senior writer and executive producer of video and interactive media for the online American Jewish publication ''
Tablet magazine
''Tablet'' is an online magazine focused on Jewish news and culture. The magazine was founded in 2009 and is supported by the Nextbook foundation. Its editor-in-chief is Alana Newhouse.
History
''Tablet'' was founded in 2009 with the suppor ...
''. He is a co-host on ''Tablet''s podcast, ''Unorthodox''. Since the August/September 2021 issue of ''
First Things
''First Things'' (''FT'') is an ecumenical and conservative religious journal aimed at "advanc nga religiously informed public philosophy for the ordering of society". The magazine, which focuses on theology, liturgy, church history, religio ...
'', Leibovitz has written a column entitled ''Leibovitz at Large'', replacing the long-running column ''Litvak at Large'' by
Shalom Carmy.
Personal
Leibovitz is married to American author
Lisa Ann Sandell
Lisa Ann Sandell is an American author of young adult novels. She has written and published three books, ''A Map of the Known World'', '' Song of the Sparrow'' and ''The Weight of the Sky''.
Biography
Before she published her first book, Sande ...
, who has published three young adult novels. He lives 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 ...
. Despite having lived in the United States for an extended period, he does not hold US citizenship.
The Jewish Left's Fight Against Israel
/ref>
Books
* ''Stan Lee: A Life in Comics'' (2020), Yale University Press
* ''A Broken Hallelujah: Rock and Roll, Redemption, and the Life of Leonard Cohen
Leonard Norman Cohen (September 21, 1934November 7, 2016) was a Canadian singer-songwriter, poet and novelist. His work explored religion, politics, isolation, depression, sexuality, loss, death, and romantic relationships. He was inducted in ...
'', (2014) Norton
* ''God in the Machine: Video Games as Spiritual Pursuit'', (2014) Templeton Press
* ''Fortunate Sons: The 120 Chinese Boys Who Came to America, Went to School, and Revolutionized an Ancient Civilization'' with Matthew Miller, (2011) Norton
* ''Lili Marlene: The Soldiers' Song of World War II'', (2009) Norton
* ''Thinking Inside the Box: Towards an Ontology of Video Games'' (2007)
* ''Aliya: Three Generations of American-Jewish Immigration to Israel'', (2006) St. Martin's Press
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Leibovitz, Liel
1976 births
Living people
People from Tel Aviv
American media critics
Israeli emigrants to the United States
Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism alumni
New York University faculty
21st-century American non-fiction writers
Israeli Jews