-Text of Jerold C. Hoffberger's Address
Presenting First CJF Boris Smolar Award

May

In his address to the 2,000 portance of the Jewish press. ing is the foundation. What large number of young people
U.S. and Canadian Jewish All of us in this room would we see, what we hear and following in his journalistic
leaders at the banquet ses- admit that we cannot even what we say are important, footsteps.
"He knew that important
sion of the 41st general as- come close to absorbing the but they serve to reinforce
sembly of the Council of huge mass of information or enlarge the perspective journalism appeared on the
Jewish Federations and Wel- which comes to our attention. and insight we gain by what pages of the Jewish press.
and his aim was to bring it
fare Funds, at the Royal
It is simply too overwhelm- we read.
York Hotel, Toronto, Satur- ing.
"This is particularly true to the fore and focus public
day evening, to mark the -- We have to pick and choose when our interest is as spe- attention on the high caliber
presentation of the Boris the areas we want to know cialized as the many faceted of writing and reporting.
"By virtue of this award.
Smolar Award to Philip Slom- about. And, we obtain that world of Jewish affairs. In
ovitz, editor of The Detroit information in a variety of this field, we essentially have Mr. Smolar and the Council
Jewish News, Jerold C. Hof f- ways. It can come from trav- rather limited sources of in- of federations are hoping to
berger. Baltimore, said:
eling, from watching televi- formation on which to rely. elevate the esteem in which

Woven into the fabric of sion, from talking with lead-
this general assembly and ers and experts, and, most
constantly a subject of dis- importantly, from reading.
cussion at meetings in every
"Of all of our experiences
level of Jewish life is the im- that lead to learning, read-

Distinguished Panel of Judges
Makes Selection o fFirst CFJ

Smolar Award in Journalism

(Continued from Page 1)

United Nations from 1946 to
1949. His forign assignments
included 16 trips to Israel as
correspondent for the Jewish
News, other American Jew-
ish newspapers as well as for
the Detroit Free Press.
Slomovitz also covered both
the Eichmann trial and the
Six-Day War of 1967.

The Smolar Award winner
is a vice president of the
Jewish Telegraphic Agency
and a founder of the Amer-
ican Jewish Press Associa-
tion, which he served as pres-
ident for 10 years. He has
held a score of national and
Michigan posts in communal
services and Zionism. He Is
a contributor to the Universal
Jewish Encyclopedia, Ency•
clopedia Judaica and to num-
erous magazines and has long
been active in many Jewish
organizations.

Nominations for the 1973
Smolar Award are now open
and will cover reporting and

writing published in the
American-Jewish press be-
tween June 1, 1972, and May
31, 1973.
The Smolar Award com-
mittee. chaired by Hoffber-
ger, who also serves as chair-
man of the executive com-
mittee of the Jewish Tele-
graphic Agency, includes rep-
resentatives of the Jewish
and general press, of the arts
and letters, the field of pub-
lic relations, community lead-
ership and the CJF board of
directors. They are: Elie
Abel, New York; Robert H.
Arnow, New York; Lavy M.
Becker, Montreal; Mrs. Louis
A. Bernhard, Milwaukee; Al-
fred Fleishman, St. Louis;
Irving R. Isaacs, Pittsburgh;
Max Jacobs, Buffalo: Elmer
Louis, Rochester; Dr. John
Slawson, New York; Isidore
Sobeloff, Los Angeles; David
Starr, New York: Saul Vie-
ner, Richmond; Elie Wiesel,
New York; Jimmy Wisch,
Fort Worth; and Max M.
Fisher, Detroit, ex-officio.

Primary among them are the
American Jewish newspapers
that serve Jewish communi-
ties, large and small, in both
Canada and the United
States.
"Apart from events of crit-
ical national or international
significance, for most of us,
the regular medium for news
and commentary on Jewish
affairs and issues is the
weakly, biweekly or monthly
Jewish newspaper.
"This is why the Council
of Jewish Federations, moti-
vated by Boris Smolar, es-
tablished the Smolar Award
for excellence in American
Jewish journalism a little
over a year ago. I was given
the honor of serving as
chairman of a distinguished
award committee which was
responsible for developing
the guidelines, publicizing
the award, screening the en-
tries and determining the
first winner of what will be
an annual prize.
"Boris Smolar has spent
his life writing about Jewish
affairs. He is vitally aware
of the importance to the Jew-
ish community of a vibrant
a n d constantly improving
Jewish press. Like many oth-
ers he dispaired at the de-
mise of many publications
which reported and inter-
preted Jewish news.
Boris Smola z, as he
reached the pinnacle of a
long and productive career,
did not look back to see a

Jewish journalism is held
throughout North America
and to encourage promising
reporters and editors to enter
the field.
"The response we have
had in this inaugural year
has been gratifying. There
were 75 entries for the jour-
nalistic award. The level of
excellence in the articles and
publications submitted to the
committee encouraged us.
The applicants were nar-
rowed to a field of six, and
because of the uniformly high
quality of the entries, it was
decided to cite five of them
for honorable mention in ad-
dition to the first prize win-
ner.
"Those whose work war-
ranted special mention are:
Arnald Ages, editor of the
Toronto Chronicle Review;
Esther Blaustein, editor of
the Jewish Community News
of Union City, N. J.; Jack I.
Fishbein, editor-publisher of
the Chicago Sentinel; Earl
Lefkowitz, a reporter for the
Boston Jewish Advocate; and
Joseph G. Weisberg, execu-
tive editor-publisher of the
Boston Jewish Advocate.
"As the first recipient of
the Smolar Award, the com-
mittee has selected Mr. Phil-
ip Slomovitz, editor-publisher
of The Detroit Jewish News.
"Mr. Slomovitz is a veteran
newspaperman and editor.
He is a journalist of consid-
erable range and scope. His
reporting and commentary

touched on a host of local, Detroit News and now The
national and international is- Detroit Jewish News.
sues affecting the American ' "As a diplomatic corre-
Jewish community. He is as spondent, Mr. Slomovitz cov-
adept in straight reporting ered the founding of the Unit-
as he is in writing editorials, ed Nations in San Francisco
in 1945, and the United Na-
book reviews or columns.
"He did his job with style tions itself from 1946 to 1949.
"He personally reported
and clarity. His reporting
was fair and creditable. His the Eichmann Trial and the
commentary, his interprets- Six-Day War in 1967 among
Live writing expressed a point other ventures abroad.
of view in understandable
His is a distinguished ca-
and persuasive terms.
reer. He richly deserves the
Smolar
Award.
"Mr. Slomovitz brought to
"Presenting this award to
the entries we reviewed —
(covering a period between Phil Slomovitz is a distinct
June 1, 1971, and May 31, pleasure for me. It is a Coun-
1972) — the experience of cil first—it goes to a dedi-
many years in the newspaper cated Jew. It recognizes ex-
business. He began as a stu- cellence in a profession
dent editor of the University which is aware as never be-
of Michigan Daily, continu- fore of the need for excel-
ing in journalism with the lence."

Award Money for Interns

TORONTO (JTA) — Philip
Slomovitz, editor of The Jew-
ish News of Detroit, winner
of the first annual Smolar
Award for Excellence in Jew-
ish Journalism, donated part
of his award—a $500 check—
to the Jewish Telegraphic
Agency's journalism intern
program. The other part of
the award, a plaque, "will
be cherished al rosh simhati,
above many other of my
joys," he said.

Addressing some 2,000
delegates and guests attend-
ing the banquet of the 41st
General Assembly of the
Council of Jewish Federation
and Welfare Funds, Slomo-
vitz said the check "repre-
sents a challenge to help
aspiring young Jewish jour-
nalists enter the field where
they are so vitally needed to
ensure continuity."

He noted that this chal-
lenge was met two years
ago when he and Robert H.

Arnow, president of the JTA,
initiated the intern program.
Since then, six young people
have •articpiated in the pro-
gram, working for periods
from three to five months in
the JTA editorial office in
New York, four in Detroit
for The Jewish News, and
one at the Jewish Advocate
in Boston. The Boston in-
ternee, Earl Lefkowitz, was
one of the five finalists in the
competition for the Smolar
Award.
his
recalling
Slomovitz,
own early days as a journal-
ist for the University of
Michigan Daily when a Sig-
ma Delta Chi editorial prize
of $10 provided means "for
an occasional extra bowl of
soup during student days,"
said that the $500 check is
"my contribution to the
JTA's intern program which
fills a vital role in helping
to replenish the field of Jew-
ish journalism with new, tal-
ented and dedicated people."

Rabin Assesses Middle East Situation at CJF
Assembly; Zuckerman Outlines UJA Challenges

Paul Zuckerman is shown here addressing the general assembly
of the Council of Jewish Federations and Welfare Funds session on over-
seas conditions. On the right are Max M. Fisher, who is retiring as CJF
president, and the principal speaker at that session, Israel Ambassador
Itzhak Rabin. On the left, with glasses on forehead, is Raymond Epstein,
Chicago leader, who presided at that session.

56—Friday, Nov. 17, 1972

THE DETROIT JEWISH NEWS

TORONTO — In an assessment of the
future of the Middle East, Itzhak Rabin,
Israel's ambassador to the United States,
assured more than 1,800 Jewish communal
leaders from the United States and Canada
that "peace will come when our Arab neigh-
bors become reconciled to Israel as an inde-
pendent state with defensible borders."
In a major address at the 41st general
assembly of the Council of Jewish Federa-
tions and Welfare Funds at the Royal York
Hotel here, Israel's ambassador said the
fate of the Middle East hinged on four pos-
sibilities: a resumption of hostilities; a
transition from war to peace through nego-
tiation; a series of interim agreements mov-
ing toward settlement; and a continuation
of the status-quo of the last two Years.
"We believe," he said, "that because of
the present strength of Israel, the strong
support Israel is receiving from the United
States and the Soviet withdrawal from
Egypt, that the military threat has been re-
duced, although not eliminated."
Pointing out that the status-quo of the
past 21/2 years could go on indefinitely, the
ambassador said, "As a soldier for the past
27 years, I am convinced that bombing and
machine-gunning are not the best back-
ground music for peace. The best assurance
we have that peace may come is the lack of
full-scale hostilities."

Earlier, at the plenary session chaired
by Raymond Epstein, Chicago, chairman of
CJF's national committee on overseas serv-
ices, Louis .1. Fox, Baltimore, former CJF

president and chairman of the National
Conference on Soviet Jewry, briefly re-
viewed national and world efforts to call
attention to the plight of Soviet Jewry.

Epstein declared that the continued pol-
icies of the Soviet Union toward its Jewish
citizens "make it clear that Jewish com-
munities must redouble their efforts and
their energies to help our Russian Jewish
brethren in their heroic and historic strug-
gle."
The CJF assemblage also heard Paul
Zuckerman of Detroit, general chairman of
the United Jewish Appeal, outline the "chal-
lenges which the Jews of Canada and the
United States have accepted to meet the
needs of Jews in Israel and 30 other nations
across the world."
Zuckerman said: "I think that we can
already delineate a profound change in
Western Jewry. Even though we cannot
yet predict what the ultimate result will
be, there is in the Jewish communities in
Canada and the United States a new sense
of purpose, a new sense of pride, and above
all, a re-awakened sense of unity with Jews
throughout the world. There is a very beau-

tiful, very profound recognition that we
are indeed Am-Ehad—one people."
Recalling that Jewish tradition teaches
that "each and every Jew is personally
responsible for every other Jew on the face
of the earth," Zuckerman said, "and if you
accept that responsibility, if you share the
burden, then you earn the right to share the
pride."

