Hershel Shanks: A passion for Jewish journalism.
magazine and offered to write a column on
archaeology. He was turned down, but the
editor suggested that instead, he start a
magazine devoted to the subject.
"I really didn't know how to go about
starting a magazine. I was told that you
just get a prospectus together, go to a
bunch of philanthropists, Jewish com-
munal leaders, and some scholars. You get
articles from one, money from another, and
you've got a magazine. I did this, but only
got one response, from a great scholar who
used to date my mother-in-law. So I wrote
them all a second memo and said 'thanks
to your heartwarming response, we now
have enough to go ahead with the first
issue: "
That first issue of Biblical Archaeology
Review, he says, was basically just a pam-
' phlet, with one black and white picture. By
contrast, a recent issue ran 60 pages, with
lavish color photography, heavy paper, and
the kind of classy production that
characterizes magazines like Smithsonian.
Shanks added Bible Review to his
publishing mini-empire in 1984. The sec-
ond magazine, which closely resembles
Biblical Archaeology Review in style and
format, focuses on scholarly analyses of
the Biblical texts interpreted for the lay
reader. Again, there is a heavy emphasis
on high-quality pictures.
Shanks reveals that neither magazine is
running in the black—but in the publishing
industry, this is not the only measure of
success. Shanks has succeeded in develop-
ing a substantial and loyal readership, and
his publications are respected for their in-
tegrity and quality.
Still, his two earlier publishing ventures
did not entirely satisfy him. "I always
wanted to speak to a Jewish audience," he
says. "This has always been a part of my
motivation. I expected to be able to do this
with Biblical Archaeology Review—but it
didn't work out that way."
Both magazines have failed to attract
"I always wanted to speak
to a Jewish audience. This
has always been a part of
my motivation:'
the kind of substantial Jewish audience
that Shanks expected. The advertising in
both gives a hint of this; there are ads for
Christian study Bibles and concordances,
for medallic art featuring both Christian
and Jewish themes, for books produced by
far-out fundamentalist sects.
In fact, Shanks says, less than ten per-
cent of his readers are Jewish. "Jews are
not interested in the Bible; they may be the
People of the Book in the sense that they
wrote it, but they're not today. If you ask
an Israeli guide if his Jewish groups know
more about the Bible than his Christian
groups, the answer would be clear." A
similar imbalance, he says, holds true for
interest in archeology.
In one recent issue of Bible Review, an
article compares various Bible
dictionaries—including several produced
by publishers known mostly for fundamen-
talist Christian books. In another, a
Catholic priest writes of "The Jewishness
of Jesus:' an analysis of the Jewish context
of Christianity's most basic doctrines
based primarily on Jewish texts. A com-
panion article, written by a Jewish scholar,
uses ancient texts to trace the divergence
of the two religions.
Biblical discussions between Christians
and Jews tend to be touchy; Shanks seems
to walk this theological tight-rope in a way
that stimulates discussion without stirring
up intolerance.
"On both sides I think I probably lose
some people," he admits. "There are some
Jews who are so sensitive about anything
Christian that they don't want these
magazines; on the other side, there are
Christians who say the way we sometimes
question the absoluteness of the Bible is
offensive. If you start worrying about of-
fending people, you're through."
The fact of Shanks' mostly Christian au-
dience was a major reason for acquiring
Moment. "In my other magazines, 1 end-
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