Award winning actress Susan Sarandon speaking at a pro-Palestinian rally in New York City. — Others
ACTRESS Debra Messing had a question: How do you share commentary about the Israel-Hamas conflict online in ways that will best influence others?
She posed the question a few months ago in a room with about 30 other Jewish activists, allies and influencers participating in a one-day workshop held in Los Angeles by the Tel Aviv Institute, a non-profit that aims to combat antisemitism primarily via social media.
In particular, Messing wanted to know if a video she had reposted on Instagram, which showed young Palestinian children expressing their hatred for Jews, was constructive.
“That’s very inflammatory,” she said. “Would you say don’t share any of that kind of content?”
The answer came from Hen Mazzig, the workshop’s leader, who has become something of a whisperer to Hollywood stars about how to best use social media platforms to express support for Israel and fight discrimination against Jews.
“No, you should,” Mazzig, 34, replied. “I think the framing is important. If you were to say, ‘Look at these people – there is no way to peacefully finish the job,’ that is not going to affect anyone. But if you come from a point of view of saying, ‘My heart is broken for these kids, no kid should be raised this way, I want a better future for Palestinian children,’ that would go so much further.”
He paused, then added, “Next time, you will text me, and we will work it out.”
Mazzig: ‘What I do is work on their statements, making them as bulletproof as possible.’ — ©2024 The New York Times Company
Since Oct 7 of last year, Hollywood has struggled with how to handle the Middle East conflict. Usually a monolith in its support of progressive causes, the industry has become deeply divided.
Influencers and celebrities alike have been sharply criticised for social media posts that have been interpreted as either antisemitic or Islamophobic. Clients have been fired by agents, and agents have parted ways with agencies. Livelihoods have been compromised. Former allies have become enemies.
That is where Mazzig has stepped in, and seen his influence grow. His follower counts have ballooned. His posts have been shared by celebrities including Pink, Amy Schumer and Gal Gadot. And they’ve been turned into billboards in New York’s Times Square.
Mazzig is a staunch supporter of Israel, and often emphasises to his followers that he believes both Hamas and Hezbollah are terrorist organisations. Yet he is not afraid to criticise Israel’s prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, and the Israeli government for its mistakes both before and during the war. And he frequently reiterates his support for Palestinians’ right to self-determination.
Mazzig was born in Israel to two refugees: an Iraqi mother and a Tunisian father. He spent five years in the Israeli military, as a humanitarian officer in the West Bank, intermediating among international organisations, Palestinian civilians and the Israeli army. He then worked in the United States for Hillel International, a Jewish student group, and StandWithUs, a pro-Israel advocacy group, before returning to Israel and starting his own social media company. He co-founded the Tel Aviv Institute in 2019 as a way to reach younger people who are finding most of their information through influencers.
Mazzig says his messaging, which reaches his 318,000 Instagram followers and 243,000 followers on the social platform X and has been reshared millions of times, is about pursuing peace.
“My entire life, I was told to be ashamed of part of my identity: my parents, my gay identity, being progressive, being pro-Israel, being Zionist, being pro-Palestine,” he said. “There were always some people who took issue with me.”
“I think that is what prepared me to deal with this time where a lot of people are very angry, and there’s a lot of hate, and there’s a lot of shame,” he added. “But I know how to be confident in standing up for what’s right without compromising my values.”
Not everything he says and does receives full support among his pro-Israel followers – particularly when he weighed in on the US presidential race.
Mazzig said he thought his appeal to so many high-profile celebrities derived from his kindness-first message.
Actress Emmanuelle Chriqui said she had felt demoralised after her Instagram account, which always had an activist bent to it, dropped by 65,000 followers when she started speaking out about Israel and antisemitism. Then she attended the Tel Aviv Institute’s three-day workshop in Israel in March, an event she called “life changing.”
Now whenever she has an interview or is giving a speech – as she did recently when she introduced a humanitarian award as part of the Creative Coalition, a nonprofit advocacy group for the arts and entertainment industry – she checks in with Mazzig beforehand.
“He’s invaluable, because what we don’t want to do is contribute to the misinformation and propaganda,” she said. “He’s unflappable. He just never loses his sense of humanity. I’m sure he is angry, but it just never clouds his overall intention.”
This year, actress Selma Blair posted a comment supporting an Instagram post from Abraham Hamra, a Syrian Jewish activist who criticised US Representatives Cori Bush and Rashida Tlaib for voting against a measure that would prevent participants in the Oct 7 massacre from immigrating to the US. Many people viewed Blair’s comments as Islamophobic. She quickly deleted the remark and issued an apology. But the damage was done: Her agents and publicists soon fired her.
Mazzig said he had spoken with Blair to ensure that she understood how to express her views without offending others if she decided to craft additional messages online. “What I do is work on their statements, making them as bulletproof as possible,” he said.
Van Jones, a CNN commentator, said he followed Mazzig online and understood why so many people in Hollywood had gravitated to him.
“Whether you agree with him or disagree with him, I think he comes across as someone who respects opposing points of view,” Jones said. “I just think we need some voices that live beyond the obvious binaries.” – ©2024 The New York Times Company
This article originally appeared in The New York Times.
