50 Influential Jews: Media Influencers - No. 33

US-Jewish journalists Bari Weiss, Ben Shapiro, and Jake Trapper all fight antisemitism and Israel-bashing with their platforms, despite the wide gap between their ideologies and partisan views.

 
 Ben Shapiro, Bari Weiss, and Jake Trapper. (photo credit: MARC ISRAEL SELLEM, REUTERS, SAM BLOOM)
Ben Shapiro, Bari Weiss, and Jake Trapper.
(photo credit: MARC ISRAEL SELLEM, REUTERS, SAM BLOOM)

Despite the wide gaps in their ideologies, these three American journalists successfully use their prominent platforms of influence to combat antisemitism, Israel-bashing and other forms of hatred. 

No. 32: Russell F. Robinson >>

No. 34: Fran Drescher and Aleeza Ben Shalom >>

Full list >>

Jake Tapper

Jake Tapper, CNN’s lead DC anchor and host of The Lead with Jake Tapper, has been a prominent figure for many years and is the best-selling fiction author of the 2023 thriller novel All the Demons Are Here. With Jewish chutzpah guiding him, he remains one of the most accepted and authentic of American journalism’s go-to voices. 

Ben Shapiro

Ben Shapiro, a conservative commentator for The Daily Wire, has also had quite the year. Besides his large-scale visit with Canadian “manosphere” superstar Jordan Peterson to Israel last October, he has earned a massive following on social media with short, flagrant sound bites (like butting in on the Kanye West and Candace Owens antisemitic outrage).

Bari Weiss

After resigning from The New York Times in 2020, Bari Weiss founded The Free Press media company, with which she scored significant coups in the past year, such as an interview with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, her secret “Twitter Files” endeavor, and “The Witch Trials of J.K. Rowling.”

Together, Tapper, Shapiro and Weiss are a formidable force in American journalism.