The Jerusalem Post
Gershon Agron arrived in Palestine from the United States on the 1st of November 1931 to take over editorship of The Palestine Bulletin. This publication had been founded by Jacob Landau in January 1925 under the auspices of the Jewish Telegraphic Agency. A dispute between Landau and Agronsky erupted in March 1932, leading to a joint agreement to transform the Bulletin into a new newspaper. The final issue of The Palestine Bulletin appeared on the 30th of November 1932. The very next day, the 1st of December 1932, The Palestine Post Incorporating The Palestine Bulletin hit the streets. On the 25th of April 1933, the masthead was reduced to just The Palestine Post, though its founding year remained listed as 1925. During the British Mandate period, the paper openly opposed restrictions on Jewish immigration. Zionist institutions viewed the newspaper as one of the most effective means of exerting influence on British authorities.
On the evening of the 1st of February 1948, a stolen British police car loaded with half a ton of TNT pulled up before the Jerusalem office of the Palestine Post on Solel Street. The driver of a second car arrived minutes later, lit the fuse, and drove away from the scene. Four people died in the explosion, including three employees who worked for the newspaper. A typesetter and two residents living in a nearby block of flats were among the casualties. Dozens of others suffered injuries when the printing press was destroyed. Arab leader Abd al-Qadir al-Husayni claimed responsibility for the attack, but historian Uri Milstein reported that Nazi-trained Fawzi el-Kutub prepared the bomb. Two British army deserters named Cpl. Peter Mersden and Capt. Eddie Brown assisted in the operation. The morning edition appeared in a reduced format of only two pages, printed at a small print shop nearby.
In 1950, two years after the State of Israel was declared, the paper changed its name to The Jerusalem Post. Until 1989, the publication supported the Labor Party. Conrad Black purchased the paper through Hollinger Inc. in 1989, triggering a noticeable shift toward the political right. Several journalists resigned after Black's takeover and went on to found The Jerusalem Report magazine. Bret Stephens joined as editor-in-chief in 2002, bringing a politically conservative perspective from The Wall Street Journal. David Horovitz took over as editor-in-chief on the 1st of October 2004 and moved the paper back toward the center. On the 16th of November 2004, Hollinger sold the newspaper to Mirkaei Tikshoret Limited, owned by Eli Azur. CanWest Global Communications had announced an agreement to take a 50 percent stake but lost the arbitration case against Azur. Yaakov Katz succeeded Steve Linde as editor-in-chief in April 2016.
In January 2022, pro-Iranian actors hacked the JPost.com website homepage, replacing it with an image depicting a bullet shot from a red ring on a finger. The caption read "we are close to you where you do not think about it" during the second anniversary of the Assassination of Qasem Soleimani. In early December 2023, during the Gaza war, the newspaper published an article falsely claiming that a dead 5-month-old Palestinian baby from Gaza was a doll. The Jerusalem Post later retracted the report with a statement on X, saying the article did not meet editorial standards. A three-year investigation by +972 Magazine revealed that the Israeli Ministry of Strategic Affairs paid large sums to publish content against human rights movements. Reuters reported that The Jerusalem Post and other outlets had published op-eds written by non-existent people. Twitter suspended accounts belonging to these fake personas used to sneak opinion pieces aligned with UAE government policy.
JPost.com launched in December 1996 as a separate entity managed by different teams than the daily newspaper. Its staff is based in Tel Aviv while the newspaper offices remain located in Jerusalem. The site contains archives dating back to 1989, powered by ProQuest for article purchases. A Premium Zone protects additional articles behind a pay-wall since September 2014. The Jerusalem Post Lite was founded on the 16th of July 2009 by CEO Ronit Hassin Hochman to improve English skills among readers. This weekly publication has 32 pages, with three dedicated to advertisements. Each page includes a dictionary translating specific words into Hebrew and phonetic pronunciation. Readers receive difficulty ratings ranging from one to three stars per article. The paper also publishes IVRIT magazine edited by Sarit Yalov, targeting those learning Hebrew through vowel notation systems. An annual list of the world's 50 most influential Jews has been released every Rosh Hashanah since 2010.
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Common questions
When was The Jerusalem Post founded and what was its original name?
The newspaper traces its founding to January 1925 when Jacob Landau established The Palestine Bulletin. It officially launched as The Palestine Post on the 1st of December 1932 after incorporating The Palestine Bulletin.
Who died in the bombing of The Jerusalem Post office on the 1st of February 1948?
Four people died in the explosion including three employees who worked for the newspaper and a typesetter. Two residents living in a nearby block of flats were also among the casualties.
Why did The Jerusalem Post change its name from The Palestine Post in 1950?
The paper changed its name to The Jerusalem Post two years after the State of Israel was declared in 1950. This renaming occurred during the British Mandate period before the statehood declaration.
What happened to The Jerusalem Post website in January 2022?
Pro-Iranian actors hacked JPost.com homepage replacing it with an image depicting a bullet shot from a red ring on a finger. The caption read we are close to you where you do not think about it during the second anniversary of the Assassination of Qasem Soleimani.
When did David Horovitz become editor-in-chief of The Jerusalem Post?
David Horovitz took over as editor-in-chief on the 1st of October 2004 and moved the paper back toward the center. He succeeded Bret Stephens who had joined as editor-in-chief in 2002.