Jonathan Sacerdoti

Sacerdoti is a graduate of Oxford University[2] having studied English Language and Literature at Balliol College, Oxford. He has appeared as a reporter or expert analyst on international TV channels including Sky News, BBC News, ITV news, Channel 4 News, Al Jazeera English, Fox News, NDTV and France 24. He had his first byline in a national newspaper when he was 17 years old, writing for The Daily Telegraph.[3]

He worked as a television producer on the Channel 4 breakfast news programme RI:SE[4] and on the Channel 5 news discussion programme The Wright Stuff.[5] He also worked as a development producer for various production companies, including Endemol, where he worked on the development of the UK version of Deal or No Deal.[6] Between 2005 and 2006, he worked at ITV, and then at Shine TV until 2007.[7] He also set up his own communications and design practice, Sacerdoti Creative Consultancy.[8]

Sacerdoti briefly worked as director of public affairs at the Zionist Federation in 2010[9] before working in 2011-2012 as a director of the now-defunct Institute for Middle Eastern Democracy.

Sacerdoti is now a journalist for Israeli channel i24news.[10]

He was a founding trustee of the charity Campaign Against Antisemitism and its Director of Communications until August 2016.[11][12][13]

Sacerdoti is a trustee of the Simon Wiesenthal Centre's United Kingdom branch.[14]

He is on the council of The Montefiore Endowment, a charity which administers the endowment of the 19th century British philanthropist Sir Moses Montefiore.[15] He also represented the Spanish and Portuguese Jews' Congregation on the Board of Deputies of British Jews and has been a member of its International Division.[16]

Sacerdoti has spoken both as a keynote speaker and as a panellist at international conferences organised by Harvard University, National Chengchi University in Taiwan, the American University in Dubai and Keio University in Tokyo.[17][18] He has given lectures on the nature of terrorism in Europe.[19] He has debated at the Oxford and Cambridge Unions.[20]

On 14 November 2012, BBC News interviewed Sacerdoti following the commencement of Operation Pillar of Defense. After a viewer complaint, a BBC investigation found Sacerdoti's involvement on the BBC to be "in keeping with the requirements of due impartiality in such matters,"[21] whilst also noting that "Mr Sacerdoti was introduced as the Director of the Institute for Middle Eastern Democracy, and it was not made clear that he is an active proponent of the Israeli viewpoint." [21]

In 2001 Sacerdoti was awarded the Oxford University OxTALENT prize for IT and literature.[7]

In 2010 he was awarded the World Zionist Organization's "Herzl Award".[16]