Baruch Dayan the truth: With great and deep sorrow came the news this morning of the passing of the late Rabbi Yitzhak Nachsoni, one of the founders of the ultra-orthodox media in Israel, who had recently fallen ill and was 69 years old at the time of his death.
Rabbi Yitzhak Nachshoni is a second generation of pen-pullers and public opinion shapers in the ultra-orthodox public who authored books and was a book writer and master of writing.
Born to his father, the late Rabbi Yehuda Nachsoni (Razmibash) who was one of the leaders of PA, who was the editor of the newspaper ‘Shaarim’, the author of well-known books, whose articles were among the most read, and which charted the path of the Agudath Israel workers movement.
Rabbi Yitzhak began his studies at the Tel Aviv Center for Independent Education in Bnei Brak. In the 5th grade, he transferred to the Tel Aviv Yeshiva, and from there he continued to the Yeshuv HaSheev Yeshiva, where he made his first leap to the position of editor at the Hitoli Underground Newspaper. which was published in preparation for Purim. In the strict Yeshiva, the newspaper could have resulted in severe punishment to the point of expulsion from the yeshiva, but the head of the yeshiva, Rabbi Yehuda Kolidetsky ztzel, recognized the potential and preferred not to give it up. This is how he became, in fact, the one who opened the way for Nachshoni to continue writing and editing.
He began his professional career as a young man precisely in the national religious youth newspaper ‘Ba’in’, a newspaper considered to be elitist and Nachshoni, in which he represented the ultra-orthodox side. The newspaper was edited by Yitzhak Rekanti, later a television personality and director of the Ma’ale film school.
Together with Nachsoni, Haim Zisovitz, the former minister Bnei Alon and Amona Plai, who later became his wife and became known as the writer Amona Alon, wrote in the newspaper, and another list of young people who over the years have occupied a place in the media and public sphere.
After finishing his studies at the ‘Yishuv Ha’iv’ yeshiva, he continued for one ‘Zaman’ at the ‘Itari’ yeshiva and then moved to the ‘Hebron’ yeshiva – where he liked the leaders of the yeshiva and was one of their close associates. At the same time, his media instinct grew and he became involved in the programs of the tradition department at ‘Voice of Israel’, and was even one of the first editors of the Hasidic ‘Singing Parade’, which was a new concept in radio programs at the time and set the standards for the success of Hasidic music. Later he also participated in the ‘Evening Manchat’ program – the first religious current affairs program.
However, he attributed his professionalism and success as a reporter and editor mainly to his time serving in the IDF. It was a year after the Yom Kippur War, when Nachsoni decided to try his luck and become the first ultra-Orthodox to pass the exams for the military station. He passed them successfully, and for 8 years served As a reporter and editor at the military station, and at the same time served as spokesman for the military rabbinate.
The commander of the Gali of the IDF at the time, Alon Shalio, who later became editor of Yedioth Ahronoth and news editor of Channel 2, took him under his wing – precisely because he was ultra-Orthodox, Shalio found the energetic young man a special challenge, and saw it as a personal mission to train him as a high-level journalist. No Many people know that Nachshoni went through this training in the class that produced many of the most respected media figures in the general media, including Abri Gilad, Yaakov Ilon, Erez Tal, Kobi Midan, etc. Nachshoni maintains contact with some of them to this day.
When he was released from the IDF, he decided to direct all the skill and experience he had gained to his natural media environment. Together with the veteran journalist Israel Katsober, he founded the first independent commercial weekly in the ultra-orthodox public – ‘Yom HaShashi’. For 18 years, the newspaper appeared every week, and the interest it aroused determined the The agenda, as well as the rivets for the weekly ultra-orthodox press.
Rabbi Yitzhak Nachshoni trained a cadre of journalists, editors and communicators who are today at the forefront of ultra-Orthodox media. His professional ‘sons’ include: Benjamin Lipkin, Yaakov Rivlin, Kobi Arieli, Asher Zuckerman, Avi Rosen, Yedidia Meir, Aharon Granot and many more, including Nitzan Chen, formerly the political correspondent of Channel One (‘Get Out’) and today manager Government Press Office.
During part of the ‘Sixth Day’ period, Nachshoni simultaneously also held the position of chief editor of the programs on Kol Chai radio – which was then the pioneer of radio stations for the religious public.
After Yom Shashi, Nachshoni edited for Rabbi Amnon Yitzchak the two weekly editions he published, Shofar News for the secular public and Arba Kanaf for the religious public.
For a decade, Nachshoni edited the three editions of the newspaper ‘The Center of Affairs’: Bnei Brak and the Center, Jerusalem and the Zone, and the northern edition ‘Centre of Affairs in the North’. Indeed, since he assumed his position, the newspaper has taken a place of honor at the top of the ultra-orthodox press in Israel.
Nachsoni bought his publication mainly due to his witty abilities in creating headlines, sometimes through puns, use of parentheses or phrases with double meaning. In the past, he published a current affairs column in ‘Bahadari Haredim’. And in the last two years he has written a column in the newspaper ‘Mishpa’.
He left behind a blessed generation of righteous people. Among his sons: Yehuda, the CEO of the ‘Mishpa’ group, Kobi, a journalist on the website Weint, Aharleh, the famous music producer, and Hanoch Nachshoni. His brother, the genius Rabbi Moshe Nachshoni, is the rabbi of the ultra-Orthodox community in Rishon Lezion.
May his soul be bundled in the bundle of life.
