Louis Keene

Visit Rwanda Expands To U.S. Sports With Clippers And Rams Sponsorships Visit Rwanda becomes the first African tourism brand to sponsor NBA and NFL teams, joining the LA Clippers and Rams in a landmark partnership.

I'm pleased to learn that the Clippers, tired of fending off allegations related to previous jersey sponsor Aspiration, have partnered with a new, totally uncontroversial entity going forward.
www.forbes.com/sites/shaney...

Is there a prefix that includes all kinds of "-washing"s (pinkwashing, greenwashing, sportswashing etc)? The best I can come up with is culturewashing but it's not exactly right.

In Charlie Kirk, Orthodox Jews found a champion — and a wedge Jewish conservatives — especially Orthodox Jews — saw Kirk as a good kind of crusader, even if Jews on the left were collateral damage.

I tried to explain why some in the Orthodox Jewish community have been treating Charlie Kirk like mashiach.
forward.com/news/770722/...

Is this hotel Elul-washing? A rabbi blows the whistle on Qatari High Holiday hosts Rabbi Pini Dunner is petitioning a colleague to relocate High Holiday prayer services from a Beverly Hills hotel owned by Qatari sheikhs.

Sometimes you write a story hoping it will change the world. Sometimes you just want to coin a term in the headline.
forward.com/fast-forward...

Is this hotel Elul-washing? A rabbi blows the whistle on Qatari High Holiday hosts Rabbi Pini Dunner is petitioning a colleague to relocate High Holiday prayer services from a Beverly Hills hotel owned by Qatari sheikhs.

Sometimes you write a story hoping it will change the world. Sometimes you just want to coin a term in the headline.
forward.com/fast-forward...

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This is really smart, original stuff, and only a section from our coverage.

You can go to this tag page to read all the Forward's coverage of Charlie Kirk (which of course did not start last week):

forward.com/tag/charlie-kirk

Israel is being blamed for Charlie Kirk’s death. Here’s what that conspiracy theory says about the far right’s divide Dueling conservative factions are trying to claim Kirk as either a champion of Israel or a growing threat to the country.

And @arnorosenfeld.bsky.social saw the conservative divide over Israel politics being mapped onto Charlie Kirk following the assassination:
forward.com/news/antisem...

From @miraefox.bsky.social on what Charlie Kirk meant when he talked about keeping a "Jewish Sabbath":
forward.com/culture/7690...

Was Charlie Kirk a martyr? Here’s why Christians are divided and Jews should care Evangelical leaders are casting Charlie Kirk as a Christian martyr, while other pastors reject that framing, warning it deepens America’s divisions.

I'm proud of @forward.com's coverage of the Charlie Kirk assassination and will thread a few of the follow-ups we have published so far on the national news story.

From @benyamincohen.bsky.social on perceptions of Kirk as a "martyr" and that debate's Jewish implications:
forward.com/news/769333/...

Forty years later, we need 'The Golden Girls' now more than ever 'The Golden Girls' Jewish soul gave humor and heart to issues other shows refused to touch; its take on bigotry still rings true.

This morning's palate cleanser is from @forward.com's Olivia Haynie, on the Jewishness of 'The Golden Girls': forward.com/culture/film...

There are now Charlie Kirk memorial yarmulkes being advertised on Instagram, underscoring the beatification of the right-wing activist in a large segment of the Jewish community.

A new kaffiyeh policy is designed to help divided Jews pray together. Is this the Jewish future? The traditional-egalitarian independent minyan movement is thriving in Brooklyn. But the war in Israel has put their values to the test.

“It feels important for people to show what their politics are, especially as Jews, when the narrative is that Judaism is Zionism, Zionism is Judaism & Jews have loyalty to the state of Israel. I fully get why people want to say, like, No, not me, though.”
Via @louiskeene.bsky.social @forward.com

very clear that these ai enhance tools are a scourge

A new kaffiyeh policy is designed to help divided Jews pray together. Is this the Jewish future? The traditional-egalitarian independent minyan movement is thriving in Brooklyn. But the war in Israel has put their values to the test.

I wrote about the growth, and growing pains, of traditional-egalitarian Judaism:
forward.com/news/767221/...

Instagram post from Holocaust Museum LA with six panels. Messages include: “‘Never again’ can’t only mean never again for Jews.” “Never again for anyone.” “Jews must not let past trauma silence our conscience.” “Standing with humanity honors our people.” “To be Jewish is to remember and to act.”

holocaustmuseumla HOLOCAUST MUSEUM LA, THE FIRST SURVIVOR-FOUNDED AND OLDEST HOLOCAUST MUSEUM IN THE COUNTRY, IS COMMITTED TO ITS CORE MISSION TO EDUCATE, COMMEMORATE, AND INSPIRE. WE RECENTLY POSTED AN ITEM ON SOCIAL MEDIA THAT WAS PART OF A PRE-PLANNED SOCIAL MEDIA CAMPAIGN INTENDED TO PROMOTE INCLUSIVITY AND COMMUNITY THAT WAS EASILY OPEN TO MISINTERPRETATION BY SOME TO BE A POLITICAL STATEMENT REFLECTING THE ONGOING SITUATION IN THE MIDDLE EAST. THAT WAS NOT OUR INTENT. IT HAS BEEN REMOVED TO AVOID ANY FURTHER CONFUSION. WE PROMISE TO DO BETTER AND WE WILL ENSURE THAT POSTS IN THE FUTURE ARE MORE THOUGHTFULLY DESIGNED AND THOROUGHLY VETTED. WE HAVE TAKEN ACTIONS INTERNALLY TO ENSURE OUR MESSAGE ALWAYS REMAINS CLEAR AND REFLECTIVE OF OUR MISSION TO INSPIRE HUMANITY THROUGH TRUTH. 167 41 minutes ago

On Thursday, the Holocaust Museum LA posted “'Never again' can’t only mean never again for Jews” on instagram. It’s notable because they would be recognizing the genocide in Gaza.

Anyway, they pulled it down today saying, “we promise to do better.”

Wait, what?!

A "Zero" "Net" "Emissions" Clippers Arena A regulatory bait and switch, and three million trees go missing.

ICYMI (and you may have, because this website did not exist when I wrote it), I also took a look at the sketchy math behind the Clippers arena's net-zero emissions claim.

You could tell it was a scam long before Kawhi Leonard put a shovel in the ground.
unstatable.substack.com/p/a-zero-net...

The fraudster at the center of an NBA scandal once proclaimed 'tzedek tzedek tirdof' Revelations about corrupt investor Joe Sanberg could mean trouble for the Los Angeles Clippers and its owner, Steve Ballmer

I blogged about Joe Sanberg, the prison-bound social justice entrepreneur at the center of the scandal embroiling the Clippers and Kawhi Leonard.

This marks (I think) a professional first for me – the reasonable inclusion of a Getty photo I appear in. Click to see it!
forward.com/fast-forward...

Coldplay welcomed Israeli fans onstage ‘as equal humans.’ Why are some Jewish people mad? Coldplay singer Chris Martin welcomed Israeli fans onstage then was criticized for also welcoming Palestinians.

leave chris martin alone
forward.com/fast-forward...

when you're searching getty images and see the one

‘Be a human being about this’: Ritchie Torres, Adam Friedland and a sensational confrontation over the Israel-Hamas War Adam Friedland’s Ritchie Torres interview delivered a sensational exchange between an avowed Zionist and a Jewish critic of the war in Gaza.

I blogged about the Adam Friedland/Ritchie Torres interview — a sensational, longform encounter between an American Jewish critic of the war and one of its staunchest proponents.
forward.com/fast-forward...

It's the golden age of 'Josh' In politics, sports and culture, Joshes are hot. It’s a sign of generational change.

Not mentioned in this story: A pair of Joshes currently run the Burnley midfield.
www.nbcnews.com/politics/pol...

'What happened Chetanyahu?' NBA star sucked into Gaza culture wars over workout video Chet Holmgren has been pejoratively nicknamed "Chetanyahu" after a video circulated of him practicing in a gym that hung Israeli flags.

I have blogged about Chet Holmgren's new nickname and the silly way he acquired it.
forward.com/news/sports/...

100% online poisoning

'Anne Frank, Superstar'? A satirical musical reimagines the Holocaust victim as a symbol of wokeness. - Jewish Telegraphic Agency "Slam Frank" — assuming it's real — turns Anne Frank's diary into a satire about the discourse around inclusivity.

I genuinely do not get creating a musical using an actual victim of the Holocaust to parody wokeness in a moment when progressive ideology is being crushed and claims of antisemitism are not only contested but increasingly laughed at.
www.jta.org/2025/08/21/c...

80 Modern Orthodox rabbis call for ‘moral clarity’ in the face of Gaza humanitarian crisis “Hamas’s sins and crimes do not relieve the government of Israel of its obligations to make whatever efforts are necessary to prevent mass starvation,” the rabbis write.

This letter is not only a rebuke of Israel's war in Gaza, though it certainly is that.

It is also a rejection of the prevailing, expansionist vision of Religious Zionism by rabbis who identify with that movement but not those ideas.
forward.com/fast-forward...

Another interesting thing is the framing of Chabad as a denomination and not just a movement!

Jews connected to Chabad are ‘surging’ more than in other denominations, JFNA survey finds Poll does not show why the Hasidic movement has seen more engagement, but JFNA’s chief impact and growth officer says there are lessons other groups can learn

Numbers to cite in your coverage of Chabad's rapidly growing influence on Jewish life, belief and practice around the world.
ejewishphilanthropy.com/jews-connect...

Do you go to a Halachic Egal or Trad Egal minyan? I'd love to hear from you for a story I'm working on. Chat me here or email: keene at forward dot com
-Louis