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The Honest Take

HonestReporting
Israel
United Nations
Honestreporting
Jews
Hebron Massacre
Grand Mufti Of Jerusalem, Hajj Amin Al-Husseini
Nakba
Muslim Brotherhood
Wikipedia
Israel Security
Human Rights Council
Nazism and the Palestinian Movement
Media Bias
Iran
American Intellectual Antisemitism
DEI
Identity Politics
Media Bias and Journalism.
Al-Aqsa Mosque
New York Times

The Honest Take is HonestReporting's long-form interview series bringing together leading voices to examine how Israel and the Middle East are covered — and what goes into creating and feeding the narratives that target Israel. Each episode features leading experts, analysts, researchers, and journalists who work on media bias, terrorism, NGO accountability, foreign influence, antisemitism, and in... more

PublishesTwice weeklyEpisodes17Founded3 months ago
Number of ListenersCategories
News CommentaryNewsPolitics

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Artwork for The Honest Take

Latest Episodes

She ran out of a Strasbourg grocery store so fast she left her purse in the shopping cart. Rawan Osman was in her mid-twenties, newly arrived from Lebanon, and had just seen four Orthodox Jewish men for the first time in her life. Then she went back ... more

Matti Friedman spent five years inside the AP's Jerusalem bureau. He explains the staffing anomaly, the peace offer that was ordered killed, and the Hamas censorship AP readers were never told about.

We throw around the phrase "media bias" as though... more

PEN America — the country's oldest and most prestigious free-expression organization — put out a report documenting how Jewish and Israeli writers are being frozen out of publishing. Within 24 hours, its own president had resigned over it. Not becaus... more

Every American of a certain age remembers exactly where they were on September 11th. For Israelis, that morning was October 7th. Brigadier General Amir Avivi — a thirty-year IDF veteran, former deputy commander of the Gaza Division, and founder of Is... more

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Recent Guests

Matti Friedman
Journalist, author and former AP Jerusalem Bureau editor
The Free Press and The Atlantic
Episode: The Familiar Villain: Gaza, Activist Journalism, and the Unspoken Rules of Reporting on Israel | With Matti Friedman
Meg Keene
Writer and activist documenting publishing discrimination against Jewish authors; author of The Big Five publishing anecdotes and Field Notes for the Brave
Field Notes for the Brave / Substack
Episode: No One Wants a Jewish Protagonist: Inside Publishing's New Blacklist | With Meg Keene
Amir Avivi
Brig. Gen. (ret.) of the IDF, founder of IDSF (HaBit Honest Team)
IDF/IDSF
Episode: There Is Nowhere Else: Israeli Security, Zionist Pride, and the Doctrine That Broke on October 7 | With Brig. Gen. Amir Avivi
Ben M. Freeman
Founder of the Modern Jewish Pride Movement; author of the Jewish Pride Trilogy
Modern Jewish Pride Movement
Episode: Broken Mirror: Internalized Antisemitism, the Non-Jewish Gaze, and Why Jewish Pride is the Answer to Jew Hate | With Ben M. Freeman
Henry Green
Founder of Sephardi Voices, Professor at the University of Miami
Sephardi Voices / University of Miami
Episode: The Second Exodus: How 850,000 Jews Were Erased From the Arab World | With Dr. Henry Green
Eve Barlow
Journalist and commentator on antisemitism, Zionism, LGBTQ+ issues
Blacklisted newsletter / Substack
Episode: Pride and Prejudice: How Antisemitism Captured LGBTQ+ Spaces | With Eve Barlow
Charles Asher Small
Founding director of Isgap (Institute for the Study of Global Antisemitism and Policy)
Isgap
Episode: Follow the Money: How the Muslim Brotherhood Bought a Seat in America's Schools | With Dr. Charles Asher Small
Natasha Hausdorff
Legal Director, UK Lawyers for Israel
UK Lawyers for Israel
Episode: The Lawfare War Against Israel: Why the West Is Next | With Natasha Hausdorff
Rachel O'Donoghue
HonestReporting journalist
HonestReporting
Episode: Kristof's Unbelievable Tale | With Rachel O'Donoghue *Live Broadcast May 12, 2026*

Host

Ben Chertoff
Host of The Honest Take; HonestReporting

Reviews

4.9 out of 5 stars from 27 ratings
  • excellent unbiased interviews

    This podcast is incredibly honest and unbiased. Ben Chertoff lets the guests speak candidly and guides the conversation in a natural way to unfold the storytelling. The latest episode a out exodus of sephardic Jews was so informative.

    Apple Podcasts
    5
    harginged311
    United States2 months ago
  • The Other Side of the Nakba

    Honest & Refreshing: the topic is in constant battle of whose recollection of history is accurate on both sides, usually clouded with a lot of emotion. This interview is refreshingly open minded in discussing both sides of the coin, and Ben Chertoff asks the right questions at the right time. Really well done.

    Apple Podcasts
    5
    RAB924
    United States3 months ago
  • Finally, a long-form that actually goes somewhere.

    Most podcasts on Israel and antisemitism stop at the headline. *The Honest Take* keeps going. Ben Chertoff lets guests think out loud - and asks the follow-up that other hosts skip. The Yossi Klein Halevi conversation alone is worth the subscribe. Smart booking, real interviews, no posturing. The kind of show I send to friends and actually expect them to listen.

    Apple Podcasts
    5
    ShadowRider2061
    United States3 months ago

Chart Rankings

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Talking Points

Recent interactions between the hosts and their guests.

The Familiar Villain: Gaza, Activist Journalism, and the Unspoken Rules of Reporting on Israel | With Matti Friedman
Q: How does activist journalism affect how stories are told about Gaza and the broader region?
Activist journalism reframes stories to advance a justice-oriented narrative, often casting Israel as a villain and Palestinians as victims, which can distort reality and limit nuanced understanding of complex events.
The Familiar Villain: Gaza, Activist Journalism, and the Unspoken Rules of Reporting on Israel | With Matti Friedman
Q: What was the Olmert peace offer incident a window into, and why was the story dropped?
The Olmert offer was a substantial peace proposal that would have changed the narrative about Israel and the Palestinians, but reporting it would conflict with the broader narrative of Israeli uncooperativeness, so the editors suppressed the piece.
The Familiar Villain: Gaza, Activist Journalism, and the Unspoken Rules of Reporting on Israel | With Matti Friedman
Q: Can you explain quickly the power that the AP has and how it acts as an upstream influence?
The AP is foundational to the news ecosystem; it feeds tens of thousands of outlets with articles, photos, and footage, so its framing and scope influence what becomes the default worldview on many topics, including Israel.
The Second Exodus: How 850,000 Jews Were Erased From the Arab World | With Dr. Henry Green
Q: What is the impact of these stories on contemporary discourse and policy?
The stories aim to shift memory and recognition, advocate for truth and justice, and foster broader dialogue in international bodies, potentially influencing reparations discussions and the broader acceptance of Sephardi experiences within the Israeli and global Jewish narratives.
The Second Exodus: How 850,000 Jews Were Erased From the Arab World | With Dr. Henry Green
Q: How do you conduct an interview and find people with these experiences?
I approach people from specific communities (Iraq, Morocco, Libya), ask who else could be interviewed, and then follow families and networks to preserve a broad set of testimonies tied to historical events like the Farhud and modern exoduses.

Audience Metrics

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Frequently Asked Questions About The Honest Take

What is The Honest Take about and what kind of topics does it cover?

The long-form interview series concentrates on media coverage of Israel and the Middle East, examining how narratives are shaped, amplified, and sometimes distorted in Western newsrooms. Episodes frequently feature journalists, researchers, and analysts who dissect reporting practices, editorial processes, and the role of NGOs, international bodies, and foreign influence in shaping public perception. Notable threads across episodes include rigorous sourcing and fact-checking, debates over casualty reporting and narratives like Nakba or antisemitism on campus, and calls for accountability and transparency in journalism. The format often centers around critical examinations of media bias, with guests offering historical context, evidence-base... more

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Which podcasts are similar to The Honest Take?

These podcasts share a similar audience with The Honest Take:

1. Ask Haviv Anything
2. Boundless Insights - with Aviva Klompas
3. What Matters Now
4. EylON the Record
5. Unpacking Israeli History

How many episodes of The Honest Take are there?

The Honest Take launched 3 months ago and published 17 episodes to date. You can find more information about this podcast including rankings, audience demographics and engagement in our podcast database.

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What guests have appeared on The Honest Take?

Recent guests on The Honest Take include:

1. Matti Friedman
2. Meg Keene
3. Amir Avivi
4. Ben M. Freeman
5. Henry Green
6. Eve Barlow
7. Charles Asher Small
8. Natasha Hausdorff

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