Simcha Jacobovici

Simcha Jacobovici (pronEng|ˈsɪmxə jəˈkoʊboʊvɪtʃ) is an award-winning, controversial documentary film director and producer. An Israeli-born Canadian, he holds a B.A. in Philosophy from McGill University and an M.A. in International Relations from the University of Toronto. He currently hosts the "The Naked Archaeologist" on VisionTV in Canada and The History Channel International in the U.S.

Awards

His numerous awards include a Gold Medal from the International Documentary Festival of Nyon, a certificate of Special Merit from the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences in Los Angeles, a Genie Award, three U.S. Cable Ace Awards, two Gemini Awards, an Alfred I. Dupont-Columbia University Award, a British Broadcast Award, a Royal Television Society Award and the Edward R. Murrow Award. Jacobovici has also won the Emmy for "Outstanding Investigative Journalism" an unprecedented three times (1996, 1997 and 2007).

Filmography

Jacobovici's documentaries include:

* "James, Brother of Jesus?"
* "The Exodus Decoded"
* "Falasha: Exile of the Black Jews"
* "Deadly Currents"
* "Hollywoodism: Jews, Movies & the American Dream"
* "Quest for the Lost Tribes"
* "The Struma"
* "The Lost Tomb of Jesus"
* "Charging the Rhino"

Controversy over Misleading Media

Following a symposium at Princeton University in January 2008, the media interest in the Talpiot tomb was reignited, including the devotion of extensive coverage by both "Time" magazine [ [http://www.time.com/time/world/article/0,8599,1704299,00.html Jesus 'Tomb' Controversy Reopened - TIME ] ] and CNN. [ [http://edition.cnn.com/video/#/video/world/2008/01/18/wedeman.revisiting.jesus.tomb.cnn Video - Breaking News Videos from CNN.com ] ] In particular, Jacobovici issued statements to the press claiming that the symposium had re-opened the issue of whether the Talpiot tomb was the Jesus family tomb, as argued by Jacaobovic's documentary, "The Lost Tomb of Jesus". Jacaobovici was quoted as saying that he felt "totally vindicated" by the conference's conclusions. [ [http://www.marketwire.com/press-release/J9-Communications-811301.html Princeton Conference Vindicates Associated Producers James Cameron and Simcha Jacobovici on "Lost Tomb of Jesus" ] ] The media coverage and Simcha's comments provoked controversy and allegations of deception.

Many scholars present at the symposium accused Jacobovici and James Cameron of misleading the media with their claim that the symposium re-opened their theory as viable. One group wrote in an open letter that Jacobovici and Cameron's claims of support from the symposium could be "nothing further from the truth", and that "the majority of scholars in attendance — including all of the archaeologists and epigraphers who presented papers relating to the tomb — either reject the identification of the Talpiot tomb as belonging to Jesus’ family or find this claim highly speculative." [ [http://dukereligion.blogspot.com/2008/01/talpiot-tomb-controversy-revisited.html "Duke University Religion Department: The Talpiot Tomb Controversy Revisited"]

Joe Zias, Senior Curator of Archaeology/Anthropology for the Israel Antiquities Authority 1972-1997, cited a leaked, memo issued from James Tabor before the symposium, as proof of "outside intervention by Simcha and Tabor in order to distort the agenda and skew the proceedings in a way that was favorable to their pre-conceived plan." [ [http://www.joezias.com/talpiot.htm] [] ] . Geza Vermes issued a statement saying that the arguments for the Talpiot tomb are "not just unconvincing but insignificant" and asserting that "discounting a handful, headed by James Tabor and Simcha Jacobovici, the maker of the documentary, "The Lost Tomb of Jesus", most of the fifty or so participants shared this opinion." [ [http://www.ptsem.edu/NEWS/talpiottombsymposium.php 2007 Alumni/ae Reunion ] ]

Princeton Theological Seminary issued a letter following the controversy, quoting the chair of the seminar as having said, "Most archaeologists, epigraphers, and other scientists argued persuasively that there is no reason to conclude that the Talpiot Tomb was Jesus’ tomb," and reiterated concerns that:

"the press following the symposium gave almost the exact opposite impression, stating, instead, that the conference proceedings gave credence to the identification of the Talpiot tomb with a putative family tomb of Jesus of Nazareth. As is abundantly clear from the statements to the contrary that have been issued since the symposium by many of the participants, such representations are patently false and blatantly misrepresent the spirit and scholarly content of the deliberations." [ [http://www.ptsem.edu/NEWS/talpiottombsymposium.php 2007 Alumni/ae Reunion ] ]

Personal life

Simcha is an Orthodox Jew. [ [http://www.simchaj.ca/blog/AboutSimcha/_archives/2004/4/3/905445.html SimchaJ Online :: The Faith and Films of Simcha Jacobovici ] ] He is married to Nicole Kornberg and has 4 girls and a boy. [ [http://www.simchaj.ca/blog/AboutSimcha/_archives/2004/4/3/905445.html The Faith and Films of Simcha Jacobovici] from www.simchaj.ca Accessed April 3, 2008]

Bibliography

* "The Jesus Family Tomb: The Discovery, the Investigation, and the Evidence That Could Change History" (with Charles R. Pellegrino)

References

External links

*imdb name|id=0414302|name=Simcha Jacobovici
* [http://www.jesusfamilytomb.com/ Official Site for "The Lost Tomb of Jesus"]
* [http://www.cbc.ca/thehour/video.php?id=1437 Simcha Jacobovici Interview]