In a Lament of the Old ‘Establishment,’ Hollywood Encounters Anti-Semitism

The reaction to my pointing out that Hollywood’s feudal power structure is predominantly Jewish has been wholly misconstrued. If I have injured any feelings, I unconditionally apologize--but certainly no anti-Semitism was intended, or felt. Indeed, the editor of The Spectator, Dominic Lawson, who published the piece, is Jewish, as is his deputy. Moreover, the historical data I referred to, along with words that have been objected to, came directly from Neal Gabler’s book.

The purpose of the article was to contrast and challenge Vanity Fair’s criteria of the New Establishment with the original definition of the Establishment by the Spectator in 1955--that an Establishment is, by definition, exclusionary and exercises its power socially. Since the magazine made so much play about the background and Protestant religion of the old Wasp Establishment, it seemed legitimate to observe the majority of the “New Boy Network” are Jewish.

My point was to rebut the idea that moguls featured as “the leaders of the computer, entertainment and communication industries” were, in fact, a real Establishment--observing that the common background the majority shared was that they are Jewish. Far from constituting a “cabal,” this fact amounted to the equivalent influence of--to quote one Hollywood executive--”(English) public schoolboys working in the City.”

The subtext is that a double standard seems to exist. While it is acceptable for a Jewish writer, like Gabler, to use words like “Jewish cabal,” when a Brit uses the same phrase, he is publicly barbecued. Likewise, while Hollywood movies regularly stereotype or caricature blacks, Brits, gays, Italians and so on, when an outsider uses a phrase like “fiercely competitive” he is publicly attacked.*