Dov Alfon
Encyclopedia
'Dov Alfon' (born Sousse
1961) is a French-Israeli journalist
and editor
. From 2008 to 2011, he was editor in chief of Haaretz
, the oldest newspaper in Hebrew and one of the most respected newspapers in the world. Before that he was the chief editor of Kinneret Zmora-Bitan Dvir
, the biggest literary publishing house in Israel.
. He published his first short story at the age of nine in the comics weekly Spirou(Magazine
) while attending the College Henry IV in the fifth arrondissement. On his 11th birthday his parents settled in Israel and he moved to Ashdod, completing his studies at the Rogozin Makif Guimel secondary school. He later wrote about his fractured childhood in a short autobiographical piece, "The Civilization Teacher".
Less than a year later, he was invited by Tom Segev and Nahum Barnea to join a new journalistic venture, the political weekly "Koteret Rashit".
Dov Alfon joined Ha'aretz in 1989, where he wrote a weekly column, "Kivun Harouah", about the relations between culture and money. He was appointed editor of the cultural page in 1992, turning it to the daily section "Galleria". He launched several new journalistic formats for Haaretz along the years among them "Captain Internet", a weekly column supposedly written by a fictive grandfather investigating the new medium (1994), "The Marker Magazine", a business monthly (2001) and the re-designed Haaretz Weekend Magazine, where he was editor from 1992 to 1998.
Dov Alfon was chief editor of the Kinneret-Zmora_Bitan publishing house (2004–2008) and hosted "Nispah Tarbut", a weekly cultural show on Israel's Channel 2 television (2002–2007).
He was appointed editor in chief of Haaretz on May 1, 2008. He is the fifth editor in the 90 years of the newspaper's existence.
He is a regular guest in international forums about the Internet culture and new publishing.
Jury chairman, Jerusalem Prize for the Freedom of the Individual in Society, 2009 (awarded to Haruki Murakami)
Ophir Prize nominee for best TV Cultural show (with editor Irit Dolev), 2005, 2006, 2008
Gold Medal in the magazine category from the American Illustrators Society (1997, with Israeli artist Hanoch Piven
).
Editor of the Year Award, the Israeli Press Association (1994, 1996)
Sousse
Sousse is a city in Tunisia. Located 140 km south of the capital Tunis, the city has 173,047 inhabitants . Sousse is in the central-east of the country, on the Gulf of Hammamet, which is a part of the Mediterranean Sea. The name may be of Berber origin: similar names are found in Libya and in...
1961) is a French-Israeli journalist
Journalist
A journalist collects and distributes news and other information. A journalist's work is referred to as journalism.A reporter is a type of journalist who researchs, writes, and reports on information to be presented in mass media, including print media , electronic media , and digital media A...
and editor
Editor
The term editor may refer to:As a person who does editing:* Editor in chief, having final responsibility for a publication's operations and policies* Copy editing, making formatting changes and other improvements to text...
. From 2008 to 2011, he was editor in chief of Haaretz
Haaretz
Haaretz is Israel's oldest daily newspaper. It was founded in 1918 and is now published in both Hebrew and English in Berliner format. The English edition is published and sold together with the International Herald Tribune. Both Hebrew and English editions can be read on the Internet...
, the oldest newspaper in Hebrew and one of the most respected newspapers in the world. Before that he was the chief editor of Kinneret Zmora-Bitan Dvir
Kinneret Zmora-Bitan Dvir
-History:The company's oldest imprint, Dvir, was founded in Odessa in 1919 by Hayyim Nahman Bialik. After the Russian Revolution, Dvir moved to Berlin and in 1924, to Palestine. Machbarot Lesifrut, the company's imprint for world literature in translation, was established by Israel Zmora in 1939....
, the biggest literary publishing house in Israel.
Biography
Dov Alfon grew up in rue Mouffetard in ParisParis
Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
. He published his first short story at the age of nine in the comics weekly Spirou(Magazine
Spirou (magazine)
Spirou magazine is a weekly Belgian comics magazine published by the Dupuis company...
) while attending the College Henry IV in the fifth arrondissement. On his 11th birthday his parents settled in Israel and he moved to Ashdod, completing his studies at the Rogozin Makif Guimel secondary school. He later wrote about his fractured childhood in a short autobiographical piece, "The Civilization Teacher".
Media career
After completion of his military service in the technological intelligence unit of the IDF, in 1983, he attended the Hebrew University of Jerusalem where he began writing in "Pi Ha'aton", the high-profile campus journal.Less than a year later, he was invited by Tom Segev and Nahum Barnea to join a new journalistic venture, the political weekly "Koteret Rashit".
Dov Alfon joined Ha'aretz in 1989, where he wrote a weekly column, "Kivun Harouah", about the relations between culture and money. He was appointed editor of the cultural page in 1992, turning it to the daily section "Galleria". He launched several new journalistic formats for Haaretz along the years among them "Captain Internet", a weekly column supposedly written by a fictive grandfather investigating the new medium (1994), "The Marker Magazine", a business monthly (2001) and the re-designed Haaretz Weekend Magazine, where he was editor from 1992 to 1998.
Dov Alfon was chief editor of the Kinneret-Zmora_Bitan publishing house (2004–2008) and hosted "Nispah Tarbut", a weekly cultural show on Israel's Channel 2 television (2002–2007).
He was appointed editor in chief of Haaretz on May 1, 2008. He is the fifth editor in the 90 years of the newspaper's existence.
He is a regular guest in international forums about the Internet culture and new publishing.
The Authors Issue
Mixing his publishing credentials with his journalistic position, Dov Alfon launched in 2008 a special issue of Haaretz where top-authors replace for a day all the newspaper reporters. The experiment drew extensive coverage worldwide.Awards
Recipient of the Peace Through Media Award 2011 from the International Council for Press and Broadcasting, LondonJury chairman, Jerusalem Prize for the Freedom of the Individual in Society, 2009 (awarded to Haruki Murakami)
Ophir Prize nominee for best TV Cultural show (with editor Irit Dolev), 2005, 2006, 2008
Gold Medal in the magazine category from the American Illustrators Society (1997, with Israeli artist Hanoch Piven
Hanoch Piven
Hanoch Piven is an Israeli mixed media artist best known for his celebrity caricatures.-History:Hanoch Piven was born in Uruguay and raised in Israel. He studied at the School of Visual Arts in New York, graduating in 1992...
).
Editor of the Year Award, the Israeli Press Association (1994, 1996)